Effectiveness of Tea Tree Oil for Nail Fungus

Tea tree oil is currently a popular alternative treatment for fungal nail infections (onychomycosis), but has anyone really studied the effectiveness of tea tree oil for nail fungus? A major argument against many alternative remedies is that there’s no scientific evidence to prove that they work: tea tree oil is an exception. This essential oil has long been studied by a group of researchers at the University of Western Australia, and the evidence for antifungal activity is growing.

Recent research on tea tree oil has typically tested the compound against disease causing organism under laboratory conditions, that is, in the laboratory rather than in people. The work has shown that a variety of fungi and yeast that cause infection in humans are killed when exposed to tea tree oil. This type of testing, however, doesn’t conclusively prove the effectiveness of tea tree oil for nail fungus in real infections, where other factors may come into play. For example, in onychomycosis, a topical treatment must be able to penetrate the hard material of the nail in order to reach the fungus growing underneath.

Research on tea tree oil that includes clinical trials (the treatment of real patients) is still rather scanty. In one trial, tea tree oil was as effective as clotrimazole, an antifungal pharmaceutical, achieving cure or improvement in almost two thirds of patients. A second trial achieved cure or improvement in 80% of patients treated with a combination of tea tree oil and butenafine, a synthetic topical antifungal; however, it was not clear whether the drug combination or the butenafine was the effective treatment. This small sample of clinical trials still leaves the effectiveness of tea tree oil for nail fungus in question.

While we wait for more research on tea tree oil, the onychomycosis sufferer must make a choice based on anecdotal evidence. Many people have reported success with treating fungal nail infections with tea tree oil or blends of tea tree oil and other essential plant oils. Unfortunately, onychomycosis is difficult to treat and often responds poorly even to the prescription drugs that are presently available.

Source for this article on the effectiveness of tea tree oil for nail fungus: Melaleuca alternifolia (Tea Tree) Oil: a Review of Antimicrobial and Other Medicinal Properties. By C. F. Carson, K. A. Hammer, and T. V. Riley. Clinical Microbiology Reviews, Jan. 2006. pg. 50-62.