HERB - Fwd: hist-brewing: mint tea

[Bowen MacTarbh]

Greetings unto the list;

     I thought some of you might be interested in this post to the brewing 
list. I will be more than happy to forward comments to and from the brewing 
list for those not on both lists.

                                                  Respectfully;
                                                  Bowen
>From: isenhour at uiuc.edu
>Reply-To: isenhour at uiuc.edu
>To: hist-brewing at pbm.com (Brewmasters Histerical)
>Subject: hist-brewing: mint tea
>Date: Tue, 26 Oct 1999 09:49:44 -0500 (CDT)
>
>I have been searching hundreds of science journals trying to locate some
>hard evidence that hops somehow effect male testosterone (nothing so far)
>but I did run across this and thought it worth a post.
>
>from Pediatrics, V98, N5, pp944-947 1996
>
>Hepatic and neurologic injury developed in two infants after ingestion
>of mint tea. Examination of the mint plants, from which the teas were
>brewed, indicated that they contained the toxic agent pennyroyal
>oil.
>
>METHODS: Sera from each infant were analyzed for the toxic
>constituents of pennyroyal oil, including pulegone and its metabolite
>menthofuran.
>
>RESULTS: Fulminant liver failure with cerebral edema and
>necrosis developed in the first infant, who died. This infant was
>positive only for menthofuran (10 ng/mL). In the other infant, who was
>positive for both pulegone (25 ng/mL) and menthofuran (41 ng/mL),
>hepatic dysfunction and a severe epileptic encephalopathy
>developed.
>
>CONCLUSION: Pennyroyal oil is a highly toxic agent that may cause both
>hepatic and neurologic injury if ingested. A potential source of
>pennyroyal oil is certain mint teas mistakenly used as home remedies
>to treat minor ailments and colic in infants. Physicians should
>consider pennyroyal oil poisoning as a possible cause of hepatic and
>neurologic injury in infants, particularly if the infants may have
>been given home- brewed mint teas.
>


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