Introduction

Occasionally, a new ingredient comes to the market that fires the imagination of the marketers and formulators alike. Sometimes it has an attractive name, sometimes an attractive fragrance whilst at other times the attraction may be its origins in an exotic location.

Tea Tree Oil does not have a particularly attractive name, it has an odour that might justifiably be called characteristic, but it does originate from, and is unique to, Australia.

The use of tea tree oil has spread from its antipodean origins to become a worldwide phenomenon in cosmetics formulations over the last five years. It has become so popular that there is even a multilevel company in the United States that has taken its name from the species.

The popular tea tree oil is obtained by steam distillation from the leaves of Melaleuca alternifolia, a shrubby tree that thrives in the swamps between the Clarence and Richmond Rivers in New South Wales. The oil is rich in cineol, terpinene-4-ol, cymene, and other sesquiterpenes and sesquiterpene alcohols. Despite its rather distinctive and somewhat unattractive odour, demand has grown so much in recent times that development of commercial plantations has been necessary to guarantee supplies. But the history of tea tree oil can be traced back some considerable time.

It is believed that tea tree oil was an ingredient of a 19th century panacea called Ti-Ta. This was promoted as ‘a discovery far before any of the brilliant theories of Pasteur...’ and sold by the Ti-Ta Volatile Oil Company of Brisbane. The formulation was claimed to be based on a tree, moss and fern indigenous to Queensland, but despite its endorsement by many local dignitaries, it disappeared from the scene after only a short while.

Tea tree oil was first marketed commercially in the 1920’s for dental and surgical use and has gained widespread popularity over the past decade as non-irritating, germicidal oil, with sales being promoted through health food stores. It is particularly effective in curing fungal and bacterial skin infections, such as athlete’s foot.

It is perhaps a less well known fact hat over sixty of the Melaleuca species have been identified growing in Australia, providing a group of plants second only to the eucalyptus or blue gums in their importance as sources of volatile oils. Tea trees are shrubs of wet lands and are often characterised by their having a papery bark, from which they derive their alternative name of paper-bark trees. Many of them have been used for health care and personal hygiene by local Aboriginal tribes and additionally, through study of their ethnobotany and phytochemistry, several offer themselves as alternative functional ingredients to give an Antipodean flavour to cosmetics formulations. The present article describes just a small number of this uniquely Australian species.

Melaleuca bracteata F.v.Muell is the Black Tea Tree or River Tea Tree. It is known in the local tongue of the Groote Eylandts aboriginals as Kwila-Yataly, who use the leaves for the treatment of aches and pains, the leaves being crushed by hand and rubbed on the affected area. On other occasions, young leaves and twigs may be crushed and steeped in water, with part of the solution being used to bathe relevant parts and the remainder of the solution being poured over the head. Crushed leaves are sniffed to relieve headaches.

The plant is also used internally for the relief of coughs, stomach cramps, asthma and colic, for which 1 - 5 drops of the leaf juice is used. Other uses are for the treatment of neuralgia and rheumatism, as a potent anti-spasmodic and sudorific, and as an insecticide and insect repellent.

Cosmetically, it is used in certain rituals by tribes living around the Queensland swamps that also use the plant for bathing, where is exhibits skin hydrating properties in addition to the protection it offers from the local insect population.

The presence of Essential oils, Saponins, Vitamins, Flavonoids and Phytosterols in an extract of the leaves and inflorescence is responsible for the activity of black tea tree. It is particularly recommended in preparations designed for the protection and care of the damaged and very tired skin conditions. It appears to increase the resistance and elasticity of the skin and his highly suitable for incorporation in day and night cream formulations.

The crushed leaves of the Bottle Brush Tea Tree, Melaleuca hypercifolia, known locally as botol balsh, are sniffed to relieve headaches. They are also used to prepare effective hair washes for children and aged members of the tribe. Additionally, the leaves are used for the preparation of facial washes for hunter / gatherer rituals and for body washes prior to community ritual dances.

Bottle brush tea tree is rich in amino acids, Phytosterols, mucins and Essential oils. It is particularly recommended for skin care products as a revitalising and moisturising ingredient. It is particularly recommended for skin care products as a revitalising and moisturing ingredient. It may be incorporated to good effect in cream moisturisers, day and night creams etc, relying on the activity of the mucins, amino acids and Phytosterols. In Bath cares products, the soothing effects of the Essential oils, in conjunction with the other ingredients, suggest application in new generation 2-in-1 moisturing shower gel.

Broad leafed Tea Tree, Melaleuca wilsonii F.v.Muell, botanical synonym M.leucadendron var. viridiflora is also known as Swamp Tea Tree or Paperbark Tea Tree. Young Leaves are steeped in hot water and drunk for general sickness, cold and coughs. Aboriginals around the CapeYork peninsula use this plant for the general soothing of body aches. One technique used to good effect locally was to dam inlets of the sea with sand and rocks to create pools of warm salt water. Crushed leaves were then thrown in and the patients could sit immersed in the warm, medicated water effectively soothing the aches and pains in their bodies. Belyuen aboriginals around the Cox peninsula, near Darwin, use the plant as a sniffing medicine and the soft papery bark for bandaging.

An infusion of Broad Leafed Tea Tree Leaves and inflorescence is rich in mucins, Essential oils, Flavonoids and tannins. It is particularly suitable for incorporation in soothing and relaxing bath preparations mirroring its traditional Aboriginal use. Additionally, it may be recommended for use in creams and lotions intended to alleviate stressed and strained skin.

Melaleuca uncinata is the Broom Brush Tea Tree, also known as broom honey-myrtle and known locally in Southern Australia and Victoria as Siris. The leaves and flowers are rich in mineral salts, Essential oils and tannins.

Local Aborigines for the relief of catarrh chew the leaves of this broom honey-myrtle. A decoction of the leaves is used as a wash for cleansing the skin prior to the application of pigment decoration for ritual dances.

Broom honey-myrtle is particularly effective in revitalising skin care preparations. The astringency of the tannins brings about the contraction of large skin pores reducing sebaceous secretions and in conjunction with the moisture regulating mineral salts helps restore natural tone and elasticity to the skin. This functionality can also be applied to some effect in bath care preparations, whilst use is also suggested in shampoos and rinses for greasy hair.

Melaleuca symphyocarp is known as the Liniment Tree. Its Australian Bush name is Mawilyaburna. In addition to a high concentration of Essential oils, the leaves and flowers are rich in carotenoids and Flavonoids.

This medicinally important variety of tea tree grows in swampy woodlands in Northern Australia. Aboriginals of the Groote Eylandts use its leaves for the relief of headaches and, as its name suggests, as a liniment. The leaves are boiled in water and the steam inhaled to ease colds, whilst the crushed leaves are rubbed on the chest to ease difficult breathing. Crushed leaves are also applied to hair and skin as a cleansing agent and are also sometimes applied to wounds.

Liniment Tea is particularly effective in formulations for reddened and tired skin conditions. In hair care products, the Flavonoids serve to stimulate blood circulation of the scalp improving the general health of the scalp and hair. This can be particularly important in helping to normalise greasy hair and scalp conditions.

In addition to Melaleuca species, Tea Tree is also a name given to the genus Leptospermum. The lemon-scented tea tree, Leptospermum petersonii is a source of lemon scented citral and citronella and may be used as a source of natural fragrance.

The diversity of the many Tea Trees indigenous to Australia certainly offers the cosmetic formulator more than just single oil for their palette of exotic ingredients. We hope that in the present article we have whetted your appetites to investigate other members of this uniquely Australian species.

February 1994

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