What it is

Herbal tea made from Mentha spicata. It is a food and is not a hair-loss treatment.

What the studies show

Uncontrolled study (21 women with excess hair growth, 5 days): drinking spearmint tea twice a day lowered free testosterone, while LH, FSH and estradiol rose; total testosterone and DHEAS did not change. Akdogan 2007
Randomised placebo-controlled trial (42 women with PCOS, 30 days): free and total testosterone fell (p<0.05) and self-reported excess hair improved, but the objective Ferriman-Gallwey score did not (p = 0.12). Grant 2010
No study tested scalp hair.

Bottom line

The hormone effect is modest and short-term, and an effect on unwanted facial or body hair was not objectively confirmed. If you want to try it for excess hair, it is a low-risk drink, not a treatment.

Fun facts

The first study began because clinicians in a Turkish town thought locally brewed spearmint tea dimmed libido. Akdogan 2007

Studies 2

Akdogan M et al. Effect of spearmint (Mentha spicata Labiatae) teas on androgen levels in women with hirsutism. Phytother Res. 2007

Design: other
People: 21
Duration: 5 days
Who: women with hirsutism (12 PCOS, 9 idiopathic), uncontrolled

Tested: spearmint tea twice daily

Result: Free testosterone fell; LH, FSH and estradiol rose; total testosterone and DHEAS were unchanged.

Read the study ↗

Grant P. Spearmint herbal tea has significant anti-androgen effects in polycystic ovarian syndrome: a randomized controlled trial. Phytother Res. 2010

Design: rct
People: 42
Duration: 30 days
Who: women with PCOS and hirsutism

Tested: spearmint tea twice daily vs placebo

Result: Free and total testosterone fell (p<0.05); self-reported hirsutism improved but the objective Ferriman-Gallwey score did not (p = 0.12).