Antiseptic properties of tea tree oil
Propiedades antisépticas del aceite de árbol del té
- Date
- 1923 · confidence high
- Place
- Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- Credited to
- Arthur Penfold
- Field
- Life & health
⚠️ Disputed: the sources disagree.
What was discovered
Penfold showed that the oil of Melaleuca alternifolia had an antiseptic power about eleven times that of phenol and promoted it as a disinfectant. The Bundjalung peoples already used the leaves as medicine.
The phenol coefficient was established with methods of the time; modern clinical evidence is limited. Indigenous use predates Western science.
What it led to
- an Australian tea tree oil industry
- use in cosmetics and skin care
- studies of activity against bacteria and fungi