Why is mint called a female plant and why is it dangerous for men

Mint has been used in folk medicine since time immemorial. This plant is very popular with herbalists and healers and has dozens of applications. It is brewed as a sedative, for insomnia, as an analgesic, including for headaches, it normalizes the heart rate, reduces blood pressure and improves digestion. Mint also has an anti-inflammatory effect. But with all this, men were not recommended to use this herb centuries ago. Recently, Turkish scientists have revealed the secret of mint and the mechanism of its negative impact on the stronger sex.

Among the numerous types of mint known to modern man, the most useful and therefore the most popular is peppermint (Méntha piperíta). This plant is a real storehouse of vitamins, trace elements and other substances necessary for a person.

In mint, scientists found vitamins A, B, C, PP, folic acid, flavonoids, trace elements, including iron, zinc, manganese, copper and macronutrients, including sodium, calcium and potassium, magnesium, phosphorus. And there are also dietary fibers, saturated fatty acids, essential oils and something even less essential in the plant.

Mint is especially highly appreciated by older people – by brewing tea with its leaves, they improve sleep, making it strong and healthy. Some go even further and hang a bag of dried mint leaves at the head of the bed, so that the mint aroma calms the nerves and helps to fall asleep faster.

Even in the old days, peppermint began to be called a female plant and many peoples believed that it helps to become more feminine. It is difficult to say how people understood the essence of mint without high technologies, but the research of Turkish scientists has fully confirmed its benefits for the fair sex and ... danger for men.

First, the researchers studied the chemical composition of mint in detail, and then conducted an experiment on volunteers. Several dozen women with an increased content of the male hormone testosterone were selected for it. They were allowed to drink several cups of mint tea a day for a certain period of time and at the same time monitored the level of the male hormone.

In all participants of the experiment, testosterone decreased, and in some who have problems with body hair due to hormonal problems, hair loss decreased. It turns out that mint has the property of negatively affecting masculinity. To test the discovery of Turkish colleagues, biologists from the United States set up their experiment, but this time on rats.

The animals were given mint tea instead of water, as a result of which the testosterone indicators decreased in males. Scientists did not stop there and achieved even more severe consequences – several experimental animals had irreversible changes in the testicles that made them infertile.

Studies of the properties of mint were also conducted here. Specialists of the Russian Institute of Reproductive Medicine are sure that mint helps to reduce potency and generally adversely affects a man's libido. It's not just the soothing effect of the plant, but also its effect on the production of testosterone. Mint also has a negative effect on the activity of spermatozoa – even one cup of a drink can give such a temporary effect.

American biologists are sure that fans of mint tea can be identified by external signs. Men who abuse mint have rounded shapes and are almost never hairy. However, in order for such signs to appear, you need to be a fan of mint products with an impressive experience and brew strong tea several times a day.

But all this does not mean that men need to completely exclude mint from the diet. In moderate doses, it is still useful and you should not deny yourself the pleasure of drinking fragrant mint tea every few days. Well, if you abuse it, you can get poisoned with tea with bergamot, as one Austrian did.