Section 1 - CHEMICAL PRODUCT AND COMPANY IDENTIFICATION

PRODUCT NAME

VERBENA OIL

NFPA

PRODUCT USE

Essential oil from Lippia citriodora Kunth. (fam. Verbenaceae Lemon verbena oil is
extracted from Lippia citriodora - also known as Aloysia triphylla (also known as A.
citriodora, Lippia triphylla and Verbena triphylla) from the Verbenaceae family and is
also known as verbena or herb Louisa. Medicine

SYNONYMS

"Lippia citriodora Kunth. (fam. Verbenaceae)", "alloysia triphylla", "lippio citriodora",
"lemon verbena oil"

Section 2 - HAZARDS IDENTIFICATION

CANADIAN WHMIS SYMBOLS

EMERGENCY OVERVIEW

RISK

Contact with combustible material may cause fire.
May form explosive peroxides.
Irritating to skin.
May cause SENSITIZATION by skin contact.
HARMFUL - May cause lung damage if swallowed.
Vapors may cause dizziness or suffocation.

POTENTIAL HEALTH EFFECTS

ACUTE HEALTH EFFECTS

SWALLOWED

  Swallowing of the liquid may cause aspiration into the lungs with the risk of chemical pneumonitis; serious consequences may result. (ICSC13733).  Accidental ingestion of the material may be damaging to the health of the individual.  Terpenes and their oxygen-containing counterparts, the terpenoids, produce a variety of physiological effects. Pine oil monoterpenes, for example, produce a haemorrhagic gastritis characterised by stomach pain and bleeding and vomiting. Systemic effects of pine oils include weakness and central nervous depression, excitement, loss of balance, headache, with hypothermia and respiratory failure.  Central nervous system (CNS) depression may include general discomfort, symptoms of giddiness, headache, dizziness, nausea, anaesthetic effects, slowed reaction time, slurred speech and may progress to unconsciousness. Serious poisonings may result in respiratory depression and may be fatal.  Exposure to aldehydes causes neurological symptoms such as headache, drowsiness, dizziness, seizures, depression and coma. Cardiovascular involvement may result in increased heart rate, collapse and low blood pressure; respiratory effects include throat spasms, irritation, difficulty swallowing, pulmonary edema and an asthma-like condition. Gastrointestinal signs include nausea, blood in vomit, diarrhea, ulcers and abdominal pain. Massive exposures may damage the kidney and liver.  An estimated acceptable daily intake of up to 500 microgram per kilogram body weight was estimated for the terpene/ terpenoids, citral, geranyl acetate, citronellol, linalool and linaly acetate (expressed as citral).  Twenty-third Report of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives  Tech. Rep. Ser. Wld Hlth Org. No. 648, 1980.  

EYE

  If applied to the eyes, this material causes severe eye damage.  Precautions for handling reactive unsaturated aldehydes should be the same as for those of highly active eye and pulmonary irritants such as phosgene. Sufficient engineering controls, with monitoring where possible, are of importance.  

SKIN

  The material may cause moderate inflammation of the skin either following direct contact or after a delay of some time. Repeated exposure can cause contact dermatitis which is characterized by redness, swelling and blistering.  Skin contact is not thought to have harmful health effects, however the material may still produce health damage following entry through wounds, lesions or abrasions.  Essential oils irritate the skin and redden it, causing at first warmth and smarting, followed by some local loss of sensation. They have been used to treat chronic inflammatory conditions and to relieve neuralgia and rheumatic pain. Care should be taken to avoid blistering; these oils may also produce sensitization.  Entry into the blood-stream, through, for example, cuts, abrasions or lesions, may produce systemic injury with harmful effects. Examine the skin prior to the use of the material and ensure that any external damage is suitably protected.  

INHALED

  Inhalation may produce health damage*.  Inhalation of vapours may cause drowsiness and dizziness. This may be accompanied by narcosis, reduced alertness, loss of reflexes, lack of coordination and vertigo.  There is some evidence to suggest that the material can cause respiratory irritation in some persons. The body's response to such irritation can cause further lung damage.  Inhalation of essential oil volatiles may cause dizziness, rapid, shallow breathing, increased heart rate, respiratory irritation, loss of consciousness or convulsions. Urination may stop, and there may be swelling and inflammation of the lungs.  Inhalation of aerosols (mists, fumes), generated by the material during the course of normal handling, may be damaging to the health of the individual.  Exposure to aldehydes causes neurological symptoms such as headache, drowsiness, dizziness, seizures, depression and coma. Cardiovascular involvement may result in increased heart rate, collapse and low blood pressure; respiratory effects include throat spasms, irritation, difficulty swallowing, pulmonary edema and an asthma-like condition. Gastrointestinal signs include nausea, blood in vomit, diarrhea, ulcers and abdominal pain. Massive exposures may damage the kidney and liver.  

CHRONIC HEALTH EFFECTS

  Skin contact with the material is more likely to cause a sensitization reaction in some persons compared to the general population.  Limited evidence suggests that repeated or long-term occupational exposure may produce cumulative health effects involving organs or biochemical systems.  Peroxidisable terpenes and terpenoids should only be used when the level of peroxides is kept to the lowest practicable level, for instance by adding antioxidants at the time of production. Such products should have a peroxide value of less than 10 millimoles peroxide per liter. This requirement is based on the published literature mentioning sensitising properties when containing peroxides.  Sensitization may result in allergic dermatitis responses includingrash, itching, hives or swelling of extremities.  In the presence of air, a number of common flavour and fragrance chemicals can form peroxides surprisingly fast. Antioxidants can in most cases minimise the oxidation.   Fragrance terpenes are generally easily oxidised in air. Non-oxidised limonene, linalool and caryophyllene turned out to be very weak sensitizers, however after oxidation limonene hydroperoxide and linalool hydroperoxide are strong sensitizers. Of the patients tested 2.6% showed positive reaction to oxidised limonene, 1.3% to oxidised linalool, 1.1% to linalool hydroperoxide, 0.5% to oxidised caryophyllene, while testing with caryophyllene oxide and oxidised myrcene resulted in few positive patch tests. 2/3 of the patients reacting positive to oxidised terpenes had fragrance related contact allergy and/or positive history for adverse reactions to fragrances   As well as the hydroperoxides produced by linalol, limonene and delta-3-carene other oxidation and resinification effects progressively causes other fairly major changes in essential oil quality over time. Autoxidation of fragrance terpenes contributes greatly to fragrance allergy, which emphasizes the need of testing with compounds that patients are actually exposed to and not only with the ingredients originally applied in commercial formulations.