Evidence of the mint plant has been traced back to the Egyptians in 1,000 BC was not cultivated until the late 17th century in England. This herb was used for medicine in ancient Rome, Greece, and Egypt. In 1721, mint was listed in the London Pharmacopoeia and now appears in the modern version called The British Herbal Pharmacopoeia and in this great article all about mint health benefits.

Mint Health Benefits

1. Headaches

Peppermint can be used for headaches in a couple of different ways. You can make some tea with the leaves whether the leaves are fresh or you get the tea premade in the bags. It has also been found that you can get rid of headaches by rubbing peppermint oil into your temples.

 

2. Cough

Peppermint can help your cough because it causes your body to create more saliva than you would usually need and needing to swallow more stops or slows your cough reflex.

 

3. Respiratory Health

Because peppermint is a good decongestant and expectorant, it is a popular healer of things like sinusitis, asthma, and bronchitis.

 

4. Congestion

Peppermint essential oil is a very common ingredient in chest rubs that fight chest congestion. This is because peppermint has what is called menthol is amazing for calming inflammation in the airways to grant an easier time of breathing.

If chest rubs do not seem to work for you or if you do not like them, then you can try to make a kind of inhalant. Fill a bowl with hot water before adding in several drops of peppermint essential oil. Once the water and oil are in the bowl together, you need to cover both the bowl and your head with the same towel and let yourself slowly inhale the steam. The towel is there simply to stop the steam from getting out.  

5. IBS

IBS is short for irritable bowel syndrome. It comes with gas, stomach pain, changes in bowel movements, and bloating. Peppermint is helpful with this because it calms the muscles in the digestive tract. You can drink tea or you can peppermint oil in capsule pills.

 

6. Brain Function

Aromatherapy using peppermint essential oil can help the brain to ease frustration, fatigue, anxiety, and improve your alertness.

 

7. Bad Breath

Peppermint or spearmint is one of the most popular flavors for chewing gum. That is because of the flavor and scent are strong enough to cover up bad breath. While it hides the bad breath, it does not kill the bacteria that causes that bad breath. Chewing fresh mint leaves or drinking peppermint tea, on the other hand, should cover the bad breath and kill the bacteria.

8. Breastfeeding Pain

Mixing a couple drops of peppermint essential oil with a carrier oil or some water can help to ease some the soreness and cracking that breastfeeding can cause a mother’s nipples. All she has to do is apply the oil and water mixture to her nipples and it should help. If the peppermint oil does not do a whole lot to help, then a mix a couple of drops of menthol essential oil with water or a carrier oil and apply it after every feeding.  

 

9. Gas

Peppermint is great for relieving gas because it has a relaxing reflex on the muscles in your intestines which makes it easier for the gas to pass through you. You can use peppermint oil, tea, or mint leaves to get this effect.

10. Tuberculosis

The best way to use peppermint for tuberculosis is by aromatherapy. The peppermint oil helps to lessen the inflammation caused by the infection which can help the infection to leave your system faster because it allows room for things to move around.

 

11. Skin and Hair

Peppermint has antibacterial and antiseptic compounds that can stop dandruff and smooth your skin. You can get special shampoos and lotions that have peppermint oil, or you can add a few drops to a kind you already have and then use it like you would normal shampoo.

12. Heartburn

Taking peppermint oil orally with caraway oil has been found to stop heartburn and the other unpleasantries that come with it. You can also combine the peppermint oil with lemon balm, angelica, German chamomile, milk thistle, celandine, or licorice.

 

13. Chemotherapy Hot Flashes

Someone women, when going through chemotherapy, suffer from hot flashes as a side effect. You can mix neroli hydrolat spray with peppermint and it should help to ease the hot flashes in intensity and in frequency.

 

14. Performance       

Whether you are using a couple drops of food grade peppermint essential oil in your water bottle or you using aromatherapy, peppermint oil can help you before a sports game. With the boost of energy and anxiety relief that the herb can bring, it should not be that much of a surprise.

15. Colonoscopy

‘Colonoscopy’ is a big, scary word for a screening exam for colon cancer. It is fairly common for the person undergoing the colonoscopy to suffer from pain (called a colonic spasm) that can even stop the doctor from inserting the colonoscope.

Chewing mint leaves before the operation or using aromatherapy can help to keep the muscles relaxed so that they do not experience nearly as much pain or discomfort.

 

16. Joint Pain

Peppermint leaves and oil both work as natural pain relievers because they have antispasmodic, cooling, and invigorating effects. You can apply two or three drops of peppermint oil with a carrier oil and apply it to the affected area. You can also add a few drops of the oil to bathwater with a cup of Epsom salts.

17. Muscle Pain

Same as with the joint pain, you can use the few drops of peppermint oil with Epsom salts in the tub, or there is a rub that you can make to apply to sore and aching muscles. For the rub, you are going to need a few more ingredients.

You are going to need a glass jar, two teaspoons of ginger (or turmeric) powder and powdered cayenne powder, 15 drops of lavender and peppermint essential oils, a half cup of coconut oil, and a fourth cup of grated beeswax.

Pour the oil- not the essential oils yet- in the jar and place it in a saucepan filled with two inches of water on a medium heat. Put the oils in the jar and the jar in the saucepan will melt the oils within it. Once the oils are melted together, that is when you add in the ginger or turmeric and the cayenne pepper.

After everything is mixed in, let it cool and mix the essential oils really well. When everything is mixed up, you let the mixture settle in storage containers.

 

18. Seasonal Allergy Relief

Because of the relaxing effect that peppermint has on the nasal passages, the peppermint oil can clear out the pollen, muck, and mucus that can cause the discomfort of seasonal allergies. Diffusing eucalyptus oil with peppermint oil can do amazing things to help you.

 

19. Itchiness

Itchiness, caused for whatever reason, can be relieved by peppermint oil. All you need to do is put five to ten drops of essential in a tub of warm bathwater. If you so wish, you can also put in a few drops of lavender oil because it has calming properties of its own.

20. Acne

Peppermint can help with a number of different skin issues, acne included. There are homemade face masks you can make and try. Crush fresh mint leaves with enough honey to make a sort of runny paste. Apply it, leave it in place for 20 minutes, and rinse it off with warm water.

 

21. Nausea

You can ease nausea rather easily with peppermint oil. You can either inhale in the scent of peppermint essential oils right from the bottle, or you can dilute one or two drops of the oil in a glass of water and rub it behind you ears.

22. Sunburn   

Peppermint oil relieves pain and rehydrates your skin. The oil has a sun protection factor or SPF. To protect your skin from the sun, mix a half teaspoon of coconut with two or three drops of the peppermint oil and apply it right to your skin.

As for skin clean up, there is a spray that you can make to help relieve the pain and help the skin repair itself and regrow. To make the spray, you need. a glass spray bottle, ten drops of peppermint and lavender essential oil, a half cup of aloe vera juice, and an eighth cup of fractionated coconut oil.

You need a saucepan with two inches of water on medium heat and to place a jar with the aloe vera juice and coconut oil in the jaw to let it melt and combine. When they are combined, add the oils and mix again. Once you have done that, place pour the mixture into the spray bottle and keep it in a cool place.

 

23. Weight Loss

Mint tea can help you in losing weight because it has a very low-calorie count, boosts your metabolism, and leaves you feeling fuller for longer.

 

24. Immune System

Peppermint has traces of different antioxidants, potassium, and vitamin B while being fully equipped with antibacterials. All of these are helping to fight illnesses. You can drink tea, chew mint leaves, or use aromatherapy.          

Which of these ailments will you use mint health benefits to cure? Comment below!

Sources

https://food.ndtv.com/food-drinks/8-benefits-of-peppermint-tea-from-inducing-sleep-to-aiding-weight-loss-and-more-1748790

https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/evewoman/article/2000229846/6-ways-to-fade-acne-scars-with-mint

https://www.verywellfit.com/the-benefits-of-peppermint-89495

https://www.healthyhildegard.com/benefits-peppermint/

https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-705/peppermint

https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/10/14/peppermint-health-benefits.aspx

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/mint-benefits#section3

https://www.encyclopedia.com/plants-and-animals/plants/plants/peppermint