Nutmeg

Myristica fragrans

Chemotype: sabinene / alpha-pinene / beta-pinene type

spicysweetwoodywarm

PLANT PART: dried seed (kernel)
EXTRACTION: steam distillation
AROMA NOTE: mid

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LEARN AS YOU COMPARE

What’s inside this oil?

Constituents are the natural chemicals that give an oil its character. See the main ones, learn what they do, and explore differences between batches.

I’m interested in

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FOLLOW YOUR SENSES

Aroma & character

A closer look at this oil's scent, strength, and staying power.

spicysweetwoodywarm

Aroma intensity: 70 / 100

Soft & subtleBold & expressive

Note layer: mid

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A LITTLE CARE GOES A LONG WAY

Using it thoughtfully

Read the full safety context before bringing this oil into your routine.

Cited dermal maximum · leave-on: 0.8%
Phototoxicity: Not flagged in this profile
Oxidation risk: medium

A cited maximum is a limit, not a suggested dilution. Missing restrictions do not establish safety.

No phototoxic restriction was identified for steam-distilled nutmeg seed oil in the consulted public sources.

Contraindications & cautions

majorAromaWeb's safety summary of Tisserand and Young states that nutmeg oil can be psychotropic in high doses and gives a dermal maximum of 0.8% for East Indian nutmeg oils.

Read the complete safety guide

Explore measured chemistry from supplier batches

A supplier report describes a particular sample. Open this workspace to investigate measured constituents and their original documents.

THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE SCENT

Inside the oil

7 constituents

An oil's character comes from its natural chemical composition. Explore each constituent to understand the connections.

About this composition

This general nutmeg seed-oil record is anchored to two directly readable seed-oil chromatograms: an Indian hydrodistilled nutmeg profile preserved by The Good Scents Company and a 2024 Indonesia steam-distilled batch GC sheet from Lotus Garden Botanicals. Across those public seed-oil sources, nutmeg remains monoterpene-rich and is led by sabinene with alpha-pinene, beta-pinene, terpinen-4-ol, myristicin, limonene, and gamma-terpinene as the main recurring markers. Safety is conservatively anchored to the East Indian nutmeg dermal maximum summarized by AromaWeb from Tisserand and Young.

Constituent	Typical amount	Reported range	Chemical family	Source
Sabinene	26.82%	21.54–32.1%	monoterpene hydrocarbon	View source The Good Scents Company typical G.C. analysis for myristica fragrans oil hydrodistilled India; Certificate of Analysis Nutmeg NTM1023EO725 https://www.thegoodscentscompany.com/gca/gc1590901.html (sabinene 32.1%); https://www.lgbotanicals.com/assets/images/Certificate%20of%20Analysis%20Nutmeg%20NTM1023EO725.pdf (Sabinene 21.54%)
alpha-Pinene	16.19%	13.6–18.77%	monoterpene hydrocarbon	View source The Good Scents Company typical G.C. analysis for myristica fragrans oil hydrodistilled India; Certificate of Analysis Nutmeg NTM1023EO725 https://www.thegoodscentscompany.com/gca/gc1590901.html (alpha-pinene 13.6%); https://www.lgbotanicals.com/assets/images/Certificate%20of%20Analysis%20Nutmeg%20NTM1023EO725.pdf (alpha-Pinene 18.77%)
beta-Pinene	13.76%	12.9–14.62%	monoterpene hydrocarbon	View source The Good Scents Company typical G.C. analysis for myristica fragrans oil hydrodistilled India; Certificate of Analysis Nutmeg NTM1023EO725 https://www.thegoodscentscompany.com/gca/gc1590901.html (beta-pinene 12.9%); https://www.lgbotanicals.com/assets/images/Certificate%20of%20Analysis%20Nutmeg%20NTM1023EO725.pdf (beta-Pinene 14.62%)
Myristicin	6.6%	2.6–10.6%	phenylpropanoid ether	View source The Good Scents Company typical G.C. analysis for myristica fragrans oil hydrodistilled India; Certificate of Analysis Nutmeg NTM1023EO725 https://www.thegoodscentscompany.com/gca/gc1590901.html (myristicin 2.6%); https://www.lgbotanicals.com/assets/images/Certificate%20of%20Analysis%20Nutmeg%20NTM1023EO725.pdf (delta-Cadinene + Myristicin 10.60%)
Terpinen-4-ol	6.37%	5.53–7.2%	monoterpene alcohol	View source The Good Scents Company typical G.C. analysis for myristica fragrans oil hydrodistilled India; Certificate of Analysis Nutmeg NTM1023EO725 https://www.thegoodscentscompany.com/gca/gc1590901.html (terpinen-4-ol 7.2%); https://www.lgbotanicals.com/assets/images/Certificate%20of%20Analysis%20Nutmeg%20NTM1023EO725.pdf (Terpinen-4-ol 5.53%)
Limonene	4.04%	4–4.08%	monoterpene hydrocarbon	View source The Good Scents Company typical G.C. analysis for myristica fragrans oil hydrodistilled India; Certificate of Analysis Nutmeg NTM1023EO725 https://www.thegoodscentscompany.com/gca/gc1590901.html (limonene 4.0%); https://www.lgbotanicals.com/assets/images/Certificate%20of%20Analysis%20Nutmeg%20NTM1023EO725.pdf (Limonene 4.08%)
gamma-Terpinene	4.13%	3.9–4.36%	monoterpene hydrocarbon	View source The Good Scents Company typical G.C. analysis for myristica fragrans oil hydrodistilled India; Certificate of Analysis Nutmeg NTM1023EO725 https://www.thegoodscentscompany.com/gca/gc1590901.html (gamma-terpinene 3.9%); https://www.lgbotanicals.com/assets/images/Certificate%20of%20Analysis%20Nutmeg%20NTM1023EO725.pdf (gamma-Terpinene 4.36%)

Profile source: The Good Scents Company typical G.C. analysis for myristica fragrans oil hydrodistilled India; Certificate of Analysis Nutmeg NTM1023EO725; AromaWeb Nutmeg Essential Oil profile; IFRA Conformity Certificate for Nutmeg Essential Oil · https://www.thegoodscentscompany.com/gca/gc1590901.html ; https://www.lgbotanicals.com/assets/images/Certificate%20of%20Analysis%20Nutmeg%20NTM1023EO725.pdf ; https://www.aromaweb.com/essential-oils/nutmeg-essential-oil.php ; https://www.amphora-aromatics.com/images/product/39%20IFRA%20Nutmeg%20Oil%20-%20Version%201.pdf

A TRADITION OF BOTANICAL CURIOSITY

Traditional & reported uses

These uses reflect the profile's reported traditions and literature. They are not established treatment recommendations.

traditionally used in aromatherapy for warming, comforting, and invigorating effects
reported to support digestive comfort in traditional culinary and herbal use
used in massage blends for muscle comfort and warming sensations
used in perfumery for a warm, spicy note in oriental and gourmand compositions
traditionally associated with promoting a sense of vitality and warmth

Explore related intentionsEnergy & Invigoration ↗

For aromatherapy and wellness use only — not medical advice. Effect statements are traditional/reported associations, not treatment claims. The Synergy Rating scores blend craft, harmony and safety, not medical efficacy. Read the safety framework.

What we're still learning · 3 data gaps

Good decisions start with knowing what is — and isn't — in the evidence.

The Indonesian GC sheet reports a combined peak for delta-cadinene plus myristicin, so the high-end myristicin value remains an upper-bound anchor rather than a fully separated single-compound assay.
Odor intensity 70 is an archive normalization of AromaWeb's qualitative 'Medium - Strong' strength-of-initial-aroma band rather than a source-native 0-100 laboratory scale.
No public source reviewed in this pass published directly measured volatility-rate or tenacity-hour values for steam-distilled nutmeg seed oil.