Eucalyptol was not irritant when applied in solution to the skin of volunteers, but nasal irritation and rapid heart beat occurred in some infants after its direct instillation into the nostrils. It induced allergic skin reactions in several turpentine-sensitive subjects. Repeated inhalation stimulated liver enzyme activity.
In rabbits, eucalyptol was not a skin irritant. It was of low to moderate acute oral toxicity in rodents, causing central nervous system and respiratory effects and stimulating liver enzyme activity and bile secretion. Damage to the liver, kidneys and salivary gland was found in male rats given repeated oral doses, but in mice slight changes were found only in the liver. Liver enzyme activity and bile flow were increased in rats treated by inhalation or injection; the foetuses and offspring of pregnant rats injected with eucalyptol also showed enhanced liver enzyme activity. A limited mouse feeding study gave no evidence of carcinogenicity. Eucalyptol was not mutagenic in Ames bacterial tests, and did not cause DNA damage in bacteria. Chromosomal damage was not induced in mammalian cells treated in culture but there were some indications of other chromosomal effects.
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