Tonka bean, whole

Scientific Name: Dipteryx odorata, Fabaceae family

Common Names: Tonka bean, cumaru, tonguin bean, umaru, tonka, tonka bean tree, amburana, imburana de cheiro, tonquin bean, charapilla del murcielago, fèves de tonka, tonkabohne.

Part used: Fruit and Seed

Active Compounds: Coumarin

Background: Tonka bean, with its vanilla-like, rich and pleasing fragrance has been used commercially as a vanilla substitute, in perfume, and in tobacco smoking mixtures. The common name of tonka is found in Carib and Tupi languages. The regional name kumaru informed the previous genus name of Coumarouna, from which the constituent name coumarin is derived.

Coumarin is a chemical constituent of many, many plants: tonka beans, lavender, licorice, strawberries, apricots, cherries, cinnamon, and sweet clover are just a few.

Old cookbooks sometimes list tonka as a flavoring ingredient in cake, cookie recipes.

Applications:

Perfumary: Tonka bean is used to add fragrance to emollients: salves, creams, cosmetic preparations, and oil, and for direct scenting of botanicals.

Background: Antispasmodic, emmenagogic, cardiotonic,
and anti-asthmatic. Bean and bark have been used for centuries by indigenous people of the
Amazon. Bean, prepared as a fermentation in rum, are used to make an application to snakebites, cuts, contusions, coughs, and rheumatism. oil is topically used to relieve earaches and to treat infections.

Tonka beans contain up to 10% coumarin. This natural plant chemical has anti-coagulant blood thinning properties and is used in many pharmaceutical products, however, in high amounts coumarin can cause liver damage.

Description: Tonka bean is the 2-5 cm long seed of Dipteryx odorata, a leguminous tree of the neotropics, in the family Fabaceae. Seed skin appears black, wrinkled. The trees often grow to 100-150 feet, and have reach 300 feet. The genus Dipteryx is comprised of a dozen or so species of shrubs and trees found in the tropics of the Western Hemisphere. Odorata are cultivated for their seed and wood.

Safety:

Due to the high percentage of coumarin, internal use is not recommended.

More Bulk Herbs and Spices Information:

Tribulus terrestris
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Turkey Rhubarb
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Tansy
Usnea
Uva Ursi

For educational purposes only
This information has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration.
This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Tonka bean, whole