Apiol, also known as liquid apiol or green oil of parsley is the extracted

oleoresin Oleoresins are semi-solid extracts composed of resin and essential or fatty oil, obtained by evaporation of the solvents used for their production. The oleoresin of conifers is known as crude turpentine or gum turpentine, which consists of oil of ...

of parsley, rather than the distilled oil. Due to its similarity to the term

apiole Apiole is a phenylpropene, also known as apiol, parsley apiol, or parsley camphor. Its chemical name is 1-allyl-2,5-dimethoxy-3,4-methylenedioxybenzene. It is found in the essential oils of celery leaf and all parts of parsley. Heinrich Christo ...

, care should be taken to avoid confusion. Apiol is an irritant and, in high doses, it can cause liver and kidney damage. Cases of death due to attempted abortion using apiol have been reported.

Hippocrates Hippocrates of Kos (; grc-gre, Ἱπποκράτης ὁ Κῷος, Hippokrátēs ho Kôios; ), also known as Hippocrates II, was a Greek physician of the classical period who is considered one of the most outstanding figures in the history o ...

wrote about parsley as a herb to cause an

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pre ...

. Plants containing

were used by women in the Middle Ages to terminate pregnancies. Its use was widespread in the US, often as ergoapiol or apergol, until a highly toxic adulterated product containing apiol and

tri-ortho-cresyl phosphate Tricresyl phosphate (TCP), is a mixture of three isomeric organophosphate compounds most notably used as a flame retardant and as a plasticizer in manufacturing for lacquers and varnishes and vinyl plastics. Pure tricresyl phosphate is a colour ...

(also famous as the adulterant added to

Jamaican ginger Jamaica ginger extract, known in the United States by the slang name Jake, was a late 19th-century patent medicine that provided a convenient way to obtain alcohol during the era of Prohibition, since it contained approximately 70% to 80% ethan ...

) was introduced on the American market. Now that safer methods of abortion are available, apiol is almost forgotten.

References

Further reading