ARNICA FLOWERS

Perennial herb commonly growing in pastures and mountain areas. A. montana grows wild in Russia, Scandinavia, northern India, and central and northern Europe. A. cordifolia grows wild in the United States, where it is known as mountain tobacco. The plant is 20 to 60 cm tall and has cylindrical rhizomes sprouted with numerous smaller roots, leaves, terminal solitary buds and peripheral ligulate yellow flowers (June to July). The flowers (also rhizomes) are used. Internal and external preparations made from the flowering heads of arnica have been used medicinally for hundreds of years. Arnica has an agreeable, herbaceous, sweet odor, somewhat reminiscent of chamomile, with a slight bitter flavor

Arnica oil is yellow-orange to green-blue; it is obtained by steam distillation of flowers. Arnica root oil is obtained from the rhizomes; it is yellow to dark-yellow and more viscous than arnica oil. Both oils are scarce and expensive. Presumably some of the aromatic principles of the plant are lost in making the essential oil, and for this reason, the absolute, tincture and resinoid are preferred.

A number of flavonoid glycosides have been identified in arnica. Besides these flavonoids, terpenoids, amines, carbohydrates and volatile oils have been detected. Other components found in arnica include bitter compound arnicin, caffeic acid, carotenoids, phytosterols, resin, tannins and anthoxanthine.