Chemicals and Drugs

Volatile Oils

Oils which evaporate readily. The volatile oils occur in aromatic plants, to which they give odor and other characteristics. Most volatile oils consist of a mixture of two or more TERPENES or of a mixture of an eleoptene (the more volatile constituent of a volatile oil) with a stearopten (the more solid constituent). The synonym essential oils refers to the essence of a plant, as its perfume or scent, and not to its indispensability.

National Library of MedicineMedical Subject Headings2026

Structured Summary

Abstract

Oils which evaporate readily. The volatile oils occur in aromatic plants, to which they give odor and other characteristics. Most volatile oils consist of a mixture of two or more TERPENES or of a mixture of an eleoptene (the more volatile constituent of a volatile oil) with a stearopten (the more solid constituent). The synonym essential oils refers to the essence of a plant, as its perfume or scent, and not to its indispensability.

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Synonyms

7 entry terms
  • Essential Oil
  • Oil, Essential
  • Oil, Volatile
  • Oils, Essential
  • Oils, Volatile
  • Volatile Oil
  • Essential Oils

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Aspects Covered

18 allowable subheadings

Indexed with the subheadings administration & dosage, adverse effects, analysis, chemical synthesis, chemistry, classification, economics, history, isolation & purification, metabolism, pharmacokinetics, pharmacology, poisoning, radiation effects, standards, supply & distribution, therapeutic use, toxicity.

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Indexing Annotation

coordinate with source of oil; /ther use: AROMATHERAPY is also available

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References

  1. National Library of Medicine. Volatile Oils. Medical Subject Headings (MeSH). 2026. Unique ID D009822. http://id.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/2026/D009822
  2. Volatile Oils. In: Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essential_oil
  3. Volatile Oils. In: Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q170885