mint plant

What Is Mint – Smoking Mint – Benefits – History Of Smoking Mint – Quitting Cigarettes – Risks – Conclusion

Smoking mint doesn’t have the same history and tradition surrounding it as smoking sage and tea has. Mint has often been used for more medicinal uses. The strong aroma and flavor of the mint is what made people consider this plant for these uses.

But smoking mint is very much possible. There are always risks when smoking something, but comparing these herbal cigarettes to regular ones, then we have a clear winner. Smoking herbal cigarettes do a lot less harm to your body. The flavor and aroma you get from smoking mint is also very pleasing. The refreshing minty flavor really comes through.

What Is Mint

Mint is a very common herb to grow at home. It’s most often used in desserts or sweeter dishes. But the mint family has so many different varieties that you can really find the flavor that suits you.

There is everything from chocolate mint to lemon mint. They all have a minty aroma but slightly differ from each other depending on the variety. It’s a large family and plants such as sage and oregano are also included here.

When we are discussing smoking mint here, then we are referring to the peppermint, since that is the most commonly grown one. It has a nice almost spiciness to it that also shows when smoking the herb. Peppermint being a natural cross between watermint and spearmint we get the best of both worlds.

Smoking Mint And The Health Benefits

In the family of mitn there are over 600 different varieties to choose from. They all slightly differentiate themselves in terms of what they offer for benefits. Mint is known to be rich in antioxidants. This is a vital thing the body needs to get in its natural diet, helps a lot in preventing sickness but also more quickly recovering.

We should mention that there is no concrete scientific research out yet that supports any claim that smoking mint is better than just eating it. The argument is that more beneficial stuff in the mint is activated when you are igniting it.

Going off what people are saying themselves when smoking then it’s supposed to have a calming and anxiety reducing effect. The aroma and flavor of mint really comes forth as well. Like people who chew tobacco flavored with mint, it has the same effect as chewing a mint gum. It cools your mouth and gives you a refreshing breath.

Benefits To Smoking Mint

There are no proven benefits to smoking mint. The theory about smoking mint or any herb for that matter is that more nutrients are able to be activated and inhaled by the body when ignited. But there is nothing proven to support this theory. 

There is however some pretty clear evidence for that smoking mint or any herbal cigarettes have negatives to it. Whenever you are inhaling smoke then you are getting carbon monoxide into your body. This can be incredibly harmful if you do it too much. It is known to greatly increase the risk for cancer in the lungs. It has the side effect of also causing respiratory issues too.

How Long Has Mint Been Used To Smoke

Smoking mint does not have the same historical or traditions surrounding it as smoking sage or smoking oregano has. The mint plant was instead used for medicinal purposes.

But in recent decades there has been more and more people looking for alternatives to smoking cigarettes. This is where herbal cigarettes come in. Menthol cigarettes were pretty popular for a few years but then saw a drastic decline as the trend sort of died out. 

But it seems like herbal cigarettes are making a comeback again. Mint cigarettes are probably one of the most pleasant and flavorful varieties you could get then. It cools you off and doesn’t give you a bad breath afterwards.

Can Smoking Mint Help To Quit Smoking Cigarettes

Smoking mint can definitely help with quitting smoking cigarettes. These herbal cigarettes have gained a lot of popularity in recent decades. They don’t contain the same harmful chemicals that regular cigarette brands do. You don’t get the addictive nicotine either.

So smoking herbal cigarettes seems like the much better option here for getting rid of an addiction. It’s a healthier option for sure, but you are still inhaling toxic carbon monoxide.

Since these herbal cigarettes are not regulated by the FDA, I think you can never really be sure about the contents of these cigarettes. If you want to be better educated about what you are smoking then you should look into making your own herbal cigarettes.

The Risks Of Smoking Mint

We have mentioned the most prominent risk to smoking mint here already. It’s about the risk of still inhaling carbon monoxide. It’s something you can’t escape if you are smoking anything. 

Carbon monoxide is a toxic fume that increases the risk of getting cancer in the lungs, but it also will make your breathing more difficult after being an active user for years. The long term issues and risks of smoking anything is often not worth it.

Conclusion And Summary

Let’s summarize this article a little bit. Smoking mint is a pretty new phenomena as herbal cigarettes are becoming more and more popular in recent years. There isn’t any research out yet that supports some of the beneficial claims to smoking herbal cigarettes. But it’s pretty easy to say it’s a healthier option than smoking regular tobacco cigarettes.

The risks you are letting on include lung cancer and mouth cancer when smoking these mint cigarettes, although those same risks are included when smoking nicotine cigarettes too.