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Comment by truculation | Hacker News Reader

Drat, my favourite toothpaste contains tea tree oil.

That's a terrible idea.

> Tea tree oil is poisonous when taken internally.[1][4] It may cause drowsiness, confusion, hallucinations, coma, unsteadiness, weakness, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach upset, blood cell abnormalities, and severe rashes. It should be kept away from pets and children.[1] Tea tree oil should not be used in or around the mouth.[2][4] As a test of toxicity by oral intake, the median lethal dose (LD50) in rats is 1.9–2.4 ml/kg.[12]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea_tree_oil#Safety

If it's "Tom's", then I would take this as another sign to switch to a toothpaste that actually cleans your teeth instead of your wallet.

The hypothesis is that topical exposure is linked to the hormone changes. For me, that means tea tree oil in toothpaste shouldn't be something to worry about.

Tea tree oil should NOT be taken by mouth for any reason, even though some traditional uses include tea tree oil as a mouthwash, treatment for bad breath, and treatment of toothache and mouth ulcers.

https://www.poison.org/articles/2010-dec/tea-tree-oil

Don’t you get the oil when you drink tea?

Despite the name, tea is not made from the tea tree.

Melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree) is a different plant altogether than Camellia sinensis (Tea plant)

Tea tree smells very similar to turpentine - you know: paint thinner. I often wondered if they are chemically similar.

My guess is that absorption via the mouth (and via saliva by swallowing after brushing) is going to be higher than absorption via the skin. Wrong?

He should have included sarcasm tags I think.

I guess that the amount it contains is so low that it can not have any effect on your health.

There's probably less than half a drop of oil in the tube and most of that is spat out. So as a poison, yes, no effect. But as a hormone, it depends. I don't know.

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