Tea Tree Oil Not For Use on Boys

A recent 2007 study in the New England Journal of Medicine issued a warning to parents using tea tree oil (melaleuca alternifolia) a powerful immuno-stimulant, on boys under 21.

Researchers found that lavender and tea tree oil both, in pure oil form, caused temporary breast enlargement in young boys, a condition known medically as prepubertal gynecomastia.

It messes with their hormones, inhibiting androgen and promoting the production of estrogen.

Tea tree oil has been used for centuries for healing fungal, viral and bacterial infections and to strengthen the bodies immune systems, overall. Studies have shown that it is effective on acne and healing skin cuts.

However, as NCCAM reminds us, children should not be treated as “little adults” because their systems are not fully developed. The report stated that the boys’ breasts returned to normal sizes, once the use of lavender and tea tree oil was discontinued.

For more information on CAM and children’s health visit the NIH’s National Library of Medicine.