Mints

Hey all!

A friend of mine discovered last night where he started having breathing difficulties and his inhaler ran out that extra strong mints help ease it a bit!?

Im not saying you should use it instead of an inhaler... in fact... DO NOT REPLACE YOUR INHALER WITH A MINT! It only makes it a bit easier. But it was enough for him to wait until his cousin came round with a spare.

Does anyone know the science behind this?

[Hidden]

yes ... the mints if you have ever noticed do open your airways especially the strong ones, if you breathe in you can feel it in your nose, its abit like that airwaves chewing gum except that blows my head off anyway and i don't like it but a blue inhaler is always best!! lol

[Hidden]

Menthol, which is naturally extracted from mint, is a counterirritant and has analgesic properties. That's what would have had an effect.

[KateMoss]

thanks for this,

Though I know that giving an extra strong mint to my Grandma had her coughing and eyes streaming.... Poor Grandma!

[Hidden]

I'm intrigued by the counterirritant properties. According to good old Wikipedia, a counterirritant is something that makes one thing better by making something else worse! That would explain why your Grandma starting coughing, Kate - some part of her must have gotten proportionally better at the same time!

[Hidden]

Intriguing indeed Peaksteve,

Peppermint capsules can be given in irritable bowel syndrome and ? diverticulitis as it is classed as an anti-spasmodic