Sandalwood is a wood with an amazing fragrance that comes from the trees of the Santalum genus. We get the pure form of sandalwood from the Indian member of this family called Santalum Album. Sandalwood or chandan is used in the Indian culture for various rituals and is a skin friendly natural ingredient. It has several skin and hair care benefits. Read this article further to know about some reasons why sandalwood should be a part of your beauty care routine.
1. Brightens skin
Sandalwood can help in brightening the skin with its exfoliating properties. It evens out the skin tone and reduces the dark spots on your skin and acts as a great home remedy to remove tanning. Just take a tablespoon of sandalwood powder and mix it with coconut oil in a small bowl. Give your face a gentle massage using it and let it stay overnight. Apply it regularly to brighten your skin and get an even complexion.
2. Slows down signs of ageing
Sandalwood is loaded with antioxidants that help in fighting the skin damage caused by free radicals and prevents wrinkles. It will also make your skin look young, active and radiant. Mix 2 tablespoons of multani mitti in one tablespoon of sandalwood powder and rose water in a small bowl. Then, add a teaspoon of lemon juice for more benefits. You can apply this paste on the face and neck. Leave it on for 15 minutes and wash it off with water.
3. Reduces acne
Sandalwood is known as an astringent, which can help in the tightening of skin. It leads to the coagulation of skin proteins, which protect your skin from damage, breakouts and allergies. Therefore, it is important to make sandalwood a part of your beauty care routine. You can also mix turmeric, sandalwood powder and rose water to make a smooth paste for more effectiveness.
4. Treats skin infections
Sandalwood has cooling properties that can treat itchiness of skin and get rid of various skin infections. It is known to reduce internal and external inflammation. You can make a mixture of sandalwood powder with turmeric and camphor and apply it on your face or the affected area of your body. Sandalwood can also help in treating skin problems like psoriasis, eczema and other skin allergies.
5. Natural moisturizer
Sandalwood also acts as a natural moisturizer by treating dry and flaky skin. You can apply a DIY sandalwood face pack to deal with dry and dull skin. Take a tablespoon of milk powder and a few drops of sandalwood oil in a small bowl. Then, add some rose water to make a smooth paste. Apply this mixture on the face and let it stay for around 15 minutes, or until it is dry. Rinse it off using cold water. Sandalwood penetrates the skin and clears the dirt from skin pores, leaving a glowing skin.
6. Heals cuts and wounds
Sandalwood contains anti-septic properties and is being used to heal mild wounds and cuts since years. It also has anti-microbial properties which can prevent wounds, scratches, boils, lesions and acne from getting infected. Along with apokying topically, sandalwood oil can be ingested to treat minor wounds. For this purpose, you can take a few drops of this oil and add it to warm milk to prepare a soothing drink.
7. Fights skin cancer
Another reason why sandalwood should be a part of your beauty care routine is that it helps in fighting skin cancer. Sandalwood oil contains a helping agent called santalol, which can be promising fir the treatment of skin cancer. It can be applied on the affected skin as it can kill acfuve cancer cells and avoid their multiplying. Santalol is also popular to have anaesthetic, anti-septic, anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties that are beneficial for the skin.
8. Moisturizes hair
A few drops of sandalwood oil can be added to hair conditioner to moisturize your hair. This is an amazing natural way to get rid of dry and brittle hair, full of split ends. It is best to let it stay on your hair strands for a few minutes to get desired results. But, take only a small amount of oil mixed with conditioner as your hair can become greasy. You can also make a sandalwood powder hair mask mixed with rose water to moisturize your hair.
