I was able to smell the telltale scent of the tea tree oil in this spot treatment long before I opened the box and removed the foil safety-seal. Granted, tea tree naturally has a very potent scent. I knew what to expect. The Kitava Tea Tree Spot Treatment comes in a tiny 0.5oz tube. The topical is a heavy-clay (kaolin) based white cream you apply a thin layer of to your acne-prone areas. The clay gives the cream a weird consistency, akin to applying a wet clay mask to the face. But this one is intended to stay on and does rub in and disappear into the skin. Tea tree and kaolin have been shown to be effective in the treatment of mild to moderate acne, as they can be medicinal and have anti-inflammatory properties.If you have sensitive or dry acne-prone skin, though, I would suggest you try something less drying. Acne can be caused from regularly disrupting the moisture barrier of the skin too; from over exfoliating, using too many harsh or potentially irritating products. So, if you are keen on trying this or something like it, I would suggest patch testing. Otherwise, you should focus on trying to heal the moisture barrier of the skin first with a very simplified routine and gradually add in acne treatments thereafter. Aim for a no frills (not medicated, pH balanced, no fragrances, no essential oils or dyes) wash, similar moisturizer, and SPF in the day time. Then gradually introduce new skincare, like an acne topical and see how well you tolerate it. It can take upwards of two months to see if a treatment is likely working as skin has a lifecycle and it takes a while for cell turnover and healing to occur. This worked for me anyway. I realized I was using too many things and needed to dial it all down to the basics and start over.As is, I think this Tea Tree Spot Treatment would likely be most suitable for someone with especially oily skin (as the clay will help control the oiliness in the focused area of treatment). Or someone suffering from from bacteria or fungal acne, as tea tree is great for treating these sorts of causes. This differs from someone suffering from acne caused from over exfoliating the skin or who has skin that doesn’t shed the dead skin well (I’m congestion prone so this happens to me a lot). In these cases, chemical exfoliants (like AHAs or BHAs) would likely be better suited for treatment. It helps to know what kind of acne you have and what the likely cause is. I know, easier said than done. I’ve suffered from some form of acne for over 3 decades. I eventually realized mine was primarily due to stress, sensitive skin (using harsh products), and having skin that didn’t shed skin cells efficiently.Anyway. This Kitava spot treatment seems to be a well-formulated product and I like the weird clay mask like texture of the cream. It has efficacious ingredients without the fillers; parabens, sulfates, phthalates, petroleum, mineral oil, synthetic fragrances, triclosan, or dyes. If you tolerate the use of and have found tea tree to be helpful for your type of acne concern, this tropical cream will likely be suitable for your needs.
