Tea tree oil and acne treatment

Many acne sufferers are familiar with benzoyl peroxide. Some love it; others hate it. This active ingredient works extremely well against mild to moderate acne. I have used it in the past and it accelerates acne healing by killing the acne causing bacteria. Lots of over the counter and prescription medicine have benzoyl peroxide as the active ingredient. However, it seems to irritate skin in a very unpleasant way. In the past, I have used this as a spot treatment. It feels burning when I apply it on the skin and leaves me very itchy. A few years ago, I got another prescription topical medicine for acne treatment with benzoyl peroxide as an ingredient. It it very effective but burned my skin. So I can't use it because of its horrible side affects. I'm sure lots of you are familiar with my experience.

According to some researchers, tea tree oil works similarly to benzoyl peroxide but without the harsh effect on skin. So of course I want to try it. I went to my local Target and got a bottle of pure tea tree oil. I was very excited to find a natural alternative to benzoyl peroxide and tried it out on my acne immediately.

The smell? Tea tree oil has a very strong smell that other people can definitely pick up if you use it during the day. It's not really unpleasant to me, but just very strong. I actually don't mind it at all. It's hard to describe the smell. Some people actually like it. So, it really depends on your personal preference.

Did it irritate my skin? Surprisingly, no. My skin is extremely sensitive and very easy to irritate. However, the pure tea tree oil did not really irritate it. But most people recommend diluting it with olive oil to get your skin use to it. I was too impatient to do that!

How well did it work against acne? That is the most important question. It does work similarly to benzoyl peroxide because it dries out the acne and kill the bacteria. But not as fast. I did see improvements with this treatment. My pimple shrunk in size. It is a natural treatment for acne so don't expect it to work as fast as benzoyl peroxide.

In conclusion, I really like pure tea tree oil. It is a natural treatment for acne which is always better than harsh chemicals or prescription drugs. The part that I really like was that it didn't irritate my skin at all. I am very happy about that! I think you should definitely give it a try because it's inexpensive and readily available in many stores.