It’s not just the peppermint candy you pop into your mouth
when your mouth is dry or in order to refresh your breath.
Peppermint tastes great in candy but did you know that it could also settle your stomach? Here is the skinny on this pungent plant.
Peppermint can be found in everything from tea to candy to medicines. Peppermint itself is a plant called “Mentha piperita” in botanical terms. Including spearmint, peppermint is the mint most often used in aromatherapy, medicinal and commercial products.
When you use peppermint, it can be in plant form,
as an essential oil or in balms.
This particular mint contains lots of menthol.
This is the component that makes you breath feel cool when you inhale after eating peppermint candy or drinking peppermint tea.
If you have ever sniffed peppermint at full strength,
the result is watery eyes and opened nasal passages.
It is the high level of menthol that makes peppermint
such a great resource for stomach aches.
Its antispasmodic properties calm an upset stomach.
For the same reason, peppermint preparations are great for menstrual cramps and headaches.
Before reaching for over-the-counter remedies when your stomach hurts,
give peppermint a chance.
Dried leaves can be used to make a hot or cold tea.
A mild peppermint tea consumed internally or added to a bath can help
bring down a fever gently without medicine and
without interfering with the body’s ability to fight illness.
Just breathing in the steeping cup will help provide mental clarity.
Drinking your remedy brings quicker relief than taking pills.
A strong tea of peppermint and nettle leaf used as a hair rinse will
sooth scalp and promote hair growth.
Can be great for getting rid of dandruff also.
Peppermint is stimulating to the circulatory system yet soothing to the nerves.
Peppermint oil is more stimulating and Peppermint tea is generally more soothing.
But, that is not all that peppermint is good for. If you have access to the essential oil,
you have a medicine cabinet in your hand.
Essential oil of peppermint is used in aromatherapy preparations.
It can be rubbed on the temples to help relieve headaches. Using the oil on your chest and
under your nose helps to open nasal passages.
Rubbing this essential oil on sore muscles can relieve aches and pains.
Inflammation is reduced and circulation is stimulated as you massage the oil into your body.
The menthol helps to cool the body as well as it is soothing your pain.
It is not recommended that peppermint oil be ingested.
People can have adverse reactions from using it internally.
If you have problems with digestive issues, peppermint can be taken in capsule form or as a tea.
For irritable bowel syndrome, using enteric-coated peppermint keeps them from breaking
down in the stomach but passes them on through so that the peppermint can work in the bowel.
Peppermint is a hearty plant that anyone can grow outside or in indoor herb gardens.
Peppermint bath
Make 2 quarts or more of very strong (at least triple strength tea)
strain out the herbs and add the liquid to the bath.
Or put about 4 ounces of the herb in cheesecloth
and immerse it directly in the bath water.