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Tea tree oil’s healing properties are so strong, it was once included in the Australian army’s first aid kits. Now the essential oil is popping up everywhere - from the shelves of Whole Foods to beauty products like Paul Mitchell’s Tea Tree Hair and Scalp Treatment (which Atsushi Murata loves because “that menthol feeling is addictive”).

According to Natural Healing Now, tea tree oil possesses antibacterial and antifungal properties and can disinfect and deodorize your garbage can as effectively as it can help clear up your acne. Famjaztique at Velvet Verbosity even insists that “you need to have this in your medicine cabinet. Especially if you spend time outdoors.” Indeed, Joanne Hansen recommends Desert Essence Tea Tree Oil because it’s “good for pesky insect bites,” while Really Clever Moms’ blogger says that Dr. Bronner’s Tea Tree Soap can help ward off bug bites – as well as serve as your “hand soap, body wash, shampoo, toothpaste, massage oil, even dishwashing liquid” – while out in the wild.

Tea tree oil’s cleansing effects have made the essential oil an increasingly common ingredient in many self-care staples. Says shopcaster Ken Sloan of his Giovanni Hair Care Tea Tree Triple Treat:

“This is one of the first shampoos I’ve sampled in a while that actually makes me hair feel CLEAN after using it. The product is all natural — the tea tree oil helps condition the scalp against dandruff and the peppermint leaves a nice tingling sensation on your scalp once you’ve rinsed. Best of all, my hair is left smooth and thick after using.”

Catherine Hollis, meanwhile, uses Desert Essence’s Tea Tree Oil Cleansing Pads because they “keep my face clean and keep bad skin at bay – using them is a daily ritual for me.” Sofia L. prefers The Body Shop’s Tea Tree Oil Daily Cleansing Wipes, which “wipe up oil slicks” and “help clear up any blemishes. Plus, they smell fantastic.” Esther at Skin Care Blog also recently recommended the cleansing wipes, noting that the “scope of tea tree oil is varied and hence consumers can test its benefits on acne, pimples, as anti-aging oil, rosacea, eczema and even in daily skin care.”

I recently started brushing my pearly whites (or, rather, pearly off-whites) with Desert Essence Tea Tree Oil Toothpaste and find that, even though it lacks that super-minty flavor you get with Crest or Colgate, the fluoride-free, baking-soda-based product leaves my breath nice and fresh and my teeth naturally clean-feeling.

And tea tree may benefit teeth in more ways than one: Deeming the oil a “medicine cabinet must-have,” Health and Wellness For Your Family suggests using it to treat toothaches. According to the blog, one “little bottle” of tea tree oil – such as Aura Cacia’s organic variety can also cure poison ivy outbreaks and sinus headaches.