Benefits and Uses of Sandalwood Oil
Anxiety
Sandalwood oil may help alleviate anxiety, especially the people undergoing palliative care. Similarly, aromatherapy massage helps with relieving anxiety in women with breast cancer.
Insomnia
Sandalwood oil shows promise as a means of promoting healthier sleep. When inhaled, decreasing waking time and increasing rapid eye movement(REM) consistent with deep sleep.
Mental Alertness
Despite its calming effects, sandalwood oil appears to enhance mental alertness. As contradictory as this may seem, sandalwood oil is believed to deactivate behavioral responses (delivering a calming effect) while activating a physiological response (as measured by blood pressure, heart rate, and other factors). Sandalwood oil, when inhaled or applied to the skin, triggers a mild increase in blood oxygen saturation, blood pressure, breathing rate, eye-blink rate, pulse rate, and skin temperature. These stimulatory effects are believed to enhance mental functioning. The compound associated with these physiological effects is known as alpha-santalol.
Disinfectant
It is the disinfectant property of sandalwood essential oil that justifies its wide use in religious ceremonies and cosmetics. Its fragrance keeps away microbes and small insects, which is why it is extensively used in incense sticks, sprays, fumigants, and evaporators to disinfect large areas.
Skin Care
Sandalwood oil soothes the skin, relieves it from inflammation and irritation, cures infections and keeps you feeling fresh and cool.
Treats Coughs
Sandalwood essential oil behaves as an expectorant and is particularly effective in treating coughs. It also fights the viral infections which initially caused the cold, cough, flu, mumps, or any other illness.
Antiphlogistic
As mentioned above, sandalwood oil has antiphlogistic properties and gives relief from inflammation resulting from fever and viral infections.
Lowers Blood Pressure
This is a very useful property of sandalwood essential oil. It can be taken with milk or even water to reduce blood pressure in patients suffering from hypertension. The paste of sandalwood has the same effect when topically applied to various parts of the body.