Home Ingredients Myrrh (Commiphora molmol)

Myrrh (Commiphora molmol)

Commiphora molmol (syn. Commiphora myrrha)
Evidence Level
Limited
5 Clinical Trials
6 Documented Benefits
2/5 Evidence Score

Myrrh is the aromatic gum resin of Commiphora trees, used for thousands of years in incense, perfume and traditional medicine for wounds, mouth sores, aches and digestive complaints. The EU herbal monograph accepts myrrh tincture only as a traditional rinse or gargle for minor mouth sores and gum inflammation and for dabbing on minor wounds, not as something to swallow. Human evidence for swallowed myrrh is thin: one placebo-controlled study of a branded extract reported relief of everyday aches, and the gut trials tested a blend of myrrh, chamomile and coffee charcoal rather than myrrh alone. A myrrh resin sold in Egypt as a medicine for parasitic worms failed in independent randomized trials. Oral myrrh capsules acted on the uterus in a placebo-controlled trial, so myrrh should be avoided in pregnancy, and it may affect blood sugar and some medicines, including warfarin and cyclosporine.

Studied Dose Oral studies used 200 or 400 mg a day of a furanodiene-rich myrrh extract for 20 days, tablets of 100 mg myrrh with chamomile and coffee charcoal, and 500 mg resin three times daily for 2 weeks (a trial in women after incomplete miscarriage). The EU monograph covers rinse and skin use only.
Active Compound Furanosesquiterpenes (curzerene, furanoeudesma-1,3-diene, lindestrene), other terpenoids, triterpenoids and essential oil.

Benefits

Everyday aches in one placebo-controlled study

In a 20-day randomized, placebo-controlled study of 368 adults with assorted everyday pains, a myrrh extract standardized to furanodienes at 200 or 400 mg a day scored higher than placebo, most clearly at 400 mg. The score rated the extract against each person's usual painkiller rather than measuring pain, and one branded extract was tested.

Supported by Trial 1

Digestive comfort with a myrrh, chamomile and coffee charcoal blend

A tablet blend of myrrh, chamomile and coffee charcoal was compared with the standard medicine mesalazine for 12 months in 96 people with an inflammatory bowel condition in remission; relapse rates did not differ significantly and there was no placebo group. A maker-funded observational study without randomization or placebo reported symptom relief. Myrrh alone was not tested.

Supported by Trial 2

Inflammatory signaling in cell and animal research

In mice, a water extract of myrrh reduced paw swelling and prostaglandin E2, a chemical messenger of inflammation. In human colon cell layers it blocked barrier damage caused by the inflammatory signal TNF alpha, and in gum cells myrrh oil lowered prostaglandin E2 without changing NF-kappaB. No human trial has tested myrrh alone for this.

Supported by Trial 2, Trial 1

Antimicrobial activity in laboratory tests

Myrrh essential oil and some extracts slowed the growth of gum bacteria, Staphylococcus aureus and Candida yeast in test-tube studies, while other extracts showed little activity. These effects need direct contact, which suits rinses and skin use, and a swallowed capsule is not expected to reproduce them.

Supported by Trial 2

Studies of a myrrh drug product in infected populations

A myrrh resin product sold in Egypt as a medicine for two parasitic worm infections reported cure rates near 90 percent in uncontrolled studies. In independent randomized trials it cured about 9 to 16 percent of people, against about 63 to 80 percent for the standard drug praziquantel, and animal studies found no meaningful effect. It is not a substitute for prescribed treatment.

Supported by Trial 4, Trial 3

Wound care in traditional use and a rat study

Myrrh tincture is dabbed on minor wounds in traditional European herbal medicine, a skin use that does not carry over to a swallowed capsule. In a rat study, myrrh in drinking water raised white blood cell counts before and during healing from a skin wound or stomach injury. A rat blood count is not a healing outcome in people.

Supported by Trial 2, Trial 5

Mechanism of action

1

Prostaglandin E2 and gut barrier effects

In mice, myrrh water extract reduced prostaglandin E2 in inflamed paws. In human gum fibroblasts, myrrh oil lowered IL-1 beta driven prostaglandin E2 but did not change NF-kappaB activation, so the common claim that myrrh acts by blocking NF-kappaB was not borne out there. In colon cell layers, myrrh lowered claudin-2 and blocked TNF alpha barrier damage via PI3K and STAT6.

2

Direct-contact antimicrobial activity

Myrrh essential oil and some solvent extracts inhibit bacteria and Candida yeast in test-tube studies, which fits its traditional use in mouth rinses and on the skin. Activity varies widely by extract: in one test a methanol extract showed no zone of inhibition against Candida albicans, Pseudomonas aeruginosa or Escherichia coli.

3

Furanosesquiterpenes and pain pathways

Myrrh's furanosesquiterpenes, including curzerene, furanoeudesma-1,3-diene and lindestrene, give it its scent and are linked to its analgesic effect. A review reports that two of them act on opioid receptors in the central nervous system. The one placebo-controlled human study used an extract standardized to these compounds.

4

Not the same plant as guggul

Myrrh (Commiphora molmol or Commiphora myrrha) and guggul (Commiphora mukul) are different species in the same genus. Guggulsterones, the steroids behind guggul's cholesterol research, come from Commiphora mukul, while myrrh is rich in furanosesquiterpenes. Guggul's lipid evidence does not transfer to myrrh; the separate guggul pages cover that species.

Clinical trials

1
Myrrh extract versus placebo for everyday aches
PubMed

Randomized, placebo-controlled study with concealed allocation and blinded physicians, assessor and statistician: 200 mg or 400 mg a day of MyrLiq, a Commiphora myrrha extract standardized to furanodienes and supplied by its maker Biosfered S.r.l., or placebo, for 20 days. Relief was scored against each volunteer's earlier experience with prescribed painkillers. The authors declared no conflicts of interest. (Germano et al. 2017, Biomed Res Int)

368 adult volunteers aged 18 to over 60: 184 on the extract and 184 on placebo, each group 95 women and 89 men, with headache, fever-related pain, joint pain, muscle aches, lower back pain or menstrual cramps.

Compared with placebo, scores were significantly higher at 400 mg a day for all six pain types; at 200 mg the difference was significant for headache, fever-related pain and menstrual cramps, for joint pain in women only and for lower back pain in men only, and not for muscle aches. The extract did not lower fever, and no side effects were reported. The score rated the extract against each person's earlier prescribed painkiller rather than measuring pain, placebo volunteers who reported symptoms were told to stop and take their painkillers, and more placebo volunteers dropped out (33 against 18).

2
Myrrh, chamomile and coffee charcoal blend versus mesalazine
PubMed

Randomized, double-blind, double-dummy trial over 12 months comparing a herbal preparation of myrrh, chamomile flower dry extract and coffee charcoal with the standard drug mesalazine. The primary endpoint was non-inferiority on a clinical activity index. There was no placebo group. (Langhorst et al. 2013, Aliment Pharmacol Ther)

96 people (51 women) with ulcerative colitis in remission.

Mean activity scores did not differ significantly between groups. Relapse occurred in 25 of 47 people (53 percent) on the herbal blend and 22 of 49 (45 percent) on mesalazine, a difference that was not statistically significant. Tolerability was good. Myrrh was one of three ingredients and there was no placebo group, so the trial cannot show what myrrh alone does.

3
Myrrh drug product versus praziquantel in school children and households
PubMed

Randomized comparison in Egypt: the myrrh resin product Mirazid at 300 mg a day for 3 days versus a single 40 mg/kg dose of praziquantel, with stool egg counts 4 to 6 weeks after treatment. (Botros et al. 2005, Am J Trop Med Hyg)

1,131 Egyptian school children and household members screened; those infected with Schistosoma mansoni were randomized.

Cure rates with the myrrh product were 9.1 percent in children and 8.9 percent in household members, against 62.5 and 79.7 percent with praziquantel. The investigators recommended against using the myrrh product to control this infection.

4
Myrrh drug product in an uncontrolled village field study
PubMed

Field study in Ezbet El-Bakly, Al-Fayoum Governorate, Egypt: 600 mg (two capsules) of the myrrh resin product Mirazid on an empty stomach for 6 days, with clinical and stool follow-up at 2 and 3 months. No comparison group and no blinding. (Abo-Madyan et al. 2004, J Egypt Soc Parasitol)

Villagers found to carry Fasciola liver flukes after 1,019 people were screened (1.7 percent prevalence).

Reported parasitological cure was 88.2 percent at 2 months and 94.1 percent at 3 months with no side effects. With no comparison group the result cannot be weighed against standard treatment, and independent randomized trials of the same product against Schistosoma mansoni found cure rates of about 9 to 16 percent.

5
Myrrh drug product at the maximum recommended dose
PubMed

Field study in an area of low Schistosoma transmission in Egypt: the maximum recommended dose of Mirazid, with egg counts from 4 Kato-Katz slides before treatment compared with stool samples 1 and 2 months later. (Osman et al. 2010, East Mediterr Health J)

27 people infected with Schistosoma mansoni and 16 with Fasciola.

The myrrh product had a low cure rate and produced a negligible reduction in egg counts. The authors warned that prescribing it in Egypt could endanger the achievements of the national control strategy.

Side effects and drug interactions

Common Potential side effects

Digestive and skin reactions: in a maker-funded observational study in which 885 people took a myrrh, chamomile and coffee charcoal blend, two side effects linked to the blend were reported, vomiting and itching.
Allergic skin reactions are listed in the EU herbal monograph for myrrh tincture used in the mouth or on the skin, and a delayed skin reaction diagnosed by patch testing has been described after drinking a traditional Chinese decoction containing myrrh.
Pregnancy: avoid. In a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in 80 women with incomplete miscarriage, 500 mg myrrh capsules three times daily for 2 weeks completed the miscarriage in 82.9 percent against 54.3 percent on placebo, showing that oral myrrh acts on the pregnant uterus. The EU herbal monograph also advises against use in pregnancy.
Breastfeeding: safety has not been established, and the EU herbal monograph does not recommend use during lactation.
Blood sugar: myrrh resin triggered insulin release from isolated mouse and human islets, and a capsule combining myrrh with guggul and Terminalia chebula lowered fasting glucose in women with type 2 diabetes.
Kidney concerns: in a 90-day feeding study in rats, the highest myrrh dose suppressed weight gain and increased relative kidney weight in males, with hyaline droplets in the kidney tubules. The no-adverse-effect level was about 0.85 to 0.95 g per kg of body weight per day, far above supplement intakes, but it is a reason not to take large amounts for long stretches.
Children under 12: the EU herbal monograph does not recommend even rinse or skin use because of a lack of data.

Important Drug interactions

Warfarin: a published case report describes myrrh weakening the anticoagulant effect of warfarin. Anyone taking warfarin should talk to the prescriber and have INR checked before using myrrh.
Diabetes medicines: possible additive effects on blood sugar. Myrrh resin triggered insulin release from isolated islets, and a capsule of myrrh with guggul and Terminalia chebula lowered fasting glucose; myrrh's own share cannot be separated, so monitor levels.
Cyclosporine: in rats, eight days of oral myrrh lowered cyclosporine blood exposure by about 45 percent. Do not combine myrrh with cyclosporine or other narrow-margin drugs without the prescribing team's advice.
Praziquantel or triclabendazole: myrrh is not a substitute. In independent randomized trials a myrrh resin product cured under 16 percent of Schistosoma mansoni infections, against 63 to 80 percent for praziquantel in the same studies.

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Frequently asked questions about Myrrh (Commiphora molmol)

Is myrrh meant to be swallowed or used as a mouth rinse?

The EU herbal monograph accepts myrrh tincture only for traditional use as a rinse or gargle (0.5 to 5 ml in 150 ml of water, three times daily) for minor mouth sores and gum inflammation, or dabbed on minor wounds and small boils. Swallowed myrrh has been tested in only a few human trials, and no oral dose has been established.

Is myrrh the same as guggul?

No. Myrrh comes from Commiphora molmol (Commiphora myrrha) and guggul from Commiphora mukul. Guggul's cholesterol research centers on guggulsterones from Commiphora mukul, and those findings do not apply to myrrh.

Should myrrh be used during pregnancy?

No. In a placebo-controlled trial, 500 mg myrrh capsules three times daily helped complete an incomplete miscarriage, which shows that swallowed myrrh acts on the pregnant uterus. The EU herbal monograph also advises against use in pregnancy and while breastfeeding.

What is Myrrh?

Myrrh is the aromatic gum resin of Commiphora trees, used for thousands of years in incense, perfume and traditional medicine for wounds, mouth sores, aches and digestive complaints.

What is Myrrh used for?

NutraSmarts does not list Myrrh under a health category. What the research covers: In a 20-day randomized, placebo-controlled study of 368 adults with assorted everyday pains, a myrrh extract standardized to furanodienes at 200 or 400 mg a day scored higher than placebo, most clearly at 400 mg.

What is the recommended dosage of Myrrh?

The clinically studied dose is Oral studies used 200 or 400 mg a day of a furanodiene-rich myrrh extract for 20 days, tablets of 100 mg myrrh with chamomile and coffee charcoal, and 500 mg resin three times daily for 2 weeks (a trial in women after incomplete miscarriage). Always follow the product label and check with a healthcare provider for personal advice.

Is Myrrh safe, and does it have side effects?

Side effects and cautions reported for Myrrh include: Digestive and skin reactions: in a maker-funded observational study in which 885 people took a myrrh, chamomile and coffee charcoal blend, two side effects linked to the blend were reported, vomiting and itching. It may also interact with some medications. Myrrh is not right for everyone, so check with a healthcare provider first if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, have a medical condition, or take prescription medication.

Does Myrrh interact with any medications?

Possible interactions include: Warfarin: a published case report describes myrrh weakening the anticoagulant effect of warfarin. Anyone taking warfarin should talk to the prescriber and have INR checked before using myrrh. Diabetes medicines: possible additive effects on blood sugar. If you take prescription medication, check with a pharmacist or doctor before using it.

How strong is the scientific evidence for Myrrh?

NutraSmarts rates the evidence for Myrrh as Limited (2 out of 5). It is backed by 5 study summaries and 28 cited references summarized on this page. A higher rating reflects more, larger, and better-designed human studies.

References(28 citations)

Evidence ratings on NutraSmarts are based on the totality of human clinical research, with emphasis on randomized controlled trials, meta-analyses, and systematic reviews. The references below directly support claims made throughout this page.

  1. Batiha GE, Wasef L, Teibo JO, Shaheen HM, Zakariya AM, Akinfe OA, Teibo TKA, Al-Kuraishy HM, Al-Garbee AI, Alexiou A, Papadakis M Commiphora myrrh: a phytochemical and pharmacological update. Naunyn Schmiedebergs Arch Pharmacol. 2023;396(3):405-420. doi: 10.1007/s00210-022-02325-0.PubMedUsed to support: Narrative review of myrrh's chemistry and reported pharmacology: terpenoids, triterpenoids and essential oil; traditional use for wounds, mouth ulcers, aches and stomach complaints; test-tube antimicrobial activity against Candida albicans and Staphylococcus aureus, with little activity from a methanol extract; and the report that two furanosesquiterpenes act on opioid receptors. It also notes that guggulsterone steroids come from Commiphora mukul. It summarizes mostly laboratory and animal work and does not grade clinical evidence.
  2. Soliman OE, El-Arman M, Abdul-Samie ER, El-Nemr HI, Massoud A Evaluation of myrrh (Mirazid) therapy in fascioliasis and intestinal schistosomiasis in children: immunological and parasitological study. J Egypt Soc Parasitol. 2004;34(3):941-66..PubMedUsed to support: Uncontrolled study in 21 children with Fasciola and 8 with Schistosoma mansoni infection, given the myrrh resin product at 10 mg/kg/day for 3 to 6 days, reporting 90.9 and 100 percent parasitological cure at 4 weeks along with falls in total IgE and in IL-1 beta and IL-5. Ten healthy children served only as a laboratory reference, so there was no group receiving standard treatment. Larger independent randomized trials later found the product close to ineffective. The cytokine changes were measured in children being treated for an infection, not in healthy supplement users.
  3. Massoud AM, El-Sherbini ET, Mos N, Saleh NM, Abouel-Nour MF, Morsy AT Mirazid in treatment of three zoonotic trematodes in Beni-Sweif and Dakhalia Governorates. J Egypt Soc Parasitol. 2010;40(1):119-34..PubMedUsed to support: Study without a comparison group in 60 Egyptian patients with schistosomiasis, fascioliasis or heterophyiasis given myrrh resin at 10 mg/kg/day for 6 days. The abstract reports cure rates of 80.7 percent and 11.8 percent for schistosomiasis at its 2 and 3 month follow-ups and then a summary figure of 92.5 percent for the same condition, figures that do not agree with each other. It is cited so readers can see what the favorable antiparasitic literature consists of; randomized comparisons against praziquantel did not reproduce these results.
  4. Botros S, Sayed H, El-Dusoki H, Sabry H, Rabie I, El-Ghannam M, Hassanein M, El-Wahab YA, Engels D Efficacy of mirazid in comparison with praziquantel in Egyptian Schistosoma mansoni-infected school children and households. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2005;72(2):119-23. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.2005.72.119.PubMedUsed to support: Randomized comparison among 1,131 Egyptian school children and household members screened for Schistosoma mansoni: the myrrh resin product at 300 mg/day for 3 days cured 9.1 percent of infected children and 8.9 percent of household members, against 62.5 and 79.7 percent for a single 40 mg/kg dose of praziquantel. The investigators recommended against using the product to control the infection.
  5. Barakat R, Elmorshedy H, Fenwick A Efficacy of myrrh in the treatment of human Schistosomiasis mansoni. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2005;73(2):365-7. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.2005.73.365.PubMedUsed to support: Randomized trial in 104 people infected with Schistosoma mansoni comparing two courses of a commercial myrrh product against praziquantel: myrrh cured 15.6 percent and then 8.9 percent, and reduced egg counts among the uncured by only 17.2 and 28 percent, while praziquantel cured 73.7 and 76.3 percent. Of 34 people still infected after two myrrh courses, 32 stopped passing eggs once given praziquantel.
  6. Botros S, William S, Ebeid F, Cioli D, Katz N, Day TA, Bennett JL Lack of evidence for an antischistosomal activity of myrrh in experimental animals. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2004;71(2):206-10. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.2004.71.206.PubMedUsed to support: Multicenter study in mice and hamsters infected with four strains of Schistosoma mansoni: the commercial myrrh preparation produced no significant or only trivial worm reduction, and crude myrrh extract at 180 to 10,000 mg/kg showed no activity, while praziquantel produced 94 percent worm reduction and 100 percent egg reduction. Animal evidence, and negative.
  7. Botros SS, El-Lakkany NM, Badawy AA, Mahmoud SS, Ebeid FA, Fenwick A Mirazid shows insignificant activity against ovine fascioliasis. Ann Trop Med Parasitol. 2009;103(7):605-16. doi: 10.1179/000349809X12459740922453.PubMedUsed to support: Study in sheep infected with Fasciola and treated with the myrrh product at 10 mg/kg/day for six days: fluke numbers were only 6 percent lower than in untreated animals, a statistically insignificant difference, and egg loads, liver enzymes and liver histology looked like those of untreated infected sheep, while triclabendazole cleared the infection. Animal evidence, and negative.
  8. Osman MM, El-Taweel HA, Shehab AY, Farag HF Ineffectiveness of myrrh-derivative Mirazid against schistosomiasis and fascioliasis in humans. East Mediterr Health J. 2010;16(9):932-6. doi: 10.26719/2010.16.9.932.PubMedUsed to support: Study in 27 people with Schistosoma mansoni and 16 with Fasciola given the maximum recommended dose of the myrrh product, with egg counts before treatment compared with counts at 1 and 2 months: the cure rate was low and the reduction in egg counts negligible, and the authors warned that prescribing it could endanger Egypt's schistosomiasis control strategy.
  9. Abo-Madyan AA, Morsy TA, Motawea SM, Morsy AT Clinical trial of Mirazid in treatment of human fascioliasis, Ezbet El-Bakly (Tamyia Center) Al-Fayoum Governorate. J Egypt Soc Parasitol. 2004;34(3):807-18..PubMedUsed to support: Uncontrolled field study in Al-Fayoum, Egypt: 1,019 people were screened, Fasciola prevalence was 1.7 percent, and those infected received 600 mg of the myrrh product daily for 6 days, with reported parasitological cure of 88.2 percent at 2 months and 94.1 percent at 3 months. There was no comparison group and no blinding. It is the source of the widely repeated 88 to 94 percent cure figure for myrrh.
  10. Danso-Appiah A, Olliaro PL, Donegan S, Sinclair D, Utzinger J Drugs for treating Schistosoma mansoni infection. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2013;2013(2):CD000528. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD000528.pub2.PubMedUsed to support: Cochrane review of 52 randomized trials and 10,269 participants on drugs for Schistosoma mansoni infection, concluding that the evidence supports praziquantel 40 mg/kg as the standard treatment and that oxamniquine also appears effective. The abstract's conclusions name only praziquantel and oxamniquine.
  11. Langhorst J, Varnhagen I, Schneider SB, Albrecht U, Rueffer A, Stange R, Michalsen A, Dobos GJ Randomised clinical trial: a herbal preparation of myrrh, chamomile and coffee charcoal compared with mesalazine in maintaining remission in ulcerative colitis--a double-blind, double-dummy study. Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2013;38(5):490-500. doi: 10.1111/apt.12397.PubMedUsed to support: Randomized, double-blind, double-dummy trial over 12 months in 96 people with ulcerative colitis in remission, comparing a herbal preparation of myrrh, chamomile flower extract and coffee charcoal against the standard drug mesalazine. Activity scores did not differ significantly, relapse occurred in 53 percent on the herbal preparation against 45 percent on mesalazine (not significant), and tolerability was good. There was no placebo group and myrrh was one of three ingredients, so the result cannot be credited to myrrh alone.
  12. Albrecht U, Müller V, Schneider B, Stange R Efficacy and safety of a herbal medicinal product containing myrrh, chamomile and coffee charcoal for the treatment of gastrointestinal disorders: a non-interventional study. BMJ Open Gastroenterol. 2014;1(1):e000015. doi: 10.1136/bmjgast-2014-000015.PubMedUsed to support: Observational postmarketing study, funded and sponsored by the maker Repha GmbH, in 1,062 patients aged 12 and over with acute diarrhea from acute inflammatory gut disorders, inflammatory bowel disease or irritable bowel syndrome. Physicians chose the treatment: 885 took a licensed tablet containing 100 mg myrrh, 50 mg coffee charcoal and 70 mg chamomile dry extract alone or as an add-on, and 177 received other therapies. Symptom scores fell in every group, and only two side effects (vomiting, itching) were linked to the herbal tablet. With no randomization, blinding or placebo, improvement cannot be separated from natural recovery, and myrrh was one of three ingredients.
  13. Rosenthal R, Luettig J, Hering NA, Krug SM, Albrecht U, Fromm M, Schulzke JD Myrrh exerts barrier-stabilising and -protective effects in HT-29/B6 and Caco-2 intestinal epithelial cells. Int J Colorectal Dis. 2017;32(5):623-634. doi: 10.1007/s00384-016-2736-x.PubMedUsed to support: Laboratory study in two human colon cell lines: in Caco-2 cells myrrh raised barrier resistance and lowered the channel-forming tight-junction protein claudin-2 through PI3K inhibition, and in HT-29/B6 cells it blocked the barrier damage caused by TNF alpha through STAT6 inhibition. Cell culture work rather than a human trial.
  14. Vafaei H, Ajdari S, Hessami K, Hosseinkhani A, Foroughinia L, Asadi N, Faraji A, Abolhasanzadeh S, Bazrafshan K, Roozmeh S Efficacy and safety of myrrh in patients with incomplete abortion: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical study. BMC Complement Med Ther. 2020;20(1):145. doi: 10.1186/s12906-020-02946-z.PubMedUsed to support: Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in 80 women with an incomplete miscarriage: 500 mg of myrrh oleo-gum-resin three times daily for 2 weeks significantly shrank retained tissue and completed the miscarriage in 82.9 percent against 54.3 percent on placebo, with no serious adverse effects reported. Cited here as a safety finding: it shows that an oral dose of myrrh acts on the pregnant uterus, and it is the basis for the pregnancy warning.
  15. Mitsumoto T, Ishii Y, Namiki M, Nakamura K, Takasu S, Ogawa K A 90-day subchronic toxicity study of Myrrh in F344 rats. Regul Toxicol Pharmacol. 2021;127:105076. doi: 10.1016/j.yrtph.2021.105076.PubMedUsed to support: Ninety-day feeding study in rats at 5,000, 15,000 and 50,000 ppm: the highest dose suppressed body weight gain in both sexes and raised relative kidney weight in males, with hyaline droplets in the proximal tubule epithelium, giving a no-observed-adverse-effect level of 0.85 g/kg/day in males and 0.95 g/kg/day in females. Animal toxicology at doses far above supplement intakes, and the basis for the kidney caution.
  16. Al-Jenoobi FI, Alam MA, Al-Mohizea AM, Ahad A, Raish M Orally co-administrated oleo-gum resin of Commiphora myrrha decreases the bioavailability of cyclosporine A in rats. Pharmazie. 2015;70(8):549-52. doi: 10.31083/ph.2015.5551.PubMedUsed to support: In rats, eight days of oral myrrh suspension (380 mg/kg) reduced blood exposure to the transplant medicine cyclosporine A by about 45 percent, with peak levels down 48 percent; the authors advise avoiding the combination. An animal pharmacokinetic study, and the basis for the cyclosporine interaction.
  17. Al-Romaiyan A, Huang GC, Jones P, Persaud S Commiphora myrrha stimulates insulin secretion from mouse and human islets of Langerhans. J Ethnopharmacol. 2021;264:113075. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2020.113075.PubMedUsed to support: Laboratory study on a mouse beta cell line and on isolated mouse and human pancreatic islets: myrrh resin solution triggered insulin release directly, rapidly and reversibly at low and stimulating glucose levels, while concentrations above 2 mg/ml killed cells. Isolated tissue rather than people, but a concrete mechanism for the blood sugar cautions.
  18. Su S, Hua Y, Wang Y, Gu W, Zhou W, Duan JA, Jiang H, Chen T, Tang Y Evaluation of the anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties of individual and combined extracts from Commiphora myrrha, and Boswellia carterii. J Ethnopharmacol. 2012;139(2):649-56. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2011.12.013.PubMedUsed to support: Mouse study of water extracts of myrrh, frankincense and the two combined: myrrh extract at 3.9 g/kg reduced formalin-induced paw swelling by 30.44 percent, all extracts reduced prostaglandin E2, and myrrh reduced writhing in a dysmenorrhea model. The authors concluded the combination may be more useful for inflammatory pain than either resin alone. Mouse work at gram-per-kilogram doses, not evidence of an effect in people.
  19. Shen T, Li GH, Wang XN, Lou HX The genus Commiphora: a review of its traditional uses, phytochemistry and pharmacology. J Ethnopharmacol. 2012;142(2):319-30. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2012.05.025.PubMedUsed to support: Review of the Commiphora genus covering traditional uses, more than 300 identified compounds, and pharmacology from laboratory and animal work, noting that some results are hard to reproduce because plant material was poorly identified. It describes guggulsterones as the steroids behind the hypolipidemic research on Commiphora mukul, and the development of Commiphora molmol resin in Egypt as an antischistosomal agent.
  20. Alnakhli RA, Alqalaleef SS, Alesawi JM, Aljedaie MH, Alqunaian RT, Shokri YE, Alghumayti KA, Bakhsh TA Myrrh in the Management of Periodontal Disease and Gingival Healing: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. J Int Soc Prev Community Dent. 2026;16(1):1-19. doi: 10.4103/jispcd.jispcd_160_25.PubMedUsed to support: Systematic review and meta-analysis of 15 studies (six in vitro, one animal, eight randomized trials) of myrrh in gum care: test-tube studies showed antimicrobial effects against gum pathogens and Staphylococcus aureus, the pooled trials showed a small but statistically significant reduction in dental plaque and no significant effect on gum inflammation or healing, and the animal study found dose-dependent toxicity with prolonged use. These were rinses and gels, not swallowed supplements.
  21. Germano A, Occhipinti A, Barbero F, Maffei ME A Pilot Study on Bioactive Constituents and Analgesic Effects of MyrLiq®, a Commiphora myrrha Extract with a High Furanodiene Content. Biomed Res Int. 2017;2017:3804356. doi: 10.1155/2017/3804356.PubMedUsed to support: Randomized, placebo-controlled study in 368 adults (184 per group, each 95 women and 89 men) with assorted pain complaints, given 200 or 400 mg a day of MyrLiq, a myrrh extract standardized to furanodienes and supplied by its maker Biosfered S.r.l., or placebo for 20 days. Compared with placebo, scores were significantly higher at 400 mg for all six pain types and at 200 mg for some. The score rated the extract against each volunteer's usual prescribed painkiller rather than measuring pain, placebo volunteers with symptoms were told to stop and take painkillers, more placebo volunteers dropped out (33 against 18), and the abstract's claim of lower back pain relief in women at 200 mg is not supported by the results section, which could not test it. No side effects were reported and the authors declared no conflicts.
  22. Haffor AS Effect of myrrh (Commiphora molmol) on leukocyte levels before and during healing from gastric ulcer or skin injury. J Immunotoxicol. 2010;7(1):68-75. doi: 10.3109/15476910903409835.PubMedUsed to support: Rat study in which myrrh was given in drinking water at 500 mg/kg/day for four weeks before a skin wound or an induced gastric ulcer and for two weeks after: white blood cell counts rose before the injury and stayed elevated through healing. A white cell count in a rat is not a healing outcome in a person.
  23. Shokoohi R, Kianbakht S, Faramarzi M, Rahmanian M, Nabati F, Mehrzadi S, Huseini HF Effects of an Herbal Combination on Glycemic Control and Lipid Profile in Diabetic Women: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial. J Evid Based Complementary Altern Med. 2017;22(4):798-804. doi: 10.1177/2156587217737683.PubMedUsed to support: Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in women with hyperlipidemic type 2 diabetes: a 600 mg capsule containing 200 mg of myrrh oleo-gum-resin, 200 mg of Commiphora mukul and 200 mg of Terminalia chebula fruit extract, three times daily for 3 months, lowered fasting blood glucose, total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol and raised HDL cholesterol compared with placebo, while glycosylated hemoglobin did not change. Myrrh was one of three herbs, so its own contribution cannot be separated out. It is the human basis for the blood sugar caution.
  24. Sheir Z, Nasr AA, Massoud A, Salama O, Badra GA, El-Shennawy H, Hassan N, Hammad SM A safe, effective, herbal antischistosomal therapy derived from myrrh. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2001;65(6):700-4. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.2001.65.700.PubMedUsed to support: Study in 204 Egyptian patients with schistosomiasis given myrrh at 10 mg/kg/day for 3 days (the abstract describes no comparison group), reporting a 91.7 percent cure rate and an overall 98.09 percent after non-responders were re-treated for 6 days. It is an early report of the myrrh resin product as an antiparasitic. Randomized trials published later in the same journal by other groups found cure rates below 16 percent.
  25. European Medicines Agency, Committee on Herbal Medicinal Products (HMPC) Community herbal monograph on Commiphora molmol Engler, gummi-resina. European Medicines Agency. 2011;EMA/HMPC/96911/2010. Final, adopted 12 July 2011..SourceUsed to support: Not PubMed-indexed; EU regulatory monograph, read in full. Accepts only a myrrh tincture (1:5, ethanol 90 percent) as a traditional herbal medicine for oromucosal use (0.5 to 5 ml in 150 ml water as a rinse or gargle three times daily, or undiluted on a cotton bud) for minor mouth ulcers and inflammation, and for cutaneous use on minor wounds and small boils. No oral (swallowed) use is listed. Not recommended under 12 or in pregnancy and lactation; allergic skin reactions reported; no interactions reported.
  26. Tipton DA, Hamman NR, Dabbous MKh Effect of myrrh oil on IL-1beta stimulation of NF-kappaB activation and PGE(2) production in human gingival fibroblasts and epithelial cells. Toxicol In Vitro. 2006;20(2):248-55. doi: 10.1016/j.tiv.2005.07.004.PubMedUsed to support: Cell study in human gum fibroblasts and epithelial cells: myrrh oil did not significantly affect IL-1 beta driven NF-kappaB activation in either cell type, but it inhibited IL-1 beta driven prostaglandin E2 production in fibroblasts. It is the reason this page does not describe NF-kappaB blocking as myrrh's mechanism.
  27. Al Faraj S Antagonism of the anticoagulant effect of warfarin caused by the use of Commiphora molmol as a herbal medication: a case report. Ann Trop Med Parasitol. 2005;99(2):219-20. doi: 10.1179/136485905X17434.PubMedUsed to support: Single case report (no abstract on PubMed) whose title reports that use of myrrh as a herbal medicine antagonized the anticoagulant effect of warfarin. One case cannot show how often this happens, but it is the basis for the warfarin interaction line.
  28. Xu YY, Li L, Xuan L, Guan K Patch test diagnosis of non-immediate cutaneous reaction to myrrh following oral intake of a traditional Chinese medicine decoction. Contact Dermatitis. 2019;80(2):135-136. doi: 10.1111/cod.13144.PubMedUsed to support: Case report (no abstract on PubMed) whose title describes a non-immediate skin reaction to myrrh after drinking a traditional Chinese medicine decoction, diagnosed by patch testing. It shows that skin reactions to myrrh can follow swallowing it, not only skin use.