Natural Medicine - Oil Of Melaleuca
Oil of Melaleuca
By Trina L.C. Schiller
There are more than 300 species of melaleuca trees. These trees are indigenous to Australia, and grow in abundance there. However, only one of these 300 species is known to have medicinal properties; melaleuca alternifolia, common name: tea tree. Making the melaleuca alternifolia tree even more unique is the fact that the trees of New South Wales, Australia, are the only tress in the world, capable of producing, "genuine" tea tree oil.
By Trina L.C. Schiller
There are more than 300 species of melaleuca trees. These trees are indigenous to Australia, and grow in abundance there. However, only one of these 300 species is known to have medicinal properties; melaleuca alternifolia, common name: tea tree. Making the melaleuca alternifolia tree even more unique is the fact that the trees of New South Wales, Australia, are the only tress in the world, capable of producing, "genuine" tea tree oil.
Australian Aborigines have used the melaleuca alternifolia tree, its leaves and oils, for medical purposes, for hundreds of years. It is said that they even bathed in melaleuca spas, formed by the shedding of leaves into pools of water. These pools of water would become heavily laced with melaleuca oil, changing it to a yellowish color. The people would bathe, or soak in these natural healing baths, to treat everything from skin irritations and sore muscles, to serious wounds and infections.Melaleuca oil was not known to the rest of the world until the late 1700's, to the credit of Captain James Cook and Joseph Banks. .
But what does modern science have to say about melaleuca oil?
There are 48 known compounds which make up pure melaleuca oil. Of these 48 compounds, there are a few which remain unidentified. Interestingly, one of its compounds, viridiflorene, has been found to exist nowhere else but in the oil of the melaleuca alternifolia tree. Nowhere else in the world!
Melaleuca oil also contains chemicals known as terpenes. These chemicals damage or destroy infectious organisms without causing harm to skin or soft tissues. It can be used effectively as an antiseptic, and as an anti-bacterial and anti-fungal agent. It is also been discovered to have certain anti-viral properties as well.
Melaleuca oil has been used to effectively treat the following conditions:
- acne
- cold sores
- yeast infections
- minor burns
- insect bites and stings
- sunburn
- dermatitis
- athlete's foot
- lice infestations
When melaleuca oil is added to water for a vaporizer, it can relieve many cold and allergy symptoms like:
- sore throat
- chest & nasal congestion
- itchy eyes
Because the oil of melaleuca occurs in nature, the quality of the oil is different from tree to tree, as their genetics may vary. The Australian government has created standards for the distillation and composition of tea tree oil for consumer use. Tea tree oil containing at least 35% of Terpinen-4-ol and less than 10% Cineole is considered high quality melaleuca oil.
The melaleuca alternifolia tree is one of the most amazing wonders of nature. So many benefits come from a single species of tree.
Related reading:
Australian Tea Tree Oil
A review by Robert Tisserand
Resources:
www.drugdigest.org
www.colostate.edu
The Melaleuca Wellness Guide
Copyright © 2005
The Trii-Zine Ezine
www.ezines1.com
Trina L.C. Schiller : About the Author
http://www.trinaschiller.ws
Keywords: melaleuca oil, tea tree oil
Comments
No comments yet
Add Comment