Mint Tea Treatment for Pain

Not simply refreshing but restorative and rehabilitative as well, a Brazilian variety of mint is reported by the BBC to deliver pain-killing benefits that match or exceed over-the-counter remedies.

The plant in question is Hyptis crenata. BBC notes that this mint has been used in traditional medicine practice for centuries, and a recent study performed by doctors at Newcastle University provides modern, quantifiable support for this applied ancient method of treating pain.

The Newcastle study was performed on mice, and the results are prompting the Newcastle team to look ahead toward expanding the investigation to people to replicate the results as well as to learn more about how the plant works as a pain-killer.

Described as tasting less recognizably minty and more like an infusion of mint's close relative sage, the infusion made from Hyptis crenata resulted from boiling the leaves for a half hour and letting the liquid cool before serving it.

The BBC quotes Graciela Rocha, the lead scientist for the study, in placing the findings within a broader and age-old knowledge base about plants and their healing properties:

"Since humans first walked the Earth we have looked to plants to provide a cure for our ailments — in fact it is estimated more than 50,000 plants are used worldwide for medicinal purposes. Besides traditional use, more than half of all prescription drugs are based on a molecule that occurs naturally in a plant. What we have done is to take a plant that is widely used to safely treat pain and scientifically proven that it works as well as some synthetic drugs."

And as BBC notes, this researcher brings a unique perspective to the study and its findings: Dr. Rocha is Brazilian and recalls being given the tea during childhood for a range of ailments.

Photo courtesy of Nicolas Mailfait, via Wikimedia Commons