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Despite serious safety concerns, pennyroyal is used for colds, pneumonia, and other breathing problems. It is also used for stomach pains, gas, intestinal disorders, and liver and gallbladder problems. Women use it to start or regulate their menstrual periods, or to cause an abortion.
Is it safe to drink pennyroyal tea?
Pennyroyal tea and leaf extracts have been used without serious side effects. Pennyroyal oil, however, is highly toxic, and even small doses (one tablespoon, 15 mL) can cause syncope, seizures, coma, cardiopulmonary collapse, acute liver injury, renal insufficiency and multiorgan failure.
How much pennyroyal is toxic?
The toxicity of pennyroyal oil is well recognized, with many documented reports of adverse events and fatalities. In humans, consumption of 10 mL of the oil has resulted in moderate to severe toxicity, with case reports of fatalities 1 to 2 hours after consumption of 15 mL.
What is Penny Royal herb used for?
Pennyroyal is a plant. The leaves, and the oil they contain, are used to make medicine. Despite serious safety concerns, pennyroyal is used for the common cold, pneumonia, fatigue, ending a pregnancy (abortion), and as an insect repellant, but there is no good scientific evidence to support these uses.
What happens if you eat pennyroyal?
Symptoms that may persist after ingesting a small dose (<10 mL) of pennyroyal oil are nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and dizziness. Larger volumes may result in multiorgan failure that could lead to death.
What type of liver toxicity is most associated with pennyroyal?
Pennyroyal oil contains pulegone, which is highly toxic, particularly to the liver. Ingestion can lead initially to gastrointestinal distress such as nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain.
Does pennyroyal keep mosquitoes away?
Pennyroyal. Pennyroyal is an extremely potent species of mint. If too much of its oil gets absorbed into the skin or consumed, it can be toxic to humans and animals. But when grown and used carefully, pennyroyal is one of the most effective mosquito repellent plants.
Can you eat pennyroyal leaves?
Its action is unpredictable and dangerous. The dose at which the herb induces abortion is close to lethal, and in some cases it is lethal. Pennyroyal is not considered safe for ingestion for any use.
What were pennyroyal pills?
Pennyroyal has always been associated with women’s bodies and sexuality: it was used in love potions, served as an obscene metaphor for female pubic hair, and was employed as a symbol of illicit sexuality. It has also been known since antiquity as a powerful abortifacient.
What does pennyroyal taste like?
Pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium), looks like mint, smells like mint and even tastes like mint but unlike mint contains pulegone, an extremely poisonous compound that is toxic to the liver and acts as an abortificant. Pennyroyal has been used as a culinary herb for thousands of years.
How do you use pennyroyal as an insect repellent?
Fill with crushed pennyroyal leaves, cover with an unscented oil (light olive, safflower or sunflower are all suitable). Place on a sunny windowsill for about three weeks, shaking every few days. Strain and use. Try sprinkling a few drops of pennyroyal oil into water to repel mosquitoes, or rub it on your skin.
Is pennyroyal a contraceptive?
Pennyroyal, we came to learn, is an abortifacient, an old friend to “luckless girls in need,” as the Nebraskan novelist Mari Sandoz once wrote. Too much of it can damage the liver and cause convulsions, coma or even death. A little less can end a pregnancy.
What pennyroyal means?
Definition of pennyroyal 1 : a European perennial mint (Mentha pulegium) with small aromatic leaves. 2 : an aromatic North American mint (Hedeoma pulegioides) that has blue or violet flowers borne in axillary tufts and yields an oil used in folk medicine or to drive away mosquitoes.
Can you cook with pennyroyal?
Nutrition. Pennyroyal used to be a good deal in cooking, for teas, and for medicines. However, the latest studies show that it can have toxic effects on the liver and on women in particular, and so the recommendation is that it should not be consumed or taken internally in any way.
What does English pennyroyal look like?
The plant features long, weed-like stalks with vibrant green leaves and tight purple blooms. When crushed, pennyroyal’s leaves emit a fragrance similar to that of spearmint. For centuries, pennyroyal plant has been used as an herbal preparation to deter pests like fleas and gnats.
Is pennyroyal oil an essential oil?
What is Pennyroyal Essential Oil? Pennyroyal essential oil is extracted form a plant belonging to the mint family. It is a grass-like creeper herb bearing the scientific name Mentha Pulegium. It is indeed a wonder why such a poisonous plant or oil has been in use as a folk medicine from ancient times.
Is mint toxic to humans?
Like many herbs, mint can adversely affect some people. According to a 2019 review , mint commonly acts as a trigger for GERD symptoms. Taking peppermint oil in large doses can be toxic . It is essential to stick to the recommended doses of peppermint oil.
Who wrote Penny Royal Tea?
What plant keeps snakes away?
Onion & Garlic Onions and garlic are very useful garden plants for repelling snakes. Both plants give off a smell that snakes not only dislike, but it also confuses them. Garlic plants are thought to be the best plants that repel snakes. The plant gives off an oily residue when a snake slithers over a clove.
