Pennyroyal Mint

Pennyroyal Mint

Mentha pulegium

In Physica, St. Hildegard of Bingen writes:

“Pennyroyal has a pleasant heat, but is nevertheless moist. It has in it some of the virtue of these fifteen herbs—zedoary, cloves, galangal, ginger, basil, comfrey, lungwort, birthwort, yarrow, southernwood, female fern, agrimony, storax, geranium, and watermint.”

— Physica, St. Hildegard of Bingen

Pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium) is an aromatic member of the mint family with a long history of traditional use. Hildegard held this seemingly modest herb in particularly high regard, describing it as possessing some of the virtues of fifteen other herbs.

Traditional Hildegardian Use

Hildegardian practitioners traditionally recommend pennyroyal mint for:

• cleansing and supporting the stomach and bowels
• supporting healthy vision
• heartburn
• belching and frequent burping
  

Pennyroyal with Honey & Wine Vinegar

A traditional Hildegardian preparation combines powdered pennyroyal with honey and wine vinegar.

Mix 100 ml wine vinegar with 100 ml gently warmed, thinned honey. Dilute the mixture further with a small amount of water.

Traditionally, 20 ml of the mixture is taken before meals with 2–3 pinches of powdered pennyroyal.

If the flavor is too strong, the prepared honey-vinegar mixture may instead be added to a cup of fennel tea, together with the pennyroyal powder, and consumed that way.

Traditional Hildegardian sources describe this as a course lasting from several weeks to several months.

Important Safety Note: Pennyroyal is not an ordinary culinary mint. It contains pulegone and can be toxic in sufficiently high doses; pennyroyal essential oil is particularly dangerous and should not be ingested. Pennyroyal should not be used during pregnancy.

Net weight: 3.5 oz. (100 g.)

These statements describe traditional Hildegardian uses and have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.