Benefits of Sandalwood Essential Oil for Skincare & More

Sandalwood’s woodsy and sweet smell is popular in many perfumes, cosmetics, and air fresheners. But love for this essential oil goes way beyond smelling good. 

Sandalwood oil can increase calmness, mental clarity, and skin radiance. And it has been used for thousands of years to increase libido, fight urinary tract infections and more. 

An important thing to note here is that we need to be conscious when purchasing sandalwood essential oil. In order to reap the benefits of this essential oil, the sandalwood tree must grow for at least 40-80 years before the roots can be harvested. There are many companies that are harvesting sandalwood unsustainably and it’s important to have reverence for this powerful oil. 

When it comes to choosing which sandalwood oil to go with, we have a couple options. The highest quality sandalwood known as santalum album is of Indian origin. It is the most expensive of the sandalwood variety, and sandalwood oil is one of the most expensive oisl already. Hawaii and Australia also produce sandalwood but it is not considered to be equal to Indian quality. 

Sandalwood contains two primary active constituents, alpha- and beta-santalol. These are the molecules that produce a strong fragrance. Alpha-santalol has been shown to improve blood glucose control in animal subjects, decreasing inflammation and helping to reduce the reproduction of skin cancer cells (1,2,3) 

The East Indian Sandalwood tree has been widely used in folk medicine for the treatment of general weakness, fever, inflammation, liver and gallbladder complaints, skin disorders, heart ailments, the common cold and more. As you can see, there are countless benefits of sandalwood essential oil. While we will focus largely on the benefits of sandalwood for skincare, we are going to dive into a couple more exciting benefits! Let’s dive in. 

Benefits of Sandalwood Essential Oil for Skincare and More

Promote Healthy Looking Skin 

Sandalwood is well known for its ability to nourish and restore skin to a glowing texture. In fact, it’s so good, it made our list of the top three essential oils for glowing skin. 

Indian Sandalwood—Santalum album— helps to reduce inflammation and restore moisture. If you struggle with redness or itchy, inflamed skin, sandalwood soothes and calms inflammation while also hydrating for plumpness. Let’s get a little bit more specific 

Hydrate 

Sandalwood essential oil provides your epidermis with insane replenishment. As an emollient, sandalwood has powerful hydrating effects on the skin, penetrating deeply to provide ultimate moisture. 

Soothe 

With various calming compounds, sandalwood can renew complexion and reduce common skin issues. If you struggle with rosacea, pigmentation, psoriasis, or eczema, consider using sandalwood to smooth, relieve, and even skin tone. 

Rejuvenate 

Sandalwood has powerful anti-aging properties that make it fabulous for naturally toning and tightening skin. This oil will gently reduce the appearance of wrinkles while plumping skin or a younger complexion. 

For other potent anti-aging essential oils and DIY recipes, check out this post. 

To use sandalwood for skin health, you can add 1-2 drops to your nightly serum or moisturizer. You can also create an at-home steam facial by filling a large bowl with boiling water, adding 1-2 drops of sandalwood to your face and covering your head with a towel. 

Enhance Mood // Reduce Anxiety 

Sandalwood has a grounding and balancing aroma that can help settle emotions and calm the mind. 

Research from the Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice showed that an aromatherapy massage with sandalwood essential oil helped to reduce anxiety. While the sample size was quite small, this research is still promising. 

To use sandalwood for less tension and more relaxation, apply 1-2 drops to the palm of your hands. Cup your hands around your nose and deeply inhale for 10-30 seconds. You can also add 2-3 drops to ½ tablespoon  of massage oil like coconut or jojoba and give yourself a massage. 

Promotes Alertness 

Plant Medica performed a study that found sandalwood oil aromatherapy increased participants’ blood pressure, pulse, and perspiration—all markers for alertness. While there are better oils out there for focus, this research shows that sandalwood oil can still be a good option for alertness. 

Wound Healing 

We already learned that sandalwood is amazing for a radiant complexion—but now we know that sandalwood may be able to promote wound healing. Researchers in Germany found that skin cells contain olfactory receptors for sandalwood. When these receptors were activated, it appeared to foster skin cell growth. 

Natural Aphrodisiac 

Ayurvedic medicine traditionally used sandalwood as a natural aphrodisiac. Today, there is research that shows sandalwood may help increase libido and even help men with impotence (4).