About Tea Tree Oil

Tea tree oil is concentrated oil distilled from the native Australian plant, Melaleuca alternifolia, reports the University of Western Australia's Tea Tree Oil Research Group. It also goes by the name melaleuca oil. The oil contains more than 100 components, the most abundant of which is responsible for antimicrobial activity--an agent that can destroy disease-carrying microorganisms.

Uses

The American Cancer Society (ACS) reports that tea tree oil is commonly used as an herbal remedy for skin ailments. In Australia, the essential oil has long been used to treat skin infections because of its ability to destroy bacteria and fungus.
In 2004, the Journal of Hospital Infection looked at the effects of TTO on staph infections compared to the standard medical treatment on a group of 24 people with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The standard treatment was 49% successful, while tea tree oil was 41% successful, a rate considered not statistically significant.

Acne Treatment

The National Institutes of Health published a study in 1990 indicating that tea tree oil has acne-fighting properties. Researchers performed a randomized trial on 124 participants with mild to moderate acne. The volunteers who were treated with 5% tea tree oil gel and 5% benzoyl peroxide had a significant improvement and saw a reduction in the number of lesions. Although the tea tree oil took longer to take effect, the volunteers who were treated with the oil experienced fewer side effects compared to those treated with benzoyl peroxide.

Applications

According to the ACS, tea tree oil can be dissolved in water or used at full strength. It's available as an ointment, cream, lotion and soap. Because light can reduce the potency of tea tree oil, making it less effective, it is often sold in dark packaging.

Cosmetic Uses

Tea tree oil is used is used in shampoo for the treatment of dandruff. In 2002, researchers at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Camperdown, Australia, assigned 126 volunteers with dandruff either 5% tea tree oil shampoo or a placebo. After four weeks, the group that used the shampoo had a 41% improvement in symptoms. The placebo group only saw an 11% improvement. The tea tree oil group had no adverse effects.
Soaps infused with tea tree oil help prevent acne, kill germs and bacteria on the skin and heal sunburn.

Dangers

In 2007, a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine indicated possible dangers of tea tree oil. Medical News Today indicated that tea tree oil was suspected of causing a rare condition that enlarged breast tissue in prepubescent boys. The three boys with this condition, called prepubertal gynecomastia, all used shampoos or styling products containing one of two essential oils, including tea tree oil. The boys were in otherwise healthy condition with normal hormone levels. When researchers part of the National Institutes of Health further investigated tea tree oil, laboratory studies confirmed that the oil was able to mimic the action of estrogen and inhibit the effect of androgens.