Tea Tree Oil
Ingredient Name: Tea Tree Essential Oil (Melaleuca alternafolia)
What is it? Tea tree oil is derived from the leaves of the tea tree through a steam distillation process that concentrates its volatile essential oils. There are over 100 different compounds in the essential oil, and some active properties are thought to come from constituents, including cineole, pinene, and terpineol. Tea tree oil has been used for centuries within Australian folk medicine because it is believed to have antibacterial properties.*
Nourishing properties:*
- Helps treat a broad range of skin infections
- Soothes inflammation
*= This information has not been approved by the FDA.
References
Carson, C. F., et al. “Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) Oil: a Review of Antimicrobial and Other Medicinal Properties.” Clinical Microbiology Reviews, vol. 19, no. 1, 2006, pp. 50–62., doi:10.1128/cmr.19.1.50-62.2006.
Cheng, Sai, and Xingfeng Shao. “In Vivo Antifungal Activities of the Tea Tree Oil Vapor against Botrytis Cinerea.” 2011 International Conference on New Technology of Agricultural, 2011, doi:10.1109/icae.2011.5943945.
Hammer, Katherine A., et al. “Effects of Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) Essential Oil and the Major Monoterpene Component Terpinen-4-Ol on the Development of Single- and Multistep Antibiotic Resistance and Antimicrobial Susceptibility.” Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, vol. 56, no. 2, 2011, pp. 909–915., doi:10.1128/aac.05741-11.
Mertas, Anna, et al. “The Influence of Tea Tree Oil (Melaleuca Alternifolia) on Fluconazole Activity against Fluconazole-ResistantCandida AlbicansStrains.” BioMed Research International, vol. 2015, 2015, pp. 1–9., doi:10.1155/2015/590470.
Satchell, Andrew C., et al. “Treatment of Dandruff with 5% Tea Tree Oil Shampoo.” Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, vol. 47, no. 6, 2002, pp. 852–855., doi:10.1067/mjd.2002.122734.
Ernst, E., and A. Huntley. “Tea Tree Oil: A Systematic Review of Randomized Clinical Trials.” Complementary Medicine Research, vol. 7, no. 1, 2000, pp. 17–20., doi:10.1159/000057164.
Pazyar, Nader, et al. “A Review of Applications of Tea Tree Oil in Dermatology.” International Journal of Dermatology, vol. 52, no. 7, 2012, pp. 784–790., doi:10.1111/j.1365-4632.2012.05654.x.
“Seborrheic Dermatitis and Dandruff: A Comprehensive Review.” Journal of Clinical and Investigative Dermatology, vol. 3, no. 2, 2015, doi:10.13188/2373-1044.1000019.
