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Frankincense (Boswellia): History, Uses, Benefits, and How This Ancient Resin Supports Healing
- 3 hours ago
- 3 min read
What herb was used for thousands of years, gifted to kings alongside gold, and yet was likely worth even more by the pound? To find it, you would have to travel more than 8,000 miles to Ethiopia or the Somali Arabian Sea. You’d cross harsh deserts where only the hardiest plants survive. Even then, the tree does not give itself freely; It must be bruised. After that wound, and after nearly two weeks of waiting, the tree releases one of the purest substances it can offer.
Tears.
Think about it. When you are cut, what happens? If it hurts badly enough, you cry. Then you clean the wound, disinfect it, and seal it with protection, a bandage, a barrier. Trees respond the same way. Their tears are a defense and once dried they become what we call resins.
These resins contain many beneficial compounds such as terpenes, which disrupt the cell walls of bacteria and fungi, and phenols, which contribute antimicrobial and antioxidant activity. The tears specifically harvested from the Boswellia tree become what we know as frankincense. Studies show frankincense can slow the growth of bacteria and fungi, though it often works at higher concentrations than common antibiotics and antifungal medications. “Frankincense essential oil demonstrates minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of approximately 3–17 mg/mL, compared with conventional antibiotics like amoxicillin and gentamicin and antifungals such as nystatin, which show MICs around 3.5–7 μg/mL” (pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov, doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2010.11.150).
Boswellia sacra
Common Name: Olibanum, Zeyt Misikil (Amharic), Lubān / Luubaan/ Luuban (Ethipoia, Eritrea)
Family: Burseraceae
Parts Used: Resin
Colors: Yellow, green
Actions: Anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, carminative, expectorant, emmenagogue
Organ Affinity: Liver, respiratory system, cardiovascular system
Energetics: Warm-hot, dry, pungent
Frankincense is a gum resin with a bright to orange-yellow hue and a hard, rock-like texture. It is traditionally graded by color and fragrance, with Grade A being the most valuable. The clearer and lighter the resin, the more prized it is, both historically and in modern use.
Frankincense has a resinous scent that has a citrus-pine sharpness at first, followed by a sweet, faint earthy finish. When warmed, the smell deepens and becomes less sharp and more calming. The taste, if you were to experience it, is bitter, slightly astringent, and resinous. It coats the mouth in the same way it coats a wound. I typically refer to frankincense as an external-use-only plant. While it has a long history of use across cultures, resins are concentrated, and not something I often reach for internally in my practice.
My favorite way to work with frankincense tears is by infusing them into grapeseed oil. I warm the oil in a mason jar inside my crockpot with a small amount of water, lightly crush the resin once it softens, and allow it to infuse longer. After straining, I reuse the resin pieces once more until their scent becomes faint. The oil carries the essence beautifully and makes the medicine easy to apply and store.
Today, frankincense is commonly found in creams for everything from acne and wrinkles, to dandruff, and athlete’s foot. Its essential oil is widely used in incense sticks and diffuser blends. Its close cousin, myrrh, shows up in similar recipes, such as Kloss’ liniment, paired with another powerful antibacterial, goldenseal.
Resins are best extracted with high alcohol, which is strong enough to pull their protective compounds effectively. Oils work well for topical applications, but if someone is working with tinctures, the alcohol content matters. As always, more is not better. Start with just a few drops when taken as a tincture, and do a patch test the first time it is used on the skin.
These benefits are not exclusive to frankincense. Conifer trees have long been used for similar properties. Other notable resins include myrrh and opopanax, often called sweet myrrh, which are used in similar protective ways. Here’s a video comparison of the three that I did on YouTube.
W
hen we think of medicines, we often think of smaller, gatherable plants, however trees do more than increase the oxygen we breathe. What’s interesting is that the higher the altitude, the less available oxygen there is in the air. Trees tend to grow higher up, stretching toward conditions that are harsher and thinner. In doing so, they adapt, and they share those adaptive benefits with us.
It makes sense that trees, especially resin-producing ones, have long been used for respiratory support, congestion, and colds. Trees produce some of the most valuable medicines available to us, and they are often the easiest to understand. You just have to pay attention to what you observe.
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