Birch oil has a strong, penetrating aroma that most people recognize as wintergreen. Although birch is completely unrelated to wintergreen, they are almost identical in their chemical constituents. The American Indians and early European settlers enjoyed a tea that was flavored with birch bark or wintergreen. This flavor has been translated into a modern day taste called "root beer."

Sweet Birch is a graceful tree of about 82 feet. It has a pyramidal shape while young with bright green leaves and a dark reddish-brown aromatic bark noted for being broken into plates or patches. Native to southern Canada and south-eastern USA, the oil is mainly produced in Pennsylvania. The essential oil of sweet birch is extracted by steam distillation of the bark which has been macerated in warm water. The oil is a pale yellow with a reddish tint. It has a sweet, intense, woody, wintergreen-like scent.

Sweet birch has a limited use as a counter-irritant in anti-arthritic and antineuralgic ointments and analgesic balms. It is also a limited fragrance component in cosmetics and perfumes. It is extensively used as a flavoring agent in root beer, chewing gum and toothpaste. Sweet Birches properties have been claimed to be : Analgesic, Anti-Inflammatory, Anti-Rheumatic, Antiseptic, Anti-Spasmodic Disinfectant, Diuretic, Stimulant (bone), and Warming. This oil may help: ACNE, ECZEMA, EDEMA, REDUCE FEVER, INFECTIONS, REDUCE THE DISCOMFORT IN JOINT, OSTEOPOROSIS, AND SKIN DISEASES.. IT IS KNOWN FOR ITS ABILITY TO RELIEVE BONE PAIN.

Chemical constituents are Esters: methyl salicylate (99%): Salicylic Acid; Sesquiterpenes. Safety data: Avoid during pregnancy. Not for use by people with EPILEPSY. Some people are allergic to methyl salicylate.