User:ACathe-Leigh/sandbox

The name tea tree is used for a number of plants, mostly from Australia and New Zealand, from the family Myrtaceae, related to the myrtle.It is of the Melaleuca alternifolia family. The parts of the plant that are used are the leaves and the barkThe name tea tree oil originated from a British explorer, named Captain Cook's discovery of the plant in 1770 during his second voyage to Botany Bay. Tea tree oil began to be used commercially in the 1920s after a Australian researcher, named Arthur Penfold, investigated the business potential of a number of native extracted oils; he reported that tea tree oil had promise as it exhibited powerful antiseptic properties.[7] During this time it was discovered that the plant contained 13 times the antiseptic activity than the standard germicide at the time, which was carbolic acid

Tea tree oil is used for personal hygiene in many forms. It can be used as a mouth wash diluted with water. It has been proven to combat bacteria that reside in the mouth that cause plaque and gum disease. In one case involving an individual with AIDS the tea tree wash helped deter oral yeast or thrush