Increasing Demand For Sandalwood Oil Is Driven By Rising Preference For Natural Essential Oils Among End Users

Rising awareness regarding advantages of aromatherapy in resulting into increasing demand for various types of essential oils among individuals. Sandalwood oil is one of the essential oil, that is extracted from sandalwood tree. Use of sandalwood dates back to ancient times in various religious rituals in Hindu and Buddhism. Unlike other fragrant woods, sandalwood retains its fragrance for many years. Sandalwood is also mentioned in Ayurveda by its Sanskrit name Chandana. Sandalwood oil is used for meditation and improvement of health conditions for thousands of years in India and other East Asian countries. It is known for its sweet and woody smell. Sandalwood oil is used in various types of cosmetics, perfumers, aftershaves, and as an incense. Extraction of sandalwood oil requires sandalwood tree which is at least forty to eighty-years-old. Older tree produces essential oil with much stronger smell. Stem distillation is used as a method of extraction for sandalwood oil.

Increasing adoption of aromatherapy among individuals is resulting into increasing demand for natural fragrances. Sandalwood oil is used for prayers, spiritual rituals, and meditation, as it helps to increase attentiveness among individuals. It also helps to providing mental focus to the end user. Sandalwood oil also can be use used for reliving stress, depression, and anxiety as it calms senses, relaxes tense muscles, and soothes nerves.  It has anti-viral, antibacterial, and antiseptic properties. Sandalwood oil also has medicinal properties that help to treat cold, cough, fever, venomous bites, poisoning, infections, etc.

Two to three drops of sandalwood oil are added to massage oil, due to its health benefits. Sandalwood oil contains high amounts of antioxidants and also has natural anti-inflammatory properties. Use of sandalwood oil reduces damage done by free radicals and promotes anti-aging. Studies have reported that sandalwood oil contains alpha-santalol, which is an active compound that has chemo preventive effects and can be used to reduce size of the tumor and cure skin cancer. However, sandalwood oil is expensive as it requires roots of old sandalwood tree for its extraction.

Sandalwood oil is used in pharmaceuticals, perfumers, aromatherapy, cosmetics and personal care products. It is highly used oil in cosmetics and personal care products as it can rejuvenate and repair skin and hair. Sandalwood oil is skin friendly oil that can eliminate toxins, soothes and moisturizes the skin, and enriches cells of the skin. It is also effective in treatment of dandruff and spit ends.

High usage of sandalwood oil in Asia Pacific region as availability of sandalwood and its use for various religious rituals and ceremonies. In addition, ideal weather conditions for sandalwood production in countries such as India, China, Indonesia, Japan, etc. in this region is resulting into increasing production of sandalwood oil. Sandalwood is also found in Austria and Hawaii, but it is not as high grade as Indian sandalwood. There is growing demand for essential oils such as sandalwood oil in North America and Europe region, owning to high adoption of aromatherapy for reducing physical and mental stress.

Kathleen Kinder

With over 4 years of experience in the research industry, Kathleen is generally engrossed in market consulting projects, catering primarily to domains such as ICT, Health & Pharma, and packaging. She is highly proficient in managing both B2C and B2B projects, with an emphasis on consumer preference analysis, key executive interviews, etc. When Kathleen isn’t deconstructing market performance trajectories, she can be found hanging out with her pet cat ‘Sniffles’.