Patchouli Oil Health Benefits, Uses And Its Side Effects
Last Updated: Sep 09, 2020
Patchouli essential oil offers a ton of health benefits. It can help against infections caused by bacteria and fungi and can speed up the rate at which the body heals itself. It helps against depression and lifts up the spirits.
Strong sedative nature of patchouli oil that can help you sleep and also induce feelings of calmness. It is used commonly as an insecticide as it can ward off a number of different insects. It can help with inflammation and can reduce fever as well.
Patchouli essential oil is also known for treating a variety of ailments like dermatitis, eczema, psoriasis, sores, constipation, and so on. It improves the circulation of blood in the system and is known for being a strong stimulant as well. Furthermore, patchouli essential oil is also used as an aphrodisiac and invokes sexual desire in both, men and women.
Patchouli Oil
Patchouli essential oil comes from the patchouli plant through a process known as steam distillation. The plant is a bushy herb that is related to the mint family. This essential oil is rich in multiple nutrients and offers a host of health benefits when used or ingested.
Essential oil of patchouli has been in use for many years and is one of the most popular oils amongst herbalists and in aromatherapy. Patchouli essential oil has a distinct smell and is fairly recognisable.
Nutritional Value of Patchouli Oil
Patchouli essential oil is filled with nutrition that is valuable to your body. While its individual nutrients are not that well known, the chemical composition of this essential oil has been studied. This is why people know about the various health benefits that it has to offer.
The basic components of Patchouli Essential Oil are Alpha Patchoulene, Beta Patchoulene, Alpha Guaiene, Alpha Bulnesene, Caryophyllene, Norpatchoulenol, Patchouli Alcohol, Seychellene and Pogostol. These are all essential components that add to the overall health of your body in multiple ways.
Health Benefits of Patchouli Oil
After getting nutrition facts about patchouli oil, let's check out the best health benefits of using patchouli oil. It is good for skin tightening and skin lightening treatments, people having oily and sensitive skin can use this oil to reduce skin inflammation. Patchouli oil good for hair growth and dandruff issues
Patchouli Essential Oil for Depression
Patchouli essential oil is known for relieving depression. It is great for people suffering from this disease as it can help drive away feelings of sadness and loss. This is one of the reasons why it is so popular in aromatherapy. This oil is known for lifting the spirits and instilling a sense of happiness and calmness. It can even help with driving away disappointment.
Moreover, patchouli essential oil is also known for getting rid of stress, anger, anxiety, and other negative emotions. This is mainly because oil of patchouli can stimulate the release of the hormone serotonin, which is responsible for making you happy. This is why it is so effective against depression.
Patchouli Oil for Skin Inflammation
Patchouli essential oil is also known for soothing inflammation. It can be effective against inflammation within the body and outside of it. It is particularly effective against inflammation that is caused by fever and can get rid of it fairly quickly.
Patchouli oil is known for treating skin conditions as well as other conditions that are caused by or because of prolonged inflammation, such as gout and arthritis. Its sedative effects calm the inflamed area down and even help in getting rid of most of the pain, making this a good remedy.
Patchouli Oil for Yeast Infection
Patchouli essential oil has strong antiseptic properties. This helps it protect your body from infections and sepsis. Rubbing a bit of patchouli essential oil on a wound, cut, or abrasion can disinfect the area and prevent it from getting infections such as tetanus.
The oil of patchouli also works against internal infections caused by bacteria and can help your body heal quickly. It can even be used on wounds that are caused by rusty nails or metals.
Aphrodisiac Nature of Patchouli Oil
Patchouli essential oil is a strong aphrodisiac. This means that it can help bring out sexual desire in those who have lost interest in sex or have lost their libido. It can help people who suffer from erectile dysfunctions. It can also help with impotency.
Patchouli essential oil is a strong enough aphrodisiac to also cure frigidity and anxiety during sex that prevents people from relaxing or gaining any pleasure. It is equally good for both, men and women, and can increase their sex drives substantially. These properties are so well known that this patchouli oil has been used as an aphrodisiac for nearly thousands of years. It certainly works!
Astringent Properties of Patchouli Oil
Another beneficial property of patchouli essential oil is that it is an astringent. This means that it can help stimulate the contraction of various body parts such as the muscles, skin, and nerves. It can also help your gums contract, thereby preventing the loss of teeth due to age.
It contracts the skin on your scalp and prevents hair fall. It can tighten skin that has begun to sag due to age and also has a similar effect on loose muscles. Thus, it can help you get rid of some of the more obvious signs of ageing. As a strong astringent, patchouli essential oil can also help prevent wrinkles and fine lines from occurring on your skin.
Patchouli Essential Oil Speeds Up Healing Process
Patchouli essential oil is also known for speeding up the rate at which your body heals. When you apply it on cuts, wounds, and abrasions, they tend to heal much faster than when you apply regular anti-septic on them.
Patchouli oil is also known for getting rid of scars and can work well on different kinds of scars such as those left by boils, pox, burns, acne, and even measles.
It stimulates circulation
Patchouli essential oil is also known for stimulating the circulation of blood. It promotes the generation of new cells, which helps in the production and growth of red blood cells in the body. This boosts your energy levels as it provides more oxygenated blood to your different organs, ensuring that they all function at an optimum level. This helps keep the body metabolism high.
Furthermore, patchouli essential oil also helps regenerate new skin cells and this keeps your skin looking healthy and vibrant and glowing.
Eliminates Bad Odor By Using Patchouli Oil
Patchouli essential oil has an extremely sweet and spicy aroma which can help you hide or get rid of your body odor. However, many people tend to use this oil in a diluted form when trying to mask odor has it has a very strong smell and can be a bit too much for some people.
Patchouli oil is used as a perfume in many cultures throughout the world. Of course, though some people find the smell a bit strong, others think it is wonderful and use it without diluting it. It all depends on what you are used to.
Diuretic Properties of Patchouli Oil
Patchouli essential oil is a diuretic, which means that it stimulates and regularizes urination. Urination is an important function as it keeps your system clean and gets rid of unwanted toxins like ureic acid, excess water, excess fat, excess salts, and calcium.
This purifies your system and prevents the occurrence of kidney stones. It can even help you lose weight since it flushes out the extra fat from your body.
Patchouli Oil Acts as AntiFungal
Patchouli essential oil has strong anti-fungal properties and can prevent the growth and spread of fungus both internally and externally on your body. As a result it can protect you from a host of fungal infections such as athlete’s foot.
Fungal infections can be dangerous and even fatal, especially when they end up attacking your respiratory system and causing problems in your breathing.
It fights fever
Patchouli essential oil is also known for fighting fever. To start with, it can fight the infections in your body that have caused the fever in the first place. Secondly, patchouli oil also has strong antiphlogistic properties. This means that this oil can help reduce the temperature of your body, which is particularly handy when you have a fever.
Once the fever is reduced a certain amount, the inflammation and pain caused by the fever also go down, helping you feel better much faster. Since it boosts healing in your body, it can also help you get better faster.
Other Benefits of Patchouli Oil
Apart from the ones listed above, patchouli essential oil provides a range of other health benefits as well. It has insecticidal properties and can help ward off a number of different insects such as bed bugs, lice, ants, fleas, mosquitoes, and moths.
You can burn patchouli oil in a room in order to drive away the insects in it. You can also add a few drops of this to your bed or anywhere else in order to make sure no bugs come near you.
Patchouli essential oil acts as a tonic for your body and can help stimulate the secretion of various important hormones and enzymes that ultimately impact the way your organs and body systems function in a positive way. The oil also has a sedative effect which can be used to keep yourself calm. This effect is especially useful for people who have been through trauma or are undergoing stress and anxiety. The sedative effect can also be used to induce sleep and fight insomnia.
Patchouli essential oil is also used to treat a number of different ailments such as eczema, psoriasis, dermatitis, and sores. It relieves you from constipation. It is also a good antidote for many insect bites.
Uses of Patchouli Oil
Patchouli oil is commonly used in aromatherapy. This oil blends well with a number of other essential oils such as the oils of bergamot, clary sage, lavender, geranium, and myrrh. The oil is used in a number of herbal insecticides and bug sprays. It is used in herbal cosmetics as well to tone up the skin and bring back its shine.
Side-Effects & Allergies of Patchouli Oil
Patchouli essential oil can be irritating for people who are not used to the smell. Other than this, there are no side effects to using this oil. If you have sensitive skin, conducting a patch test to determine whether or not you are allergic to this oil can be a good idea. On a general note, it is always good to speak to your doctor or herbalist before adding anything new to your diet or lifestyle.
Cultivation of Patchouli Oil
Patchouli plant comes from Southeast Asia and the name itself has Indian roots. Some people believe that the name is derived from ancient tamil words, patchai and ellai, which mean ‘green leaf’, while others believe that it comes from the sanskrit word patchoi which means ‘to scent’.
Patchouli essential oil has been used since ancient times to ward off insects. It was used in clothes to protect the fabric from insects that could have ruined it, and the wearer from insects that can bite and cause harm. As time went on, its medicinal uses were discovered as well.
References
- van Beek TA, Joulain D. The essential oil of patchouli, Pogostemon cablin: A review. Flavour and fragrance journal. 2018 Jan;33(1):6-51. [Cited 26 June 2019]. Available from:
- Akhila A, Tewari R. Chemistry of patchouli oil: a review. Current research on medicinal and aromatic plants. 1984. [Cited 26 June 2019]. Available from:
- Yang X, Zhang X, Yang SP, Liu WQ. Evaluation of the antibacterial activity of patchouli oil. Iranian journal of pharmaceutical research: IJPR. 2013;12(3):307. [Cited 26 June 2019]. Available from:
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