29 User Reviews
| 5 star (24) | 83% | |
| 4 star (2) | 7% | |
| 3 star (1) | 3% | |
| 1 star (1) | 3% | |
 (1) |
3% |
★★★★★
As an aside, I always have this product in the house and it has served me well over the years, including the adding of one or two drops to a steam inhaler when dealing with sinus complaints in the winter..
If I remember, I also slap a few drops of neat oil on in the morning. But the night time application has the virtue of it being kept on the nail and surrounding skin for many hours whilst asleep, so allowing for sustained penetration.
To get rid of the fungus, it is absolutely necessary to persevere for months but TTO DOES work if you keep at it.
I wouldn't horse around with anything else, with the possible exception of Milk of Magnesia, which I have never tried but a previous poster's post to that effect sounded most interesting.
TTO is very popular here in New Zealand where it is appreciated for its curative properties. Order some on line - a small bottle will last you a long, long time-have some on hand in the medicine cupboard.
As for the obligatory, associated story, which I know you will be eagerly looking forward to-but this one is especially gory and violent, so is not for the squeamish or faint-hearted (parental guidance is advised): well, I had the misfortune to have a splinter of wood drive up under my index finger nail whilst sorting and stacking firewood for the winter. Yep, you guessed it, it was quite painful. What was also painful was my bathroom surgery, which consisted of my driving a sterilized needle up alongside it in order to dislodge it!! The things we do!
I think I ought to invest in some gloves from now on!
Cheers from Down Under
P.S. Would Manuka Honey help the person dealing with a recent case of MRSA possibly- just a thought?
Yet another New Zealand product worth considering.
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★☆
I apply a few drops twice a day directly on the nail. There is still some yellow and white on the nail that's left but new pink healthy-looking nail is coming up underneath. I'll continue to use the tea tree oil until it all grows out. I've had no side effects so far but the oil is strong and may not be suitable for all skins. If you're sensitive to it you could dilute with a base oil, or put some of the oil in a foot bath instead. I'm also using a silver colloidal spray in my shoes as I've heard this is anti-fungal and antiseptic.
Tea Tree Oil
★★★☆☆
(Independence Missouri)
03/19/2017
I started applying oregano oil & tea tree oil to my toenails on 3/13/17 and my nails are also turning white. I can only assume it is drying up the fungus. But I'm not sure what it is either.
(San Fran)
03/19/2017
I believe it is called keratin debris or keratin buildup. I thought I had nail fungus for years but it turned out to be excessive keratin. I used a product specifically for this, but it just weakened the nail and eventually destroyed it, didn't fix the issue. I also tried tea tree oil and it also weakened the nail and made the keratin buildup worse. I think the tea tree oil might be too strong and needs to be diluted with a carrier oil. Good luck!
(Wichita, Kansas)
08/09/2017
I was searching to find why there is a white powdery look to the area around my toenails after applying tea tree oil for a few days and this is all I have found. I don't know why it did that or what it means, but it doesn't hurt. Hope we find an answer.
(Nyc)
11/02/2017
I'm experiencing same thing with my toenail fungus. Using tea tre oil for about a month, and the nail has become white. I searched for answers, didn't find anything so far:(
(Pennsylvania)
01/21/2018
Yes mine are like that since recently starting tea tree oil treatment. I plan to ask my Dr about this white residue
(Kenya)
02/18/2018
I also started the tea tree direct application treatment, the affected area is starting to turn white but I assumed that it's part of the process. I doubt if it can be a cause of alarm
(New Zealand)
02/18/2018
Hello Sly of Kenya,
I used Tea Tree Oil for weeks and weeks on both of my big toes for what I presumed to be nail fungus and they eventually cleared up after a very long haul. You really need to persevere with applying a couple of drops twice a day for a long time but it is worth it. I recommend you continue past the time you think it starts to "look cleared", as there may be some residual stuff in there that will sneak back again if you drop your guard.
Better to just drop it on rather than trying to push it in with a cotton bud ( Q tip ) I think. Two drops per toe twice a day should do it. Mine was on the edge, so the drops sat there quite well whilst hopefully soaking in.
It's all for naught if you don't dry the toes carefully after getting them wet though, especially in the tropics.
I hope you are using a reputable brand of TTO? In which case, you should be quite safe.
Cheers,
Michael
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
I have also added tea tree oil to clear nail polish and intend to use this once his fungal nail has gone.
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
Like many of you, my unsightly, discolored and funkified toe nail issue has been part of my identity for far longer than I would like to remember. To make matters worse, I wore toe nail polish to hide behind. For most of the time. Until the past couple of years. I finally had had enough of the ordeal. Or I got lazy. Or got smart. Who knows. With few exceptions (e.g., occasional sandal wear), I started going barefoot natural. I had tried many of the popular remedies, including 70% Isopropyl alcohol, white vinegar, apple cider (ACV), OTC fungus targeting oils and creams, essential oils like oregano and tea tree... even household disinfectant bleach solution for mold and mildew (not my wisest or safest decision ever made, so not recommending you try this one). Until one day. One day it dawned on me that I might combine two approaches combined - the everyday household 3% hydrogen peroxide plus diligent nail hygiene using this one beauty product tool my niece gave to me years ago: a professional quality heavy duty cuticle pusher.
Technique: 1. Use the cuticle tool!
*When my toenails were still soft from my bath/shower, or even many times when I was in the process of taking my bath/shower, I would push my cuticles back and scrape away any excess skin surrounding the nail bed. I always exercised extreme caution bc it was all too easy to get carried away (thus, accidentally scraping so deeply that my toe nail would start to bleed). I read in another person's post about sanding the top layers of the nail bed to get rid of the fungus stuff. I think this is the same type of idea, only I used a professional manicurists tool.
2. Spray the 3% hydrogen peroxide onto the effected nails and let dry without ever rinsing it off.
*I discovered a small spray bottle version of the peroxide that cost like $2 at the supermarket. This helped with aseptic technique, plus was just downright quicker than unscrewing a cap and having to fiddle with a qtip or cotton ball or the like. 3. Apply an essential oil (appropriate to my particular pathogen blasting plan) onto the sprayed nail(s). I tried a few different ones, but ended up settling on tea tree (or melaleuca) because of its multi purpose fullness.
*I repeated this as often as I could remember to, like whenever I showered. Three? Four? Five times per week? (though ideally would have been daily, even if it meant foot bathing on non shower days, since this probably would have speeded up the results, I would imagine). Last year at least 4 other nails (in addition to my pinky toe seen in the photos) were partially black, if I remember correctly. Now my only discolored nail of concern is that right pinky toe (which was always the worst, though my left pinky toe was about as bad).
Please don't give up, everyone. Have hope!
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
Gives you control so you don't go too thin - but definitely sand as thin as possible, this will remove as much infected nail surface as possible and help the oil penetrate through the nail - google "nail shiner buffer sand block file" for images/buying options.
Also keep nails as short as possible; you want oil (and vinegar if you decide to use that too) to penetrating all cracks and crevices on and around nail.
But YES THIS WORKS. With the Tea Tree, as with vinegar, you are creating a hostile environment that the little critters can't live in, and with no hiding places! Keep it up until the nail grows in clean. Be prepared, it could take months for the regrowth!
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
Anyway, take a dremel with the sandpaper drum attachment... grind down as much of the outer part of the nail as you can to thin it down in thickness. Then buy PURE teatree oil at the health food store... NOT the teatree oil mixture, just pure teatree oil. Apply it to your nail (saturate the nail) twice/daily until the nail has grown out. It worked great for me... just keep the nail as thin as you can, and saturate it thoroughly... One bottle only costs about $7-10. No nasty side effects.
(Nazareth, Pa)
01/31/2025
★★★★★
One of my toenails started to curl and developed a dark hue and began to thicken with fungus. I used pure tea oil on it sporadic and it didn't seem to do much until I COMMITTED to SATURATE the nail TWO times per day. After over a month or so, the toenail began to turn white. It began to also shed the layers of nail. I the whitened nail down with a an electric nail file, and all the layers just fell off. It left behind a thin healthy looking nail under layers. I cut it short and filed it. I am going to continue 2x a day ritual until nail grows longer and stronger. I also must say I use to be a Certified Podiatry Assistant for 4 years. The doctors treatment was to Grind down fungal nails from thickness and prescribe topical medications that did not work. They knew they didn't work, but prescribed them anyway, they even told me they didn't work.. I never saw them cure fungal nails, only repeating prescriptions that didn't work and grind nails down because patients couldn't clip them for themselves. Patients nails just continued to worsen and continue to thicken. So thankful for earthclinic, for learning about tea tree oil for fungal nails.
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
(Oviedo, Florida)
09/25/2015
★★★★★
I want to thank you for sharing this!!! This REALLY works! I tried a lot of treatments before using the tea tree oil. I wasn't sure if it would work because all the doctors told me it is was very difficult to cure it, even though they prescribed me expensive treatments. Thank you so much!
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
It worked for me. I had this stupid nail fungus for 10 years.
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
Morning and night, after showering, I scrubbed the oil into and around ALL of my toes. I would tip the oil on from a dropper bottle and made sure I also got it up under the nail. I scrubbed with a toothbrush. I did this for about 3 months and the fungas has completely gone. My nails were yellow/patchy and flaky. Now they are nomal! No more hiding them away!
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
Prior to using tea tree oil, I did some research online to find out the best commercial products to use and found many mention of Loceryl and the like, but I found it was too costly for my taste. So I researched online again for "natural" remedies and came across tea tree oil. It just so happens that I had some on hand, so I decided to use it one night. The 1st week, just by running my finger over the top of my big toe, I felt a big difference as my big toe previously contained ridges and was not smooth. I clipped my nails very short, and applied more tea tree oil very other day, and in the 2nd week, the nail fungus was 80% gone. Now, I am in my 3rd week, and the nail fungus is completely gone.
So, please don't shell out your $50 for no commercial product, just get 100% tea tree oil and you will be set. It is good for a host of remedies including dandruff, lice, fungus, etc. Due to its anti-bacterial elements.
Just wanted to share my experience.
(Massachusetts)
08/02/2016
I have experienced my 2nd toenail...one day just fall off. The nail below is short and nor the size of a regular nail, the other 2nd toenail was lifting in the middle and have had a black nail on my left foot for many years. I have been researching ways to correct and get rid of this problem for the past month. I thought maybe I had diabetes because it runs in my family...because both feet and my body was itching. The itch was I discovered...was caused by 2 products, body wash and corning detergent. I purchased a bar of soap with Coconut Oil, Papaya Enzymes, Shea Butter, Songyi Mushroom Extract and Hibiscus Sabdariffa Flower, which got rid of the itching that was driving me crazy...now to get rid of my toenail problem...has anybody experienced what I shared...I went for a pedicure in February and may...toenail issue occurred around that time. Really upsetting because I love pedicures. Would love to hear from others...
(Nova Scotia)
08/22/2016
Yes, I have it on my big toe. I too think I got it from having a pedicure. I was using diluted ACV, but then read about tea tree oil, so started it about a week ago. will use it 2 x day to see if it cures it. I usually took my own tools for a pedicure, but forgot a couple of times. I used theirs, plus even if they disinfect the tools, they use the same nail polish. It would infect the polish by using the same brush from someone infected. Just thought of this a few months ago!!
(America, New York)
08/23/2016
Greetings Denise, the black toenail is sometimes caused by trauma to the nail. And if you are dealing will a fungus it makes matters worse.
I had a thicken toenail which I was trying to thin down. This ended in a blacken toe nail. I had tried to get rid of it for years just using nail fungus removal but that did not work.
Then I started "twenty minute foot soaks". one of them worked. I don't know which one. I was just surprised one day when I noticed that my toenail was no longer black.
I must also inform that I was also drinking the baking soda and molasses mix, and Olive leaf capsules around that time.
Here are some of the foot soaks I have done: Borax, sea salt, vinegar and once or twice I even did a bleach foot soak. All in water of cause. I did not measure a certain amount.
Greetings to you also Doreen,
I have found that if a person and sugar are not good friends, or if a person is prone to UTI's it is better not to use nail polish until you are all the way out of the woods.
If I do polish my toes I have to take it off before a day or to goes by, or I will see the white markings on my toenails when the nail polish is removed.
A person that is prone to nail fungus may be able to enjoy a pedicure, but after a day or two of showing it off, I would take the nail polish off.
I don't know what's in nail polish remover, but something good is in there for healing those toes nails. Nail polish remover has cleared my toenails quite a few times.
HisJewel
(Downey, California)
03/18/2017
Last night I was just about to jamb my big toe nail under the bathroom door to rip it off!!! Cause about a year ago I accidentally kicked a mattress and ripped off the other one and the nail grew back clean. I couldn't get myself to do it!! I just happened to find some tea tree oil in the cabinet and Googled the benefits. I'm going to try it and see if it works...
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
I have been applying neat Tea Tree Oil 4 times a day to the exposed nail bed and surrounding area (I have had no adverse effects from using it neat). After it is absorbed, I have applied Vapor Cough Suppressant (I used the name brand) in a thick layer and left uncovered. The smell is not pleasant, but after a week I have, for the first time in two years, NEW HEALTHY GROWTH!!! There are two tiny black spots under the nail, but the new growth is definitely attached to the nail bed, and there is a noticeable ridge where it is growing in normally at the base as opposed to slightly thickened. The cuticle which was destroyed is beginning to regenerate.
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
Tea Tree Oil
(California)
03/28/2016
By "neat", do you mean "undiluted"? I found I had the same issue using tea tree oil on my feet because undiluted, the stuff is very harsh and astringent. After consulting the most wise Google for advice, I diluted my tea tree oil half-and-half with baby oil, and have not had the red, weeping skin recur. I realize you posted this question a good 6 years ago, but I hope this helps!
(Novi, Mi)
06/09/2016
Essential oils (the real ones) should never be used undiluted.
(Washington)
08/26/2016
I am excited about tea tree oil and the positive results I see here. After reading this post, I will try putting a petroleum jelly product around the edges of my big toes (the fungus issues are on my big toes only) before applying tea tree oil as often as I can remember to do so. Thanks to all for sharing!
(California)
09/11/2016
I don't know about petroleum jelly...seems like that would perpetuate the problem of moisture in the nail, but coconut oil has moisturizing and antifungal properties. I would try that in addition to the tea tree to prevent any rash that may be occurring.
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
Tea Tree Oil
★★★★★
05/30/2006: Melissa from Asheville, NC: "I developed toenail fungus while working in Athens, GA about 6 years ago. I would work 12 hours a day in the same shoes for over a year and used regular dress socks. The summers are very moist and humid and perfect conditions for toenail fungus. It is on both "pinky" toes but started developing on other nails though not as bad. 2 years ago it seemed to get worse and I kept my toenails manicured and polished to hide the nails. I believe, as others do, this made things even worse though my feet did look a lot prettier. This year, I got tired of trying to hide my nails and decided to try a natural remedy (Grateful Body Fungal Rx). It contains a day and night formula in convenient tubes so I could carry them with me and use discreetly. They recommend each to use at least 1x per day for at least 6 weeks. I've been using for several months and noticed a little improvement but not much. I found this site and started throwing everything I had at this issue (I figured if I didn't do it now, I'd live with it forever). My grandmother had both large toenails removed and I did not want the same to happen. My pinky toenails seemed like they were almost fused to the nail bed. They are very thick and yellow and starting to look deformed though still attached to my nail bed. I started this regimen last week and I am seeing good results. The nail seems no longer fused to the nail bed. and I can actually push the cuticle back (impossible before). The nails seem to be growing in cleaner, no ridges, normal thickness and no red streaks through the nail (as in the infected part). I am so psyched but trying no to get too hopeful. This is what I've been doing in morning AND evening, everyday: I keep a clean toothbrush for scrubbing my nails. I use a natural bar soap and scrub my nails (I use the sink because it's easier for me) with warm water. dry. I then keep a little bottle of pre mixed 3% H2O2 and ACV (5% acidity) 1/2 and 1/2 under the sink and pour this over all my toe nails (over toilet). I let this sit while I brush teeth (different toothbrush ;), wash face etc. I may add more and let sit again for a little while. I don't get much fizzing...sometimes more than others. Sometimes I get a little "pinched" feeling, but not usually. rinse. dry. I also keep a little bottle (old tincture bottle with dropper) with 25% clorox and water mixed. I then add this to nails and let sit 30 seconds or so on each foot. rinse. dry. I follow with Red Tyme oil (night) or Fungal Rx in the morning. I may add the night formula again if I go to bed late. Some people are sensitive to Red Thyme. I have very thick, oily skin and it does not bother me to use it neat. I wear sandals to work (never did before) and apply Fungal Rx several times a day while at my desk. Like I said, this really seems to be working and I am very hopeful. Once cleared up, I plan to buy more Fungal Rx and use daily for a year or so. I don't want this to come back. Also, I'll work on internal Candida... I know it runs in my family and I need to knock it out too. Thanks to this site and all the comments/feedback!!! I'll write back later in a few months to let you know if results continued."
I wanted to follow up and tell you that I was never able to fully get progess against the toe nail fungus until recently. I was able to spend most of my summer outdoors (albeit a lot of time at the pool w/moisture!) but I wore sandals all summer and allowed my feet to get full sun a good portion of the day. I also did hydrogen peroxide/cider vinegar soaks about 1x per month. The BIG difference has come from using a old glass spray bottle filled with:
2 Tbs. alcohol
10 drops grapefruit seed extract
20 drops tea tree oil
I apply this 2x per day and after getting my feet wet. At one point, my nails got very brittle and I started an application of coconut oil every once in a while. My nails are growing back completely normal and seem to be growing faster so I am able to trim them more often. There is only about 1/4 inch of "yellowed" nail reamining...which I should be able to trim off in the next 2 months. I will continue this all winter and give any updates. Good luck, don't give up!
Tea Tree Oil
★☆☆☆☆
