Citral is a secondary terpene in cannabis, meaning that it’s present only in small amounts. Additionally, it’s a pair or mixture of two isomers: geranial and neral.
Some of the most common citral uses are in the health and beauty industries, namely to make lotions, cosmetics, and soap. It can also be used in cleaning products due to its pleasant aroma and antimicrobial properties.
Plants, fruits, and spices containing citral have been used in alternative medicine for hundreds if not thousands of years. Some known citral medicinal uses include being an antioxidant, antimicrobial, antifungal, muscle-relaxing, and calming agent
Citral Terpene isolate
Therapeutic Benefits :
1. Antioxidant Effects of Citral
In 2006, researchers decided to evaluate citral’s antioxidant activity against nickel chloride. They concluded that this terpene has antioxidant properties and significantly inhibited the oxidative damage produced by this substance
2.Antimicrobial, Antibacterial, & Antifungal Effects of Citral
Just like most terpenes, citral has antimicrobial, antibacterial, and antifungal properties, and there are plenty of studies proving this.
A 2010 study proved its effectiveness at inactivating Escherichia coli BJ4 bacteria via cell envelope damage .
Another 2010 study went further and studied citral’s antibacterial, antimicrobial, and antifungal activity against a range of microorganisms.
The results were positive for all tests, and researchers even concluded that this terpene is more effective than a few commercial antibiotics against certain types of bacteria .
Later, in 2016, another study was carried out to assess citral’s antimicrobial activity against Cronobacter sakazakii, a food-borne pathogen that can cause severe illness or even death among neonates and infants.
It was concluded that citral does have antimicrobial activity against this pathogen by damaging its cell membranes
3. Muscle Relaxing Agent
Another one of citral’s medicinal uses is acting as a muscle relaxant — a 2002 research study concluded that high doses (200 mg/Kg) of citral could produce this effect .
4. Sleep-Inducing Agent
The same study that assessed citral’s ability to relax muscles observed that it can increase the total sleep time between 2.3 and 3.5 times, depending on the dosage.
They concluded that citral has sedative and motor relaxant effects but that it doesn’t have anxiolytic effects, becoming slightly anxiogenic at doses higher than 200 mg/Kg ]
Chemical properties:
- Color: Clear to pale yellow
- Consistency: Liquid
- Odor: Strong lemon
- Taste: Lemon
- Boiling point: 229ºC
- Flash point: >93.1ºC
- Solubility: In water, 1.34X10+3 mg/L at 27ºC
- Formula: C10H16O
- Density: 0.891-.897 g/cm3 at 15ºC
- Molecular Weight: 152.237 g/mol
Effects :
Effects: Energy, Uplift, Creative
