Tea Tree Side Effects, Interactions and Warnings




  • The essential oil contains turpentines that are potentially allergenic. Report on 7 cases of patients with an allergic contact dermatitis due to tea tree oil. Two of them also exhibited from a delayed type IV hypersensitivity towards fragrance-mix or colophony suggesting the possibility of cross reaction or an allergic group reaction caused by contamination of the colophony with the volatile fraction of turpentines.
    – Ann Dermatol Venereol 2001 Feb;128(2):123-6 — Allergic contact dermatitis to cosmetics containing Melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree oil) — Fritz TM, Burg G, Krasovec M.

  • Combined contact allergy to tea tree oil and lavender oil complicating chronic vulvovaginitis.
    – Combined contact allergy to tea tree oil and lavender oil complicating chronic vulvovaginitis. — Varma S, et al. — Contact Dermatitis. 2000 May;42(5):309-10.

  • Allergic contact dermatitis due to tea tree oil was diagnosed. Tea tree oils are essential oils distilled from the leaves of myrtaceous trees and shrubs occurring in Australia and South-East Asia. The tea tree oil available in the Netherlands is distilled from the Melaleuca alternifolia and mainly contains eucalyptol. Eucalyptol is probably the most important allergen.

    – Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd 1994 Apr 16;138(16):823-5 — Allergic contact eczema due to ‘tea tree’ oil — van der Valk PG, de Groot AC, Bruynzeel DP, Coenraads PJ, Weijland JW.

  • A 23-month-old boy became confused and was unable to walk thirty minutes after ingesting less than 10 mL of T36-C7, a commercial product containing 100% melaleuca oil. This case report suggests that ingestion of a modest amount of a concentrated form of this oil may produce signs of toxicity.
    – J Toxicol Clin Toxicol 1994;32(4):461-4 — Melaleuca oil poisoning. — Jacobs MR, Hornfeldt CS.

  • Tea tree oil may substitute Candida itching with allergy itching.
    – Warning against a fashionable cure for vulvovaginitis. — Wolner-Hanssen P, et al.
    Lakartidningen. — 1998 Jul 22;95(30-31):3309-10.