Balsam Fir MNB

Botany

Fir is an evergreen tree native to North America and Europe. The trees range in height from 40-80  feet (12-24 meters)  for the fir balsam and 100-300 feet (30.5- 91.5 meters)  for the fir needle. The leaves are needlelike, and the wood is soft and odorless. Fir trees are popularly used as a Christmas tree because their needles remain on the branches long after the tree has been cut. There are approximately forty species of the fir tree. The life span of the needles on the tree is up to ten years.

Holmes, Peter, et al. Aromatica: a Clinical Guide to Essential Oil Therapeutics. Singing Dragon, an Imprint of Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2016. p.56

Plant part benefits

The needles allow the tree  to breathe. They also protect the tree from water loss and support photosynthesis.  We can use oils made from needles to support respiration and deeper breathing. These oils can also protect us from infection.  They can help us breath when we feel stress and anxiety, while supporting expansion and creativity. Needle oils can also support us when we get into over-thinking and need a calm, clear mind.

The fir needle oils are produced from the steam distillation from the leaves and twigs of various Abies species.

Battaglia, Salvatore. The Complete Guide to Aromatherapy – Foundations & Materia Medica. Third ed., I, Black Pepper Creative Pty Ltd, 2018.

1 kg oil yield from 100 kg of the fresh needles (good yield)

35.5 oz yield from 100,000 grams of fresh needles

1 drop oil yield from 4.72 grams

Holmes, Peter, et al. Aromatica: a Clinical Guide to Essential Oil Therapeutics. Singing Dragon, an Imprint of Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2016.

Calming, soothing, sedative, emotionally uplifting

Antispasmodic; regulating and balancing action on the sympathetic nervous system; anti-inflammatory; effective on skin rashes and irritations.They are adaptogenic (helping the body adjust to, and deal with stress)

Airborne deodorizers and purifiers; decongestant (respiratory and muscular); some are rubefacients and provide an analgesic effect where muscle pain and stiffness are present; skin penetration enhancers; inhibit the accumulation of toxins; many have anti-inflammatory effects; many are antiviral; reduce stagnation, supporting movement or change in the body.

Tend to be uplifting and energetic

Bornyl acetate  5.71 %  Analgesic, anti-inflammatory, cns depressant, sedative.

  • Β-pinene  33.32%     Anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antispasmodic
  • Α-pinene  17.28 %    Anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antifungal (candida), antispasmodic, antiviral
  • Δ-3-carene  13.04%  Anti-inflammatory, inhibits acetylcholinesterase, mucolytic prevents bone loss 
  • Limonene  6.76 %     Helps activate white blood cells, Immune supportive, antiviral, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antioxidant, antitumoral, antiulcerogenic, skin penetration enhancer
  • Camphene  6.17  %   Antioxidant, mucolytic, General tonic, analgesic
Balsam-fir

Analgesic, antiseptic, expectorant, insecticidal

Battaglia, Salvatore. The Complete Guide to Aromatherapy – Foundations & Materia Medica. Third ed., I, Black Pepper Creative Pty Ltd, 2018.

Purifying; Calming, Vapors open the sinus and breathing passages; deepens the breathing, Mood uplifting; refreshing, reviving, improves mental clarity; lessens pain.

Schiller, Carol, et al. The Aromatherapy Encyclopedia: a Concise Guide to over 395 Plant Oils. Basic Health, 2013.
  • Purifying; removes lymphatic deposits from the body, helps in the reduction of cellulite.
  • Calming
  • Vapors open the sinus and breathing passages; deepens the breathing
  • Mood uplifting; refreshing, reviving, improves mental clarity;  encourages communication.
  • Lessens pain.
Schiller, Carol, et al. The Aromatherapy Encyclopedia: a Concise Guide to over 395 Plant Oils. Basic Health, 2013.

Analgesic, antiseptic, antitussive, astringent, cicatrizant, diuretic, expectorant, purgative, sedative, stimulant (respiratory system), tonic, vulnerary. 

Schiller, Carol, et al. The Aromatherapy Encyclopedia: a Concise Guide to over 395 Plant Oils. Basic Health, 2013.

Balsam Fir offers the unique duality of enhancing spiritual awareness while maintaining a connection to the physical world. It offers support while facing difficult situations or obstacles in life.  Balsam Fir encourages to tap into one’s inner wisdom by amplifying a sense of clarity to make better decisions.

Balsam Fir revitalizes and encourages mental strength. It sooths and warms your mind during intense or overwhelming emotions or situations that can disrupt one’s emotional wellbeing.  

Revitalize and empower

Emotional comfort and perseverance

Clarity for wise decisions

Resilience in adversity

  • Revitalizing, strengthening, stimulating, detoxifying, drying, potentially warming,
  • Stabilizes and restores energy, and raises it to the head.
Holmes, Peter, et al. Aromatica: a Clinical Guide to Essential Oil Therapeutics. Singing Dragon, an Imprint of Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2016. P.56

Fir needle oil is said to encourage protection, clarity of mind and spirit. It allows us to achieve strength and inner unity. It is considered elevating and grounding and is recommended for the third eye and crown chakras. 

Keim Loughran & Bull state that fir needle  oil teaches us to release energy blocks caused by unbalanced emotions. They recommend using it whenever we experience strong emotions that make us feel ungrounded, or when we are afraid of what we are feeling.

Battaglia, Salvatore. The Complete Guide to Aromatherapy – Foundations & Materia Medica. Third ed., I, Black Pepper Creative Pty Ltd, 2018.

4th Chakra- unconditional love, 6th Chakra – perspective, clarity, expansive, grounding, meditative, protective.

“Fir Balsam Essential Oil – Canada.” Stillpoint Aromatics, www.stillpointaromatics.com/fir-balsam-Abies-balsamea-essential-oil-aromatherapy.

For relief of bronchitis with cough, consider blending needles oils with essential oils such as aniseed, cajeput, cypress, peppermint eucalyptus, 1,8-cineole rich eucalyptus, niaouli, pine, ravintsara or spruce.

For the relief of muscular aches and pains, consider blending fir needle oils with essential oils such as cajeput, ginger, kunzea, spike lavender, peppermint or rosemary. 

As a nervous system restorative, consider blending fir needle oils with essential oils such as bergamot, coriander seed, fragonia, lavender, lemon, cold-pressed lime or rosemary.

Battaglia, Salvatore. The Complete Guide to Aromatherapy – Foundations & Materia Medica. Third ed., I, Black Pepper Creative Pty Ltd, 2018.
  • Musculoskeletal: for inflammation and pain, rheumatism, consider blending with bornyl acetate-rich hemolock, black, red and white spruce; Scots, piine, rosemary, spike lavender, lavandin, also galbanum, blackcurrant bud, bergamot, lemon.
  • Respiratory: for inflammation, cough, prevention of infection, blend with bornyl acetate-rich oils such as hemlock, black, red and white spruce, labdanum, cistus, rosemary, thyme, Greek sage, blue gum, cypress, long pepper, also rosalina (type 2), fragonia, anthopogon. 
  • Skin: for acne, inflammation, consider blending Korean fir with Japanese cedar, Lebanese cedar, rosemary, poplar bud. 
  • Psyche: for anxiety, prevention of mental fatigue, relaxation, consider blending with hemlock, Douglas fir, hiba wood, juniper berry, frankincense, rosemary, lemon, black pepper. 
  • Energetic:hemlock, spruce and fir oils have been used in traditional spiritual and health-sustaining practices. Folk wisdom indicated that this kind of conifer and their oils conferred strength and resilience, clarity and purpose, and happiness; and that they acted specifically on the lungs, joints and muscles, often being used to alleviate respiratory problems, rheumatism and arthritis.

Rhind, Jennifer. Aromatherapeutic Blending: Essential Oils in Synergy. Singing Dragon, 2016.

The American Indians used every part of the tree for a different remedy. The inner bark was prepared into a tea to alleviate chest pains, the twigs were used as a laxative, the powdered roots were placed in the mouth to soothe sores,  and  the needles were used in seat baths. Balsam needles and resin were inhaled in the sauna to help relieve colds and coughs. The resin was also applied to the skin to heal burns, sores, cuts, wounds, inflammation and relieve congestion and itching.The resin has been used as a source of turpentine, an adhesive for microscope slides and optical lenses, and as ingredient in hemorrhoid ointments. Dentists use the balsam to seal root canals.

Holmes, Peter, et al. Aromatica: a Clinical Guide to Essential Oil Therapeutics. Singing Dragon, an Imprint of Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2016. p.56

Hazards: Skin sensitization if oxidized. Cautions: Old or oxidized oils should be avoided.

Tisserand, Robert, et al. Essential Oil Safety: a Guide for Health Care Professionals. Churchill Livingstone/Elsevier, 2014.

3-4 years

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