Description Botanical Name: Gaultheria procumbens Common Method of Extraction: Water or Steam Distillation Plant Part Typically Used: Leaves Color: Clear to Pale Yellow Consistency: Thin Perfumery Note: Top Strength of Initial Aroma: Strong Aromatic Description: Crisp, fresh, woody, sweet, birch-like aroma. Wintergreen Essential Oil Uses: Inflammation, pain management, rheumatoid arthritis. Wintergreen is sometimes mistakenly believed to be a member of the mint family partly because it possesses a strong, crisp, mint-like aroma. Wintergreen Essential Oil is typically comprised of at least 96% methyl salicylate, an ester that can be toxic when not used with great care. Wintergreen Essential Oil is praised for its ability to reduce pain and inflammation. However, it must be used sparingly and with immense caution as numerous reports of poisoning have occurred. See the Safety Information section below for more details on contraindications. Salvatore Battaglia writes that Wintergreen Essential Oil is typically produced by first soaking wintergreen leaves in warm water. Interestingly, Battaglia and other sources indicate that methyl salicylate is not present in fresh wintergreen leaves. When the leaves are soaked in water, the methyl salicylate is produced as a result of the decomposition of the leaves.
