Wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens)

Gaultheria procumbens

Chemotype: methyl salicylate chemotype (essentially single-constituent oil)

mintysweetcoolingmedicinalsharpfreshherbaceous

PLANT PART: leaves
EXTRACTION: water or steam distillation
AROMA NOTE: top-mid

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FOLLOW YOUR SENSES

Aroma & character

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

mintysweetcoolingmedicinalsharpfreshherbaceous

Aroma intensity: 80 / 100

Soft & subtleBold & expressive

Note layer: top-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: 2.4%
Phototoxicity: Not flagged in this profile
Oxidation risk: low

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

Not phototoxic. The safety issue is salicylate load rather than furocoumarins. AromaWeb summarizes Tisserand and Young as recommending a 2.4% adult dermal maximum.

Contraindications & cautions

majorContraindicated in children (salicylate toxicity, Reye's syndrome risk); do not use on/around children.
majorMethyl salicylate potentiates anticoagulants (e.g. warfarin); contraindicated with bleeding disorders, before surgery.
majorAvoid in pregnancy and breastfeeding (salicylate).
majorAcutely toxic orally: ~1 tsp methyl salicylate can be lethal to a child. Salicylate-sensitive individuals must avoid.

Read the complete safety guide

Explore measured chemistry from supplier batches

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THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE SCENT

Inside the oil

6 constituents

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

About this composition

This record is anchored to AromaWeb's live Wintergreen profile and a directly readable GC/MS batch report for Gaultheria procumbens. Wintergreen oil is overwhelmingly methyl salicylate, with a small trace fraction of salicylate esters and monoterpenes. The batch report confirms the expected near-single-constituent profile.

Constituent	Typical amount	Reported range	Chemical family	Source
Methyl salicylate	99.4%	99.4–99.4%	phenolic ester	View source Wintergreen Essential Oil profile at AromaWeb; GC/MS BATCH NUMBER: W20100 https://www.aromaweb.com/essential-oils/wintergreen-essential-oil.php (major constituents, methyl salicylate 96.0-99.5%; leaves; water or steam distillation; top note; strong aroma; dermal maximum 2.4%); https://funyu-store.b-cdn.net/report/Wintergreen-Organic-W20100.pdf (page 1, methyl salicylate 99.4%)
Ethyl salicylate	0.1%	0.1–0.1%	phenolic ester	View source GC/MS BATCH NUMBER: W20100 https://funyu-store.b-cdn.net/report/Wintergreen-Organic-W20100.pdf (page 1, ethyl salicylate 0.1%)
Linalool	0.05%	0.05–0.05%	monoterpene alcohol	View source GC/MS BATCH NUMBER: W20100 https://funyu-store.b-cdn.net/report/Wintergreen-Organic-W20100.pdf (page 1, linalool 0.05%)
alpha-pinene	0.02%	0.02–0.02%	monoterpene hydrocarbon	View source GC/MS BATCH NUMBER: W20100 https://funyu-store.b-cdn.net/report/Wintergreen-Organic-W20100.pdf (page 1, alpha-pinene 0.02%)
beta-pinene	0.01%	0.01–0.01%	monoterpene hydrocarbon	View source GC/MS BATCH NUMBER: W20100 https://funyu-store.b-cdn.net/report/Wintergreen-Organic-W20100.pdf (page 1, beta-pinene 0.01%)
1,8-cineole	0.01%	0.01–0.01%	monoterpene ether	View source GC/MS BATCH NUMBER: W20100 https://funyu-store.b-cdn.net/report/Wintergreen-Organic-W20100.pdf (page 1, 1,8-cineole 0.01%)

Profile source: Wintergreen Essential Oil profile at AromaWeb; GC/MS BATCH NUMBER: W20100 · https://www.aromaweb.com/essential-oils/wintergreen-essential-oil.php (Gaultheria procumbens; leaves; water or steam distillation; top note; strong aroma; dermal maximum 2.4%); https://funyu-store.b-cdn.net/report/Wintergreen-Organic-W20100.pdf

What we're still learning · 2 data gaps

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

No verified public source reviewed in this pass provided volatility-rate or tenacity-hour measurements for wintergreen oil.
Odor intensity 80 is an archive normalization of AromaWeb's qualitative 'Strong' aroma-strength band rather than a native published 0-100 score.