Dipteryx odorata is a species of flowering tree in the pea family, Fabaceae. The tree is native to Central America and northern South America and is semi-deciduous. Its seeds are known as tonka beans. They are black and wrinkled and have a smooth, brown interior.
Despite safety concerns, people take tonka bean as a tonic; to increase sexual desire (as an aphrodisiac); and to treat cramps, nausea, cough, spasms, tuberculosis, wasting due to chronic disease, swelling caused by a blockage in the lymph system (lymphedema), and a parasitic disease called schistosomiasis.
