The Ultimate Guide To Peppermint Tea

Where are our tea drinkers at? Anybody who enjoys peppermint tea? This beverage is widely enjoyed for its flavor, but what if I told you it also has some pretty amazing health benefits, too?

Whether you need some help sleeping or you want something to help aid in weight loss, peppermint tea is a great tool. And to think—those are just two of its beneficial properties!

We’re going to go over everything you need to know about peppermint tea, its benefits, side effects, and how to brew your own.

Peppermint Tea Benefits

Peppermint tea is an herbal infusion of peppermint leaves. It’s scientifically referred to as Mentha piperita and is a cross between watermint and spearmint. Peppermint naturally contains menthol, an essential oil found in different mint leaves.

Besides being an all-around delicious beverage, peppermint tea comes with plenty of health benefits as well.

Headache Relief

The aroma from peppermint has been known to help relieve the severity of headaches. It does this by elevating the constricted blood vessels in your brain. It has also proven itself effective against headaches caused by poor eating.

Helps with Stomach Issues

Peppermint is commonly used to help treat symptoms of issues like IBS, indigestion, and constipation. The tea stimulates the bile flow in your stomach to increase the efficiency of digestion.

Reduces Stress

Peppermint tea contains menthol, which is a natural sedative. This helps give instant relief to the stress in your body. The aroma works just like we mentioned above in “headache relief.” When breathed in, your body relaxes and can help calm you down.

Reduces Sinus Symptoms

It has also proven itself effective in improving sinus infection symptoms. Peppermint tea is a natural cough suppressant as it naturally relaxes the chest and throat muscles.

Cures Bad Breath

The flavor of peppermint tea has a strong antibacterial quality. This can help in fighting the bacteria that causes bad breath and other mouth issues. Not to mention, it leaves your breath smelling fresh too.

Weight Loss

Research has shown that the aroma of peppermint tea can help curb your appetite which in turn prevents overeating.

Good for Insomnia

Peppermint tea is caffeine-free. That paired with its relaxing aroma is a good way to relax your body before bed.

Menthol and Peppermint Tea

Usually, when one thinks of menthol, the first thing that comes to mind is cigarettes. It seems unpleasant, but menthol is a natural compound found in mint leaves. It’s what gives mint products that cooling sensation when you’re drinking or eating it.

It’s made both naturally and synthetically too. 

Menthol has a number of benefits that greatly contribute to the benefits of peppermint tea. Menthol is commonly used to help treat coughs, control plaque, and relieve minor aches and pains among other things.

You’ll commonly find menthol in cough suppressants because of its “cooling” properties.

As wonderful as the benefits are, menthol should never be consumed in its raw form. Consuming raw menthol can cause seizures and in some extreme cases, death.

It can also cause eye and skin irritation if it isn’t diluted.

Menthol is also very flammable. The FDA also warns not to put a menthol rub over an area and then applying a heating pad after. The heat will increase the absorption and this can kill your tissue.

Side Effects of Peppermint Tea

As great as peppermint tea is in general, it may still come with some unwanted side effects for some people. Unfortunately, sometimes we’re allergic to things that are delicious. Peppermint tea comes with no exception.

Some of its main side effects have been heartburn, flushing, headaches, and mouth sores. If it’s your first time trying peppermint tea, there’s a chance your body may just need to adjust to it. However, if you’re experiencing symptoms like the ones just mentioned or other more severe ones, you should stop drinking it.

If you want to use peppermint tea to help treat any medical condition, you should first consult with your doctor.

There are some other precautions you should take note of as well.

Drinking It While Pregnant

While tea is a pretty popular remedy for common pregnancy ailments, you should still consult with your doctor beforehand. Because peppermint tea can cause heartburn, it may not be ideal for pregnancy. This is especially true if you have issues with heartburn already.

There’s also a chance that certain herbs can contain substances that can bring on a miscarriage, pre-term labor, or contractions. There isn’t a ton of research on this claim, but it’s worth noting.

Possible Contamination

Because the FDA doesn’t regulate peppermint tea or other herbal supplements, you can’t be sure if it’s organic and high-quality. When buying peppermint (or any type for that matter) tea, check the ingredients and see if it’s certified organic too.

Organic tea is going to be your best option. It can be found for pretty cheap too as opposed to other organic products.

Acid Reflux and GERD

If you suffer from GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) or acid reflux, you shouldn’t consume peppermint tea. The aroma from the tea relaxes the valve that separates the esophagus from the stomach.

This makes it more likely for stomach acid to re-enter the esophagus, an unpleasant thought if you suffer from either of these conditions.

Drug Interactions

If you take any regular medicines or over-the-counter drugs, you should see if peppermint tea will interfere with any of them. This is usually the case with medicines that help relieve heartburn and antacids for stomach issues.

It can also mess with the effectiveness of drugs used to treat high blood pressure and diabetes, or others, such as cyclosporine. It’s always worth a call to your doctor’s office beforehand, to make sure it’s not going to cause any problems.

Different Forms of Tea

Like all other teas, peppermint tea can be found in a few different forms. Whether it’s in tea bags, loose leaf, or homemade, there is an option for every convenience. Generally, loose leaf tea is considered “better” because it’s made from higher quality leaves.

Loose leaf tea also tends to be the most expensive option of the three too so that’s something to keep in mind. 

Personally, we like the idea of growing your own plants for tea. Not only will it cost you less in the long run, but it’ll also last you virtually forever. We do understand that not everyone has the space or means for this, though.

No matter which way you choose to drink your tea, you’re going to get amazing benefits from it.

How to Make Peppermint Tea

You can find peppermint tea virtually anywhere, but nothing beats making it fresh. Not only does fresh peppermint tea taste better, but it’s also extremely easy to make.

All you need to make fresh peppermint tea are leaves, water, and a way to heat the water. For each serving of tea you plan to make, it’s recommended to use seven to 10 tea leaves. To get the highest quality, try to choose leaves without any blemishes or other damage.

As a general rule, the greener the leaf, the better.

Before brewing, make sure to rinse off your leaves. This will help get rid of any surface impurities, even if they’re right from your own garden.

Then you’re going to crush the leaves up. An easy way to do this is to rub the leaves between your fingers. The leaves are delicate and will break apart easily.

You can also use a spoon or a mortar and pestle. Your crushed tea leaves should look crumpled not completely pulverized.

Once your leaves are crushed, place them into your mug until your water is boiled. When the water reaches boiling point, let it cool for a few minutes before pouring into your cup. After it’s cooled a bit, let the tea steep for at least seven minutes.

The longer you let your tea steep, the more prominent the flavor will be. Once you’re done steeping, remove the leaves and add any extra flavors you may want to it. Honey and lemon are popular choices here.

Infographic: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/706572629017586452/

Let’s Get Brewin’

Peppermint tea is the bomb for just about anybody. Whether you’re struggling with sleep problems or need something to help soothe your sore throat, peppermint tea has your back. There are so many benefits this simple leaf has to offer, you can’t afford to not try it.

Nothing beats being able to sit back after a long day and relax with a hot (or cold) cup of tea. Personally, we try to drink at least one cup of tea a night. There are some days where we drink it more.

It’s hard to pass up such a simple drink with so many benefits.

Are you already a peppermint tea fan or a newbie to the tea world? Is there something about peppermint tea we didn’t cover that you aren’t sure about? We want to hear everything in the comments below.