# How is camphor a drug?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-camphor-a-drug/711288>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [January 30, 2015, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-camphor-a-drug/711288 "2015-01-30T00:00:30Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![grude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47774/32.png) [@grude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/grude)\
**Post date:** [January 30, 2015, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-camphor-a-drug/711288/1 "2015-01-30T00:00:30Z")

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One of those my strange addiction reality shows had a woman who ate Vicks Vaporub, yea I was like :eek:

But googling I found a lengthy article from an Indian source saying that camphor is addictive, apparently well known in India, and replacement treatment involves anti-convulsive drugs. But nothing on wikipedia or elsewhere says anything like that about camphor, in fact they say consuming it orally causes seizures etc.

Im asking what is its action? What receptors is it effecting, I can find nothing on this online.

> **[1%20jmscr.pdf](https://jmscr.igmpublication.org/v1-i3/1%20jmscr.pdf)**
>
> 459.61 KB

> **[Camphor](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camphor)**
>
> Camphor (/ˈkæmfər/) is a waxy, colorless solid with a strong aroma. It is classified as a terpenoid and a cyclic ketone. It is found in the wood of the camphor laurel (Cinnamomum camphora), a large evergreen tree found in East Asia; and in the kapur tree (Dryobalanops sp.), a tall timber tree from South East Asia. It also occurs in some other related trees in the laurel family, notably Ocotea usambarensis. Rosemary leaves (Rosmarinus officinalis) contain 0.05 to 0.5% camphor, while camphor The...

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**Author:** ![Obtenebrate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/9f8e36/32.png) [@Obtenebrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Obtenebrate)\
**Post date:** [January 30, 2015, 11:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-camphor-a-drug/711288/2 "2015-01-30T11:00:13Z")

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I don’t know about other types, but ‘brown camphor’ oil contains mostly safrole, a restricted substance in many places because of its use as a precursor to MDMA (ecstasy).

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**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\
**Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-camphor-a-drug/711288/3 "2015-01-31T08:05:15Z")

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Camphor has a variety of effects. Its usual therapeutic action is on some of the ion channels found in sensory neurons (most notably TRPV3), but its toxicity at high dosages or chronic use are more likely due to one or more of its metabolic effects, such as accumulation of porphyrins.

[This paper](http://www.bioline.org.br/pdf?ja09027) was useful, and you may find it interesting.

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**Author:** ![vomit\_comet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/73ab20/32.png) [@vomit\_comet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vomit_comet)\
**Post date:** [January 31, 2015, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-is-camphor-a-drug/711288/4 "2015-01-31T10:13:35Z")

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I remember coming across a recipe for some sort of drug around 20 years ago and one of the main ingredients were those (can’t remember the name) little nasal inhaler tubes, about the size of a lip balm applicator, the active ingredient in them was camphor. Seems to me they had a green motif and may actually have been a vicks product.