Can tea tree oil be used as a mouthwash

by Saurabh

Hello

I want to know if tea tree oil can be used as mouthwash and if yes then how can we use it?

Regards
Saurabh
(email address removed to protect Saurabh's privacy)

Editors Note:

Saurabh,
Tea tree oil makes for a great mouthwash. Because of its ability to help control germs, like bacteria and viruses, it can be added to nearly any mouthwash, or you can put three or four drops in a little water and swish it around your mouth, and then spit it out.

Personally, I don't really savor the flavor of tea tree oil by itself, so I prefer to mix it with a mint flavored mouthwash. After brushing my teeth, most night I simply pour the usual amount of mouthwash into a small cup, add three or four drops of tea tree oil, swish and spit.

If you like, there are commercially available tea tree oil mouthwashes available as well. According to a report from the Australian Government Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation in cooperation with the Australian Tea Tree Industry Association, (available here as a free pdf file) entitled

"Tea Tree Effectiveness and Safety"

under the paragraph heading

Tea tree oil and oral disease

A study by the Tea Tree Oil Research Group at UWA examined the susceptibility of a range of oral bacteria to tea tree oil.

The tests on 162 different bacterial types showed all were inhibited and killed by concentrations of 2% tea tree oil. Two bacterial species – Streptococcus mutans and Lactobacillus rhamnosus – that are associated with dental caries were quite rapidly killed by 0.5% tea tree oil.(Riley, TV (2003). Antimicrobial activity of tea tree oil against oral microorganisms. RIRDC Report #03/019)