Tea tree oil for cystic acne

Tea tree oil for cystic acne?  What is tea tree oil and can it help your acne, especially if you suffer from cystic acne?

What is cystic acne?

Cystic acne, according to the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, is an inflammatory type of acne and it can be really painful.   With any acne, pores get clogged but with cystic acne, the bacteria that gets in the pores causes inflammation and can be really problematic.

What is tea tree oil?

Tea tree oil is an essential oil that comes from an Australian tree.  The leaves of the tree are steamed, providing us with an essential oil that is anti-bacterial and even anti-fungal.  It is also known as melaleuca oil.

It’s a lovely astringent but it can smell medicinal.  I don’t mind the aroma of tea tree oil but it could take some getting used to if you aren’t familiar with it.  Whenever I use tea tree oil, it makes me feel clean.  But, tea tree oil for cystic acne?   Can it really help?

Tea tree oil for cystic acne

So, is tea tree oil for cystic acne helpful?  Being that it is anti-bacterial, it’s a great ingredient to use in your acne routine, especially for cystic acne.  However, it can take several weeks to see a difference.  But, to me, using a natural ingredient vs. a harsh chemical product is the way to go.

How should you use it, though?  As with any essential oil, it’s best to use a carrier oil to dilute it with.  And, if you think that using an oil on acne prone skin is a problem, let me explain.

Not all oils are created equal.  Some oils, like coconut oil are too heavy and can clog pores.  But, if you use broccoli seed oil, jojoba oil, or sweet almond oil, you can put this on acne prone skin and not have any issues.

Other uses for tea tree oil

And, if tea tree oil for cystic acne doesn’t sway you, this ingredient can also be used for a number of different issues like:

• Dandruff or itchy scalp
• Athletes foot or nail fungus
• Bug bites like mosquitoes

I do use tea tree oil a lot.  I use it in some of my own soaps and in my shampoo.  Whenever I have a blemish, I’ll do a spot treatment.  And, whenever I feel my feet tingling with a possible athletes foot issue, I add it to my homemade foot cream.