Food & Drink / Compounds / Myrcene

Myrcene in food: ingestion safety

Moderate risk

(People-specific data is limited; this page draws from human adult context.) Possible carcinogen (NTP rodent evidence — kidney tumors); nephrotoxic; IFRA restricted to natural levels; major component of many essential oils (hops, bay, lemongrass)

What is myrcene?

The IUPAC name is 7-methyl-3-methylideneocta-1,6-diene.

Also known as: 7-methyl-3-methylideneocta-1,6-diene, beta-Myrcene, 1,6-Octadiene, 7-methyl-3-methylene-, 7-Methyl-3-methylene-1,6-octadiene.

IUPAC name
7-methyl-3-methylideneocta-1,6-diene
CAS number
123-35-3
Molecular formula
C10H16
Molecular weight
136.23 g/mol
SMILES
CC(=CCCC(=C)C=C)C
PubChem CID
31253

Risk for people

Moderate risk

Possible carcinogen (NTP rodent evidence — kidney tumors); nephrotoxic; IFRA restricted to natural levels; major component of many essential oils (hops, bay, lemongrass)

Regulatory consensus

1 regulatory bodyhas classified Myrcene.

AgencyYearClassificationNotes
Unknown——

Regulators apply different standards of evidence — animal-data weighting, exposure-pattern assumptions, epidemiological power thresholds — which is why two scientific bodies can review the same data and reach different conclusions. The disagreement is the data.

Where you encounter myrcene

  • Personal Care — perfume, essential oils, cosmetics
  • Food — hops, bay leaf, thyme (natural)
  • Fragrance — perfume, cologne, scented personal care products, household fragrance products, candles
    Identified in Fragrance Ingredient Safety Priority Research database (2,325 ingredients)

Safer alternatives

Lower-risk approaches that achieve a similar outcome to Myrcene:

  • Unscented formulation; Lower-sensitization structural analog
    Trade-offs: Eliminates allergen risk entirely; consumer acceptance varies (some associate scent with cleanliness/efficacy); growing market segment; regulatory advantage in EU (no IFRA compliance needed).
    Relative cost: 1.2-2×

Frequently asked questions

What products contain myrcene?

Myrcene appears in: perfume (Personal care); essential oils (Personal care); hops (Food); bay leaf (Food); perfume (Fragrance).

See Myrcene in the food app

Look up products containing myrcene, compare to alternatives, and explore the full data record.

Open in food View raw API data

Sources (1)
  1. PubChem Compound Database (2026) — database

Reference data, not professional advice. Aggregates publicly available regulatory and scientific data; not a substitute for veterinary, medical, legal, or regulatory advice. Why we built ALETHEIA →