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5 Best Essential Oils To Boost Testosterone (Science-Based)

Isaac Robertson
Published by Isaac Robertson | Co-Founder & Chief Editor
Last updated: August 6, 2023
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Low T-levels can lead to several unwanted symptoms such as decreased libido and chronic fatigue. Many men address this problem with treatments like injections, patches, creams, and supplements.

Essential oils are another unpopular but scientifically proven method for increasing testosterone.

By balancing your hormones and enhancing your mood, essential oils may increase testosterone levels.

After immersing myself in research and books on essential oils, here's what I learned about this natural testosterone-boosting substance.

Quick Summary

  • The best essential oils to boost testosterone levels are rose, clary sage, lavender, chamomile, and sandalwood.
  • Some common symptoms of low testosterone are fatigue, depression, appetite changes, irritability, low sex drive, sleep changes, and reduced lean muscle mass.
  • The best way of consuming the essential oil can be inhaling, ingestion, or topical application.

Why Use Essential Oils For Low Testosterone?

Close up shot of a bottle of essential oil

Essential oils are found in various plants, shrubs, trees, and citrus fruit rinds. They're the component responsible for the distinctive scents in herbs, flowers, and fruits.

Back when modern medicine didn't exist yet, these oils were used by people as natural remedies.

People have extracted these oils for several thousand years and used them in herbal medicine for their therapeutic benefits, so it's not just a fad.

There are topical testosterone treatments that can correct low T problems, but they may have side effects such as teary eyes, acne, and itchy or dry skin [1].

That's why choosing the natural route is still the best. However, make sure to consult a medical professional before utilizing essential oils to increase your testosterone levels.

Why Low Testosterone Is A Problem?

man upset

According to the Urology Care Foundation, two men out of a hundred have low T levels [2].

Men with low T levels can experience various symptoms, including:

  • Fatigue
  • Irritability
  • Erectile dysfunction
  • Low sex drive
  • Depression
  • Sleep changes
  • Reduced lean muscle mass
  • Appetite changes

Low testosterone levels represent an issue that has become more prevalent over the years due to a combination of lifestyle and environmental factors.

Everything from a sedentary lifestyle to a poor diet can influence your testosterone levels, so it's vital to address the problem right after you feel your overall health declining.

Other factors that can lead to low levels of testosterone are weight gain, heightened stress levels, and the intake of certain drugs.

5 Essential Oils To Boost Testosterone Levels

bottles of oil

Essential oils are mainly used for aromatherapy, but they're slowly becoming one of the most reliable natural remedies for low T levels.

Here are five of the best oils you can use to treat low levels of testosterone.

Rose

Rose essential oil is known to support hormonal balance, particularly in the brain. It helps boost serotonin and neuropeptide levels, thereby supporting better mood and relieving symptoms of depression.

It also enhances the production of testosterone, sex drive, sperm count, and motility [3].

This oil has also been used as an aphrodisiac. It can bring about feelings of self-confidence and happiness, which can aid in sensuality and help you perform better in bed.

Clary Sage

Clary sage possesses the ability to stimulate the endocrine system, liver, brain, and nervous system, as well as the circulatory system, while also demonstrating effectiveness in hormone balance and regulation of estrogen.

Sage oil also improves sexual desire and has antidepressant capabilities, improving your T-levels [4].

In a 2014 study, it was found that inhaling sage oil reduced cortisol levels by 36% and improved thyroid hormone levels, proving that it has antidepressant and mood-enhancing effects [5].

Lavender

lavender in a spoon

Lavender essential oil is famous for its relaxing and appealing scent, providing anxiety relief and improving sleep quality.

Unlike the first two, lavender doesn't directly cause hormonal changes.

However, it’s effective at reducing stress and regulating hormone production, helping you naturally improve your T-levels in the process.

Chamomile

Chamomile oil is another relaxing agent that can calm both the body and the mind. It promotes a more restful sleep which, in turn, makes it easier for your body to manage its hormone production, including testosterone.

This oil also has anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties [6].

A study has also found that lavender and chamomile essential oil inhalation aromatherapy helped reduce stress and anxiety in older community-dwelling people [7].

Sandalwood

Sandalwood essential oil is a natural aphrodisiac that can fight low libido and balance T levels in men and women. It also gives a general feeling of relaxation.

Since sandalwood does a great job at upping your sex drive, it's often added to men's cologne and certain perfumes.

Sandalwood smells fantastic, and for men with low testosterone, adding a few drops of this oil into your homemade deodorant or lotion can make you smell good while enjoying its potential benefits for your hormones and sex drive.

Frankincense Essential Oil

Frankincense essential oil is renowned for its rich and soothing aroma, which promotes a sense of calmness and relaxation. While it does not directly cause hormonal changes like lavender, it has been suggested to have potential benefits for hormone regulation and overall well-being.

Frankincense essential oil is believed to have stress-reducing properties, which can indirectly support hormone balance. By reducing stress levels, it may positively impact the body's ability to regulate hormone production, potentially including testosterone.

Although further research is needed to fully understand the specific effects of frankincense essential oil on hormone regulation, its traditional use and anecdotal evidence suggest that it can contribute to overall wellness and potentially have positive effects on hormone balance.

Using Essential Oils To Boost Testosterone

bottles of essential oil

Based on the trend, essential oils will become a permanent part of the health and wellness industry in the next few years. But until then, here's what you can do to make the best use of them.

Choose High-Quality Essential Oils

To ensure you're getting only good-quality essential oils, you must do your research. First, you have to understand the difference between essential oils and fragrance oils.

Essential oils are concentrated oils derived from plants. Aside from smelling great, genuine essential oils contain the beneficial chemical compounds of the specific plant they were extracted from.

On the other hand, fragrance oils are synthetic and diluted with artificial substances, so they're way cheaper than essential oils.

Although they smell good, that's the only benefit you can get from them. Since these oils are ultra-concentrated, they typically smell pretty strong right out of the bottle. A high-quality essential oil should smell natural and pleasant.

Get Guidance From Experts

woman holding up a container

You need to understand the science behind these substances before adding all the oils mentioned to your current regimen.

So if you need some help with self-experimentation and exploring the research behind essential oils and their wonders, I would recommend getting the assistance of a trusted coach or health practitioner.

Also, check the price tag. It takes hundreds to thousands of flowers to make one tiny bottle of essential oil; that's why they can be pretty expensive.

An oil's price should make sense when you consider the rarity of the plant and the labor required to distill it. So please don't fall for cheaply-priced essential oils as they're most likely fake.

Maintain Healthy Lifestyle

Essential oils can help you achieve good health. Still, you must also pay attention to your well-being and support your use of essential oils with regular exercise, healthy eating, and wholesome lifestyle choices.

Once you've established those, you are more likely to experience the healing and health-boosting effects of essential oils.

How Do Essential Oils Work?

woman using essential oil on her wrist

Essential oils affect several nerve pathways and systems in the body, providing several benefits to your immune system, hormones and organs.

Some claims about essential oils may seem far-fetched, but scientific data suggests they are true.

Each essential oil affects the system differently, and there are also various methods of using them. Here are the most common ways of using them.

Inhalation

Essential oils are mainly used for aromatherapy because of their scent.

Inhaling these therapeutic oils can stimulate over 1,000 receptors in the nasal cavity, which then sends signals through the olfactory bulb to the limbic system, the part of the brain involved in our behavioral and emotional responses.

From there, they can affect the nervous, endocrine, autonomic, and immune systems.

Once the oils reach the lungs, they go through the alveoli and into the capillary arteries. Once they get to the bloodstream, they become small enough to go through the blood-brain barrier.

Our emotions play a significant part in our decision-making. When we're stressed, we tend to make unhealthy choices—we may reach for junk food and skip workouts.

That's why experts strongly believe that inhaling essential oils throughout the day can help you make better lifestyle decisions because of its mood-enhancing effects.

Topical Application

shirtless man getting massaged

You can apply your essential oil individually or mix it with a carrier oil like avocado, olive, sesame, or coconut oil.

Diluting oils help minimize the sensation on the skin and slow absorption, which is especially important if you're using them on a child.

Doing so also allows you to spread the oil across a bigger surface and helps prolong its effects.

However, you should still apply caution when putting essential oils on the skin.

"Applying essential oils to your skin is also generally safe, but avoid applying them to your eyes, ears, and mouth. You should also avoid applying them over broken or irritated skin."

- Dr. Susan Werner, Family Medicine Physician, Geisinger

Once they're absorbed into the skin, essential oils can act locally (where you applied them) or systemically through the entire body.

If you're going for the latter, one of the best places you can use the oil is on the soles of your feet since those have large pores that can help the essential oils quickly absorb.

Ingestion

This one's a bit controversial, but I included it in this guide for informational purposes.

Ingesting essential oils is one of the most debated subjects in alternative health today. And while specific oils are edible, there isn't always a good reason to do it.

Hence, I would never recommend consuming essential oils orally without the recommendation of a physician.

But if you received the go-ahead from your doctor, I suggest taking your essential oil with a fat-containing meal or an ample amount of carrier oil to help it spread through the digestive system quickly.

Remember, essential oils are hydrophobic, which means they will only rise to the top if you take them with water.

Can Essential Oils Increase Estrogen?

Based on a lack of evidence, essential oils can’t increase estrogen. They can only help the body regulate its production of hormones.

Oils like geranium can relieve menopause symptoms and improve progesterone production to help balance estrogen levels, but that's it.

Related Articles:

Do Essential Oils Boost Testosterone?

Studies have proven that certain essential oils like rose and sage can boost the production of testosterone and have antidepressant effects, boosting libido.

The other essential oils mentioned—sandalwood, chamomile, and lavender—promote healthy levels of testosterone and balance out your hormones by improving mood and sleep.

In other words, they are supporting essential oils. While they don't directly impact your body's testosterone production, they help regulate and maintain healthy T-levels in your body.

If you need to boost testosterone, I highly recommend trying out these essential oils as a natural treatment.


References:

  1. https://medlineplus.gov/druginfo/meds/a605020.html#side-effects
  2. https://www.urologyhealth.org/urology-a-z/l/low-testosterone
  3. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2225411015000954?via%3Dihub
  4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24802524/
  5. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24802524/
  6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2995283/
  7. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33454232/
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