Tea tree oil is a popular home remedy for acne. It is a strong antiseptic, which helps to fight bacteria and infection the natural way.
Many different skin conditions, including acne, are bacteria-based problems. An antiseptic oil like tea tree is the perfect match to fight acne-causing bacteria.
With tea tree’s strong skin care capabilities, it is a favorite essential oil in the beauty industry. You may have noticed it as an ingredient on many over-the-counter beauty products, too.
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I will show you how to use tea tree oil to make your own acne treatments at home. I also have some tips for acne-prone skin, and how to add tea tree oil to your daily beauty routine. It’ll help you to best prevent breakouts and zits.
What Is Tea Tree Oil?
Tea tree oil is made from the stems and leaves of the plant
Tea tree essential oil is extracted from the plant Melaleuca alternifolia. The plant is native to Australia. Tea tree oil is produced through steam distillation of the branches and leaves of the plant. It makes a yellow colored oil.
Traditionally, native Australian peoples have used tea tree for supporting natural healing. They boiled the leaves to make bandages to treat cuts, wounds and skin infections. Tea tree has various health and skin benefits!
Tea Tree Oil Benefits for Your Skin
Tea tree’s most recommended use is to help treat acne-prone skin. One of its strongest benefits is being antiseptic, which supports skin threatened by possible infection and acne-causing bacteria. The terpenes¹ found in tea tree oil can kill common bacteria, keep germs from entering through broken skin cells, and relieve inflamed skin².
When it comes to acne spot treatment, tea tree oil may be the DIY solution you’ve been looking for. It is a natural alternative to reduce the overall severity of acne.
With any skin healing process, it is also important to exfoliate regularly to remove excess dead skin cells. Use a gentle exfoliating body wash in the shower or try dry brushing³ to promote healthy circulation.
5 Ways to Use Tea Tree Oil for Acne
Tea tree essential oil is the #1 recommended oil for treating acne at home. Especially when that zit first starts to appear, you can nip it in the bud with your homemade tea tree solution.
Here are 5 easy ways to incorporate tea tree oil into your daily beauty routine!
1. Face Wash
Wash your face with Tea Tree oil.
If you have acne prone skin and suffer from break-outs, a routine tea tree oil treatment may be best for you. Switch to a natural tea tree oil soap or tea tree face wash product.
As part of your daily wash, tea tree oil can help get rid of dead skin cells. It helps to remove built-up skin flakes and helps to let your skin pores breathe freely.
To make your own homemade tea tree face wash, mix 1/4 cup of liquid castile soap, 1 cup of distilled water, and 10 drops of tea tree oil. Works best with a foaming bottle (the same ones I use for my foaming hand soap recipe).
2. Facial Toner
DIY facial toner is easy to make and can have wonderful skin care benefits.
Another simple way to get tea tree oil on your skin daily is to use a DIY face toner. It’s super quick and easy to mix up, and it won’t cost you an arm and a leg.
In an empty glass container, combine 2 oz. of alcohol-free witch hazel and 10 drops of pure tea tree oil. This makes a fantastic facial toner that helps you fight acne on a day to day basis. Find the best containers and supplies here.
3. Acne Zit Spot Treatment
Acne breakouts can be frustrating
For those nasty zits or acne breakouts that happen to all of us, have a simple tea tree roller bottle ready. They offer essential oil benefits in a pre-diluted form. You can buy a pre-made one, or use coconut oil and your choice of tea tree oil brand to make your own roll-on. The coconut oil will be your carrier oil.
It’s super easy to treat acne zits with a natural tea tree roller
Check it out
Simply roll a bit of the solution to the affected area as needed. Tea tree oil can help clear up acne and zits before they develop into full-blown pimples. The oil can help stop the infection from spreading to unaffected areas on your body, too.
If you have unwanted acne zits, blackheads or whiteheads, try tea tree oil as an easy, natural home remedy.
4. Acne Scars Cream
Tea tree oil can help with any dark spots left behind from bad acne or breakout episodes. If you’re continuing to fight appearance issues from acne scars, use your tea tree roller daily.
With essential oil products, you have to apply them for a while before you notice results. The oils support your body’s natural processes of skin regeneration and healing. It is not a cream that works overnight.
To make a generous supply of DIY acne moisturizer cream, mix 2 drops of tea tree oil with 12 drops of coconut oil as your carrier oil. It is important to always dilute the essential oil.
Multiply the recipe depending on how big of a container you wish to fill. A 5 ml amber glass bottle holds about 100 drops of oil. Count 84 drops of carrier oil and top it up with 14 drops of tea tree essential oil. Gently massage a few drops of your mixture onto your acne scars at morning and at night.
If the scars are small, use a Q-tip to apply.
5. Tea Tree Oil Face Mask
Whip up a quick homemade face mask with tea tree oil for acne.
A simple face mask goes a long way in stopping an acne breakout and giving your skin that extra bit of care. Best of all, it’s super simple to whip up and takes just 3 ingredients. You may already have everything you need in your pantry.
Find 1 teaspoon of yogurt, 1 teaspoon of honey, and 3-4 drops of tea tree oil. Follow this simple recipe here. Of course, it also works on any other part of the body, not just the face.
Never apply tea tree oil directly onto your skin. It is a very potent oil that can cause skin irritation such as itchiness, redness or swelling.
Bonus: Tea Tree Oil Face Serum
Tea Tree Serum
Buy Here
Plant Therapy’s Tea Tree Facial Serum is a powerhouse of botanical ingredients that support blemish-free skin. I love using mine as it’s lightweight and non-greasy.
Reach for this serum as part of your daily beauty routine and support yourself in the fight against facial acne.
Tea Tree Oil Precautions
Tea tree oil is a concentrated plant extract. Be sure you read these precautions before use.
- Using tea tree oil is for topical application only. Never swallow it.
- Don’t use it undiluted. Start by diluting it into a carrier oil such as almond oil, and then apply it onto the skin for acne spot treatment.
- Tea tree oil may also not be for everyone. It is possible to have an allergic reaction, which would include a rash or reddening of your skin.
- If you have larger areas of your body that you wish to address, be sure to test your skin’s reaction to tea tree oil first. Do a skin patch test, which means applying the solution to a small area of your skin only. This will show how your skin reacts to it. If all goes well and you don’t experience and side effects, skin rashes or itching, you can start using it more wide-spread.
- If you have sensitive skin or other skin conditions, check with your dermatologist first before starting to use tea tree oil on your skin.
- Tea tree oil is also the #1 oil to avoid around cats in your household. It is very poisonous to pets. Please follow these general tips when using essential oils around pets.
Where to Buy Tea Tree Oil
Tea tree oil is not an expensive oil. Almost all reputable essential oil brands carry tea tree in their product assortment. It is almost always part of an essential oil starter pack.
Look for a tea tree oil that is 100 percent pure and has been sourced from Australia. That is where the tree Melaleuca alternifolia grows natively. An essential oil is always in its best and purest form when it’s made from a plant that grew in its natural surroundings.
Tea tree oil is relatively inexpensive to buy. REVIVE’s tea tree is sourced from Australia.
Check Price
- Mountain Rose Herbs, 15 ml $10.50 *
- Plant Therapy USDA Certified Organic Tea Tree Oil, 10 ml $9.99 *
- Rocky Mountain Oils, 15 ml $21.95 *
- Edens Garden, 10 ml $9.95 *
- REVIVE, 10 ml $8.00 *
* Prices at time of writing and subject to change without notice.
Final Thoughts
Tea tree oil is an excellent skin treatment option for oily, acne-prone skin. It should be used twice daily for six to 12 weeks to start seeing a benefit. This wonderful essential oil is capable of treating a wide range of problems, as it can be beneficial for your scalp and hair, too, or be used in home made cleaning products.
References
¹ DoTerra.com: Terpenes Essential Oils Chemistry
² Healthline.com: 14 Everyday Uses for Tea Tree Oil
³ Healthline.com: How to Dry Brush Your Face for Maximum Benefit
I get blackheads and my under eyes are very dark. I have sentinel skin. Is there a cream or something to stops blackheads and spots?
Tea tree oil is beneficial for health and home as well. I have used it to get rid of blackheads. My skin looks fresh and clear now. I like this article so much. Thanks and keep sharing.
I recently end natural treatment from herbalist healer which i used to got rid of my genital warts i only applied the treatment for one week, it so amazing i have eliminate this disease out from my body, i also recommend everyone suffering from this horrible disease should also be cured.
I’ve discovered tea tree oil to be among the most effective wart treatment ever before.
You can utilize it on its own, or you could utilize it in mix with several various
other things. Here is how you could use tea tree oil on its own. Clean and also dry the influenced locations with
soap and also warm water. Apply a drop of undiluted tea tree oil on the affected area as well as cover with a plaster.
Or apply tea oil to a bandage as well as uuse on the warts.
Leave for at least 8 hrs or over night. Get rid of the plaster and wash the area with water.
Alternatively, you could likewise make a few modifications and do this instead.
Mix a couple of drops of tea tree oil in 1 tablespoon of water.
Soak a cotton round and also press it to wring out excess.
Apply this mix on the warts and also cover
with a bandage. Leave it on over night and rinse it off the next morning.
Repeat frequently. The idea behind both of these variants is the exact
same. The only difference is just how much tea tree oil
you can expose the wart to at a single offered application. With the cotton sphere,
the tea tree oil doesn’t completely dry out as quickly, so it could
attack the wart for a a lot longer period.