mint

Minty fresh, minty good

July 3rd, 2010 |

Author: Elaine

As a teacher, we learned that the scent of mint stimulates the brain, so we tried to “freshen” our classrooms with mint-scented essential oils. Teachers will try anything to help kids learn!

Mint smells good, tastes good and improves health.

But the benefits of mint go far beyond the scent aspect. For years the herb has been used medicinally for many conditions and ailments. At Organic Facts, they have quite a list of uses including:

Digestion
Nausea and headache
Respiratory disorders, cough
Asthma
Fever
Skin care, pimples
Female sterility
Cancer
Oral care
As an additive in food stuffs, cooking, personal products and home products

Everyone knows about the after-dinner mint to aid digestion and the mint flavored breath fresheners, but did you ever consider mint oil as an antiseptic? Or, as Organic Facts suggests, “mint juice is an excellent skin cleanser.” They also suggest it can be used to treat insect bites and stings as well. Who knew?

The use in teas is especially pleasing, and calming in both winter and summer. There are literally thousands of mint tea recipes on the Internet, but it’s pretty much put the washed leaves in boiling water, let steep for 15 – 20 minutes. Cool, pour over ice and you’re done! It sounds like you decide how strong to make it according to your own preference and whether to add other teas to it.

Mint is a perennial that can be grown in the garden.

Gardens Ablaze told me something I didn’t know. Perhaps because I am always battling to lose weight, the thought that there are people who work equally as hard to gain weight never really occurred to me. But Gardens Ablaze says,

Mint also can be used as an appetite stimulant. It reduces hunger for a short time, but when the effects wear off the hunger returns stronger than before. For those lucky enough to need to gain a few pounds, a tea might be tried 30 minutes before a meal for appetite stimulation.

From a gardeners viewpoint, mint is one of those plants that take hold in a garden and just go wild. Its spread is difficult to control and becomes a battle to the point gardeners often eradicate the plant and swear it will never come close again.

So I think rather than battle it in my garden, I will take a trip to Natural Choices in Columbus, Indiana where I can find products from essential oils to teas to dietary supplements that will let me add mint to my diet and home without the headache in the garden!

Although, Organic Facts did say mint was good to use to get rid of headaches …

–Ellie of the Natural Choices Blog Team