Lemongrass

Cymbopogon citratus · Lemongrass oil

Snapshot

Indications	Contraindications
Oral malodour¹ Chronic periodontitis adjunct² Oral thrush² Blood pressure support³ Mosquito repellency⁴	Pregnancy⁵ Breastfeeding⁵

Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) is a tropical grass used as a flavoring, tea, and aromatherapy oil, with folk use for sleep, anxiety, and digestive complaints². Its citral-rich oil acts mainly as an antimicrobial, and animal work links its anxiolytic activity to the GABAergic system². People use it for oral antimicrobial care, insect repellency, and blood pressure support as a tea, and in calming aromatherapy, where human trials are few.

Human data for sleep and anxiety are negative: a double-blind trial of lemongrass tea found no hypnotic or anxiolytic effect compared with placebo⁶. A randomized double-blind pilot study found a lemongrass mouthrinse reduced oral malodour in healthy volunteers¹. A review reports lower blood pressure with the tea in healthy and hypertensive people³. A 2026 systematic review of human studies found lemongrass-based repellents usually give shorter protection than synthetic repellents. Products listing lemongrass are mostly essential oils, with teas, capsules, and powders also sold; see Form comparison.

The main systemic caution is renal: in a randomized trial of young adults, lemongrass tea infusions produced dose- and time-dependent declines in creatinine clearance and estimated glomerular filtration rate⁷. Per Memorial Sloan Kettering, citral and myrcene caused birth defects in rats². Per Memorial Sloan Kettering, intake above culinary amounts with cytochrome P450 (CYP450) substrate medications may raise side effect risk, though no interactions have been reported².

Last updated October 16, 2026. Read how we make monographs.

In the full monograph

38 sources, 30 studies

When to useThe situations practitioners use it for, each with the reason and the study behind it.
SafetyWho should avoid it, who needs extra care, and the side effects reported in studies.
InteractionsThe medicines and supplements it interacts with, the effect of each, and what labeling says to watch.
Protocol notesThe doses used in studies, how and when they were taken, and how the forms on the market compare.
How it worksWhat it is and how it works in the body, in plain terms.
Published studiesThe studies behind each use, popular claims checked against them, and trials still under way.
Word of mouthWhat patients and practitioners report online, kept separate from the clinical evidence.
Clinical perspectiveA closing read of where the evidence is solid, where it is thin, and what has not been studied.

Snapshot

In the full monograph

Sources