General Overview
Tea Tree Oil is a potent antibacterial, antiseptic and antifungal when used topically to treat a nail fungus. The oil itself is steam distilled from the Australian plant Melaleuca alternifolia, and the plant is found almost exclusively in Australia and New Zeeland. This essential oil is available in specialty stores, and can be found in oil form, or in shampoos and soaps. It has been used for over 60 years in treating everything from cold sores to bug bites and acne.
How it Works
Tea Tree Oil penetrates deep into the nail when used topically, killing anything living it comes in contact with (your skin cells aside). It has to be used topically; however, as taken internally in larger amounts can cause poisoning. Pregnant women should not use this method, as the scientific community lacks the research to deem it safe for a fetus. Tea Tree Oil is safe otherwise for the general population.
How to Use
Treating a nail fungus with Tea Tree Oil will require one or two drops, once a day, until your nail starts to clear up. Be sure your nail is clean and dry before administering the oil, as any water left on or around your nail may prevent the oil from getting into the nail and reduce its effectiveness. Tea Tree Oil can produce some mild skin irritation in an area that is already having problems. You can dilute the Tea Tree Oil with a drop of olive oil to reduce the concentration being applied to your nail, if a full drop undiluted is too strong. Some experimentation may be necessary with this, as no identical treatment will work for everyone.
User Experiences
Some users see results in as little as two weeks, but it really depends on how advanced your nail fungus is. Expect some visual improvement within a month – that is an average number from a lot of Internet users who have reported. A few have had some skin irritation at the application site, but not severe enough to stop using it.
Conclusions and Recommendations
Essential oils are reasonably priced by themselves, and after shopping around for different products containing Tea Tree Oil, you may want to try only the essential oil if price is a concern. There seems to be a lot of treatment success when Tea Tree Oil is involved, alone or in a formula, so it’s worth a try.
