Tea Tree Oil, The Australian Germicide

 

By Lana Lokteff | redicecreations.com

We are told that in 1732, Tea Tree Oil first came to the attention of western society when Captain James Cook landed in Australia. He brewed a spicy and refreshing tea from the leaves of the Melaleuca Alternifolia tree thus naming it the “Tea Tree.”

Captain Cook met with the Aborigines and they shared their healing methods using this tree. Later, James Cook had a doctor test it, who confirmed its natural antiseptic power found in its leaves. Cook and his crew drank the tea to prevent scurvy.

In 1920, Dr. RA Penefold, a government chemist in Sydney, Australia, was credited for beginning the human clinical research of the many benefits associated with Tea Tree Oil. His studies determined that Tea Tree Oil had a Rideal-Walker co-efficient of between 11 and 13. This means the oil is 11 to 13 times more powerful than carbolic acid (phenol) for killing bacteria and fungi yet non-caustic to the skin.

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