O’ peppermint tea -
two delights per sip
as steamy hot as passion
cool as a wintry lake dip
~Astrid Alauda

One of my favorite spots to nap is on the balcony among the peppermint. It smells so good. And i think it must keep those pesky bugs away. I simply adore it. Of course i am from the South where this plant is revered by proper old ladies who drink tea and mint juleps!

Peppermint has been used medicinally for ages to treat tummy aches, indigestion, breathing and respiratory problems, headache, nausea, fever, stomach and bowel spasms. It is also great for stinky dog breath. My pet human aka Beta-chic chops up a small leaf of peppermint everyday and adds it to my food…. not that i would ever have stinky breath.

The latin name for Peppermint is Herba Mentae Haplocalycis and in Chinese it is called Bo He. It is used in Traditional Chinese Medicine in several herbal formulas. In the Chinese Herbal Medicine Materia Medica by Bensky & Gamble, it is listed in the category of Cool, Acrid Herbs That Release the Exterior. (And for all those herb geeks it’s properties are acrid, aromatic and cooling.) Please note that the Materia Medica is the herbal bible memorized by all acupuncture students preparing for licensing boards.

Bo He has several uses such as:
* Treating Wind Heat with symptoms of fever, headache and cough.

* Clears wind heat in the head, eyes and throat. Vents rashes and can even be used in early stages of measles. This of course is for people with measles!

* And it ….. allows constrained Liver qi to flow freely. Something of course only those trained in TCM would understand. But it does sound powerful. Beta-chic seems to think most of those people living in the state of Massachusetts suffer from some strange ailment called liver qi stagnation. I have no idea what she means. Perhaps it is the way they drive? Or the way they are always in a hurry? Maybe the snappishness – is that a word? This is probably why she treats dogs and not people. Liver qi stagnation seems to be an epidemic here in New England according to her. ( And sometimes after a long day of driving she even seems to suffer from it. But of course i would never say that out loud!) Fortunately most dogs do not suffer from this affliction.

So, i am wondering if everyone took the time to enjoy a nice cup of peppermint tea, might they be nicer during this horridly hot weather? Or perhaps they could just add a sprig of peppermint to their ice tea? I am not sure if it would help their driving but we can only hope it does!

Until next blog ….Be nice. Stay cool. And have some peppermint!
Quan Yin

Trackback URI | Comments RSS