Studies Confirm Why You Should Own A Bottle Of Tea Tree Oil

Inside your medicine cabinet or behind your vanity mirror probably lie the many essentials that you occasionally use but are glad when they are there. Maybe there’s iodine and bandages for cuts, eyedrops, castor oil for constipation, or antibacterial wound cream. If you haven’t already, you may want to also add a small bottle of tea tree oil to that list.

Tea tree oil is an age old remedy used as a popular curative in Europe and Asia but hasn’t caught on in America until now. It is derived from the steam distilled extraction of the leaves of the tea tree which grows along the Australian coast. Tea tree oil has a pungent smell and mildly spicy sting when applied to the skin considered too harsh for American consumers. Other, less harsh creams and gels have been developed with fresh scents infused. However, more people are discovering the powers of tea tree oil and never going back to conventional, pharmaceutical attempts.

Wound Warrior

Tea tree oil is renowned for its highly potent antimicrobial properties.

Clinical Microbiology Reviews published a study that reported on the various antimicrobial and other medicinal properties of tea tree oil stating,

“…contemporary data clearly show that the broad-spectrum activity of TTO [tea tree oil] includes antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, and anti-protozoal [parasitic] activities…TTO compromises the structural and functional integrity of bacterial membranes.”

Using a cotton tip swab, soak the end with tea tree oil and dab on to the affected area. If it feels too caustic soak the cotton tip in water first, then tea tree oil. Let air dry. Reapply three to four times per day or as needed.

Pimple and Acne Fighter

When skin eruptions occur in the form of pimples or acne it is always best to do two things: take probiotics to support your digestive tract and treat dermis outbreaks with tea tree oil.

It’s important to note that, as with many alternative remedies, tea tree oil takes its time to work. The trade-off here is that the body is more adaptable when using plant based remedies rather than synthetic medicines which often come with a list of side effects and/or contraindications.

A comparative study of tea-tree oil versus benzoyl-peroxide in the treatment of acne by researchers at the Department of Dermatology, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Australia and published in The Medical Journal of Australia stated,

“We have performed a single-blind, randomized clinical trial on 124 patients to evaluate the efficacy and skin tolerance of 5% tea-tree oil gel in the treatment of mild to moderate acne when compared with 5% benzoyl peroxide lotion. The results of this study showed that both 5% tea-tree oil and 5% benzoyl peroxide had a significant effect in ameliorating the patients’ acne by reducing the number of inflamed and non-inflamed lesions (open and closed comedones), although the onset of action in the case of tea-tree oil was slower. Encouragingly, fewer side effects were experienced by patients treated with tea-tree oil.”

Apply to acne the same you would a wound.

Multi-Use

Wound care and acne application are the two most studied and tested applications of tea tree oil. Here are other uses of this multi-use remedy which may not have volumes of scientific backing but still can offer some significant results:

• Hair and Scalp – Tea tree oil has been effective in remedying dandruff, itchy scalp and flaking. Add a few drops to coconut milk, aloe vera gel and lavender drops and apply and use as a shampoo. This formula will also protect the scalp from lice.
• Sore Throat – Boil water, sprinkle in some tea tree oil, shut flame, put a towel over your head and breathe in the steam to treat a sore throat. You can also add a few drops to water and gargle with tea tree oil.
• Insect bites/stings – Dab tea tree oil on to a bite and it will disinfect, reduce inflammation and stop stinging. Keep covered with a bandage after application.
• Nail Fungus – Spray tea tree oil mixed with lavender on nail fungus everyday for six months to a year and you may be able to avoid dangerous pharmaceuticals.
• Ringworm – In a study published in the Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, it was concluded that, “Based on both its inhibitory and fungicidal action, tea tree oil may be a useful agent for treating dermatophyte infections.”

As antibiotic resistant bugs continue to thrive it is only a matter of time that medicine will finally turn back to nature, its original mentor. Tea tree oil is powerful enough to fight just as hard as many conventional fixes. Make sure you have a bottle in your medicine cabinet today.