Beside herbal tea, tea tree oil also a non-tea product. There are many claims about tea tree benefits, thus we thought it’s worth to mention some of the claims here. This tree oil sometimes referred to as Melaleuca oil. The essential oil comes from a plant called Melaleuca Alternifolia, not the mother tea plant Camellia Sinesis.
This kind of oil is not Chinese tea oil. Chinese tea oil comes from Camellia Sinensis. The tea trees mostly are grown in Australia, some in Indonesia. The essential oil is extracted by steaming the leaves of Melaleuca plant.
Ancient Australians used melaleuca oil as a medicinal drug against bacterial infections on the skin. The melaleuca oil contains almost 100 natural antibacterial and disinfecting agents. Recent studies have shown the effect of these chemicals against skin infections, skin cuts, sun burn, dandruff, and athlete’s foot… The oil contains high level (about 35-40%) of a chemical component called Terpenoids (or terpinen-4-ol). Terpenoids is responsible for the anti-fugal properties of tea tree oil.
DO NOT DRINK TEA TREE OIL
4 main tea tree benefits
There are many claims to the tea tree benefits. Here are an overview 4 tea tree benefits from using this essence oil:
Antifungal infections: ~ 100 compounds of natural chemicals in the oil have anti-fungal properties. These compounds are absorbed into the outer layer of the skin under the nails to kill and slow the spreading of fungi bacteria. However, it is a long-term treatment for the recovery of the skin and nails.
Athlete’s foot: The major symptoms of athlete foot are the itchiness and redness between the toes and at the back of the feet. Massaging the feet daily can help relieve the irritation and itchiness. Studies have shown that using 4-6% tea tree oil solution is quite sufficient.
Cold sore: Cold sore is the infection on the lips of around the mouth. The infection causes itchiness and redness. Cold sore can not be terminated with drugs. Cold sore will reappear when a person is stressed or there is significant change in weather. Cold sore is left to heal itself but the oil from tea tree can help speeding up the healing process. The oil initiates the development of new skin cells. This property of the oil is also very helpful in treating burn injuries. However, you should be careful not to swallow any amount of the oil to prevent complicated reactions.
Acne: This Melaleuca oil can be effective in treating acne. The other drug that use for acne is benzoyl peroxide lotion. However, using oil from tea tree can reduce the risk of side effects such as blistering and itching. It is shown that 5% or less tea tree oil solution is sufficient.
DO NOT DRINK TEA TREE OIL
Know more about tea tree plant
Tea tree plant has a scientific name Melaleuca Alternifolia. However, it is commonly known as Australian tea tree.
Many people are confused this plant with the tea plant Camellia Sinensis. Camellia Sinensis produces tea drink such as green, black, yellow, Oolong tea… While Australian tea tree produces mainly oil for external uses.
No one is sure the reason why the plant is called the tea tree. One hypothesis states that ancient Australians many put the leaves in the water to drink. Thus, it may resemble a “tea” drink. Tea tree are mainly grown in North Eastern Australia, a place called New South Wales. New Zealand also starts to cultivate this plant. The plants prefer many hours of sunlight and very fertile soil. The plants are about 1 year old before the harvesting of the oil begins. The oil is extracted from the leaves by steaming the tea tree leaves. Recent studies have shown that the oil from tea tree is a collection of natural antiseptic and anti-fungal agents.
DO NOT DRINK TEA TREE OIL
Other uses for tea tree oil
There are many other uses of tea tree oil beside for treating anti-fungal skin problems such as disc cleanser, room disinfections, and odor terminator.
For dishes cleanser, a few drops of the tea tree oil are added into the disc washer soaps or the cleaning liquid to kill any fungi or bacteria on the dishes or window. But rinse the disc carefully! You don’t want anyone to swallow any amount of oil.
Add a few drop of tea tree oil into the soap can dilute the oil, make it less harmful when ingested. But it’s better to be safe. Rinse!…Rinse!….rinse again! It can also be used in the cloth washing soaps to destroy the fungi development in the cloths. Small amount of tea tree oil is sufficient.
Tea tree oil can also be use to humidify the room to give you refreshing feelings. Humidity is needed to prevent your skin from drying and have crack. To have a home-made humidifier is quite simple. Just take a bowl of cool water, not too much water though, add a small amount of tea tree oil solution into the water. Let the oil resolve in the water and let it freshens up the air around you. But be careful! Don’t let anyone drink it! Keep it out of reach from your children.
Some of the room odor is caused by bacteria and fungi. Add a tiny amount, a few drops is fine, into the spray bottle. Fill it with water and start spraying around the room. The essence oil will capture the odor-causing fungi and bacteria and remove it from the air. But don’t pray it too much! Few times are sufficient. Try to spray the room when nobody is there. You don’t want to spray into anybody ‘s eyes. The bottom line is that add a few amount of tea tree oil and avoid any contact to eyes, ears, and mouth. Also be careful not to ingest any amount of oil. The oil should only apply to your skin.
