Does Peppermint Help With Nausea?

You might have heard that peppermint can relieve nausea. Turns out, that might be true. Research has shown peppermint may help with nausea.

Peppermint is an herb that grows naturally in North America and Europe and has been used for thousands of years as a health remedy. Both the leaves of the plant and the oil (taken from the leaves and flowers) are used in medicinal preparations, such as teas, flavorings, or aromatherapy essential oils.

Nausea is one symptom for which peppermint may be an effective remedy. And even though evidence about its effectiveness for relieving nausea is limited, peppermint is considered safe in most circumstances, so reaching for peppermint when you’re feeling queasy might be worth a shot.

When Can Peppermint Help With Nausea?

You can experience nausea for a variety of reasons. Researchers have investigated how effective peppermint is for nausea related to different conditions.

In Pregnancy

Peppermint aromatherapy could be an effective remedy for nausea during pregnancy. A small 2019 study of 66 people found that those who used peppermint aromatherapy during pregnancy twice daily for a week had less severe nausea than the people who did not use the remedy.

After Chemotherapy

Nausea is a common side effect of chemotherapy treatment. Peppermint might be able to ease the nausea.

A 2021 preliminary study found that people with cancer who used peppermint aromatherapy three times a day for five days after chemotherapy in addition to their anti-nausea medication had fewer and less severe episodes of nausea than people who only received anti-nausea medication. For the study, a drop of the oil was applied to the space between their lip and nose.

Peppermint oil that is placed on a cool, damp washcloth and applied to the neck for 30 minutes may also slightly help with nausea after chemotherapy. For this form of aromatherapy, the researchers of the preliminary study used two drops of peppermint oil.

Even taking peppermint orally can help calm nausea after chemotherapy. One 2020 study showed that putting 40 drops of peppermint oil into a 20-milliliter glass of water every eight hours following chemotherapy can make nausea less severe. The effect lasted for 48 hours. The peppermint oil-water mix was also able to reduce the severity of vomiting.

During Menstruation

Preliminary research shows that taking three capsules of peppermint oil on each of the first three days of your period can reduce nausea associated with menstrual pain (dysmenorrhea). In fact, the peppermint was more effective in calming nausea than taking the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug Ponstel (mefenamic acid) three times a day. The peppermint was also more effective at reducing vomiting and as effective at reducing pain.

After Surgery

Inhaling peppermint after an operation may improve any nausea you are feeling after the procedure. The nausea severity was found to improve after using aromatherapy of peppermint oil 10% and 30%. The effects have been seen in as little as four hours after the surgery, with the effect then wearing off after four hours.

What's unclear is whether it's the peppermint aromatherapy itself or just the improved breathing patterns the aromatherapy encourages that improves the nausea. More research would be needed to know for certain.

When You Have Indigestion

There is limited research pointing to peppermint helping with indigestion, a group of symptoms you can develop for a number of reasons, including eating, drinking, feeling stressed, taking medication, or having a digestive issue like acid reflux. Nausea is one of the possible symptoms associated with indigestion. condition which often has nausea as a symptom.

A small number of studies have found that products made of a combination of peppermint oil and caraway oil—as well as several products that list peppermint leaves as an ingredient—can help with indigestion.

Because the research doesn’t look at peppermint in isolation, more studies on just peppermint are needed to see if the herb alone works to remedy nausea. That being said, peppermint oil alone has been shown to make indigestion worse for some people.

Why Does Peppermint Help Nausea?

There isn’t much research about how peppermint may help specifically with nausea. But there’s some evidence outlining how it helps with digestive upset in general.

It's believed that menthol, the active ingredient in peppermint oil, is what mainly helps with digestive upset. Other actions peppermint oil takes that can help ease digestive discomfort include the following:

• Relaxes the smooth muscles in the digestive system
• May help control visceral sensitivity, which refers to a person’s experience of pain
• May have anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial impacts
• May have antispasmodic properties, meaning it works too relieve involuntary muscle spasms
• May help with psychosocial stress, and stress can trigger and exacerbate digestive issues
  

How to Use Peppermint for Nausea

There are many ways you can use peppermint as a nausea treatment. This can be done either orally or through essential oils.

Oral

There are several ways that peppermint can be consumed orally. For example, you can snack on peppermint candy, mint, or gum. You can also drink peppermint tea. Mint leaves can even be added to water or other drinks for a mint-infused beverage.

Sometimes peppermint is sold as a supplement, though it’s important to note that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration doesn’t regulate or review dietary supplements. Before trying any new supplement, speak with a healthcare provider.

Some people take peppermint tinctures, where they dissolve a few drops of peppermint oil in water.

Ingesting peppermint oil is considered generally safe when consumed in commonly used doses.

Aromatherapy

Peppermint oil can also be used as an aromatherapy. You can use peppermint oil alone or combine it with other essential oils. For instance, one study found that combining peppermint oil with lemon oil was an effective remedy for nausea during pregnancy.

There are several ways you can use peppermint oil for aromatherapy:

• Use a room diffuser, or place a few drops of peppermint oil on a piece of cotton or tissue
• Inhale the oil directly by placing several drops in hot water and breathing in
• Mix a few drops of peppermint oil in a massage oil for a minty massage
• Use soaps, lotions, shampoos, and other products that have peppermint oil as ingredients
  

Risks and Precautions

In general, peppermint can be safe when taken by mouth or when applied to the skin. It almost never causes allergic reactions. At times, applying peppermint directly to the skin can cause irritation. Sometimes peppermint oil can exacerbate digestive issues, including nausea, so that’s something to keep in mind if you are using it to treat nausea. Nausea is actually even one of the most common negative effects of taking peppermint orally. If your nausea is increasing rather than decreasing, consider looking for an alternative treatment.

There are few instances where peppermint oil shouldn’t be used at all or used with precaution.

You shouldn’t apply peppermint oil to the faces of babies and young children since they can experience harmful side effects when inhaling menthol.

And while peppermint might help with nausea in pregnancy, there is insufficient data on the effects of peppermint oil during pregnancy or breastfeeding. To be safe, you should contact your healthcare provider before using it.

What Else Gets Rid of Nausea?

If peppermint isn’t working for you, or if it’s worsening your nausea, there are other natural remedies that can help.

If you’re looking for other dietary supplements that can help with nausea, you may want to try ginger. Ginger can be consumed as a food, beverage ingredient, or supplement and is known to be safe. Several studies have found it to be effective in treating nausea, especially pregnancy-related nausea.

Nausea can also be managed by changing how you eat and making other lifestyle tweaks such as:

• Taking small sips for water frequently
• Changing your diet to mostly bland foods like rice and toast
• Avoiding fried, high-fat, or spicy foods
• Eating smaller, more frequent meals
• Avoiding strong smells or smells you know will trigger your nausea

There are also anti-nausea medications that might help make you feel better.

When to Contact a Healthcare Provider

You should consider consulting with your healthcare provider before starting any complementary medicine, such as peppermint.

In terms of when to see a healthcare provider about your symptom of nausea, know that most episodes of nausea aren’t serious and pass on their own, with rest and with time. But sometimes nausea can be a sign of something more serious. Here’s when to contact a healthcare provider for nausea:

• You’ve been vomiting for over 24 hours.
• You think you’ve ingested something toxic or poisonous.
• You are seeing blood in your vomit.
• You’re also experiencing intense abdominal pain.
• You also have an extremely painful headache along with serious neck pain.
• You are showing signs of severe dehydration, such as less frequent urination, dry mouth, and dark-colored urine.
  

A Quick Review

People sometimes use peppermint as a natural nausea remedy. Although the research about the herb's effectiveness in treating nausea specifically is limited, there is evidence that it may be a useful remedy. Taking peppermint orally or using peppermint in aromatherapy has been shown to potentially help with nausea related to pregnancy, chemotherapy, menstrual pain, surgery, and indigestion. Peppermint is considered pretty safe. Still, if you are considering using peppermint to help make yourself feel less nauseous, consider consulting with a healthcare provider first.