The primarily ailment I have used peppermint for is related to digestion – but as I began digging for more information, I have found that it helps with a host of other issues!
Let’s start with those tummy problems, though.
Since peppermint is safe for babies and children, this one is a real life-saver for parents of colicky babies. By relaxing the stomach muscles it relieves indigestion and eases gas pains, problems that are said to cause colic. But, whether you are 8 weeks old or 80 years old, a nice hot peppermint tea will do wonders for your stomach. (Keep it close by after that next holiday meal – you know, an after dinner mint!)
In fact, peppermint can have a calming effect on the whole body, so it may do you some good to drink a cup before bed, especially in times of elevated stress.
Peppermint will bring a calm to the storm in the belly thereby easing nausea and vomiting. Hand some over to the next pregnant lady that you hear is suffering from morning sickness – it just might do the trick! Folks with Crohn’s disease may find some comfort when using this herb after meals because it stimulates the acidity in the stomach which allows food to be digested more fully before entering the intestines and colon.
Now, besides the digestive system, peppermint can also help you with*:
- insomnia
- colds (by easing the irritation of the lungs and nasal passages)
- bad breath (its antiseptic and antibacterial properties kill bacteria in the mouth)
- sore or strained muscles (make it into a rub to harness its menthol content)
- weaning a baby (peppermint will decrease a mother’s milk supply)
- fevers
- diarrhea
- headaches and migraines
- cleanses and tones the body
- hiccups (just a dropper-ful will chase them away)
(* – some information taken from “The How To Herb Book” by Velma Keith and Monteen Gordon)
Also, because it has such a distinct taste, I use peppermint in all my tinctures in hopes that it will cover the taste of some of the more unpalatable herbs! Peppermint is known as a catalyst or activator which means that drinking a cup of the tea before administering other herbal remedies helps to open up your circulation and receive the remedy more fully.
How have you used peppermint to better your health? I’m sure there is something I left out – chime in here to share your experiences!
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