Peppermint as an Antimicrobial

Peppermint has shown antimicrobial activity against a wide variety of bacteria, viruses, and fungi.  

By: Kathy Sadowski, MS in Aromatherapy, Registered Aromatherapist, LMT

In hundreds of scientific studies, peppermint has shown effective activity against a variety of pathogenic microbes.  Peppermint is a great essential oil to use in household cleaning recipes, in the diffuser during cold and flu season, and as a topical antiseptic.

Click here to read about the safe use of peppermint.

Suggested uses of peppermint as an antimicrobial:

• INHALATION – Add a few drops of peppermint essential oil to a diffuser
• TOPICAL USE – Mix up to 6 drops of essential oil to one ounce of carrier oil
• INTERNALLY: Take the fresh or dried herb.  For adults: add ½ tsp of dried OR 1 tsp of fresh leaves to 1 cup of hot water; steep for 5-7 minutes, strain, and drink the water as hot tea up to three times a day.

Some research studies on peppermint as an antimicrobial:

• In a mega-analysis of over 500 studies on essential oil antimicrobial activity, spices and herbs of thyme, origanum, mint, cinnamon, salvia and clove had the strongest antimicrobial properties. From:  Kalemba, D., & Kunicka, A. (2003). Antibacterial and antifungal properties of essential oils. Current medicinal chemistry, 10(10), 813-829.
• Origanum onites, Mentha piperita, Juniperus exalsa, Chrysanthemum indicum, Lavandula hybrida, Rosa damascena, Echinophora tenuifolia, and Foeniculum vulgare were tested for antimicrobial activity. From:  Andoğan, B. C., Baydar, H., Kaya, S., Demirci, M., Özbaşar, D., & Mumcu, E. (2002). Antimicrobial activity and chemical composition of some essential oils. Archives of pharmacal research, 25(6), 860-864
• Melaleuca alternifolia, Thymus vulgaris, Mentha piperita and Rosmarinus officinalis were combined with conventional antimicrobials and assessed.  From:  Van Vuuren, S. F., Suliman, S., & Viljoen, A. M. (2009). The antimicrobial activity of four commercial essential oils in combination with conventional antimicrobials. Letters in applied microbiology, 48(4), 440-446.
• Peppermint oil strongly inhibited plant pathogenic microorganisms, and human pathogens were moderately inhibited, with menthol being the active constituent.  From:  Iscan, G., KIrimer, N. E. S. E., Kürkcüoglu, M., Baser, H. C., & DEMIrci, F. (2002). Antimicrobial screening of Mentha piperita essential oils. Journal of agricultural and food chemistry, 50(14), 3943-3946.
• Nine plant spice essential oils were tested on various microorganisms (Salmonella typhimurium, Bacillus cereus, Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis, Escherichia coli, Yersinia enterocolitica, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Candida rugosa, Rhizopus oryzae and Aspergillus niger and showed antimicrobial activity and may be used to combat pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms, and improve shelf-life of foods.  They included: savory, laurel, oregano, basil, cumin, sea fennel, myrtle, and mint.  From:  Özcan, M., & Erkmen, O. (2001). Antimicrobial activity of the essential oils of Turkish plant spices. European Food Research and Technology, 212(6), 658-660

ANTIBACTERIAL

• At high doses and undiluted, coriander, fennel, peppermint, dill, fir, juniper, rosemary, and lavender were active against E. coli, S. aureus, and Candida albicans.  From:   Şerban, E. S., Ionescu, M. I. H. A. E. L. A., Matinca, D. O. I. N. A., Maier, C. S., & Bojiţă, M. T. (2011). Screening of the antibacterial and antifungal activity of eight volatile essential oils. Farmacia, 59(3), 440-446.
• Palmarosa, lemongrass, peppermint, and eucalyptus were bactericidal against Escherichia coli.  From:  Pattnaik, S., Subramanyam, V. R., & Rath, C. C. (1994). Effect of essential oils on the viability and morphology of Escherichia coli (SP-11). Microbios, 84(340), 195-199.
• From 22 essential oils tested, cornmint, cumin, laurel, lemon peel, orange, oregano, and Ziziphora were active against all assessed bacteria. From:  Kivanç, M., & Akgül, A. (1986). Antibacterial activities of essential oils from Turkish spices and citrus. Flavour and Fragrance Journal, 1(4‐5), 175-179.
• Against oral bacteria, Australian tea tree, peppermint, and sage oil as well as the thymol and eugenol constituents were potent.  From:  Shapiro, S., Meier, A., & Guggenheim, B. (1994). The antimicrobial activity of essential oils and essential oil components towards oral bacteria. Oral microbiology and immunology, 9(4), 202-208.
• Orange, eucalyptus, fennel, geranium, juniper, peppermint, rosemary, purified turpentine, thyme, and Australian tea tree oil as well as the constituent of menthol showed antimicrobial and antiplasmid activities against the bacteria tested. From:  Schelz, Z., Molnar, J., & Hohmann, J. (2006). Antimicrobial and antiplasmid activities of essential oils. Fitoterapia, 77(4), 279-285.
• Thyme, mint, and bay showed activity against food poisoning bacteria: Salmonella typhimurium, Staphylococcus aureus and Vibrio parahaemolyticus.  From:  Aktuğ, Ş. E., & Karapinar, M. (1986). Sensitivity of some common food-poisoning bacteria to thyme, mint and bay leaves. International Journal of Food Microbiology, 3(6), 349-354.
• Rosmarinus officinalis, Mentha piperita and Melaleuca alternifolia inhibited Listeria monocytogenes growth.  From:  Sandasi, M., Leonard, C. M., & Viljoen, A. M. (2010). The in vitro antibiofilm activity of selected culinary herbs and medicinal plants against Listeria monocytogenes. Letters in applied microbiology, 50(1), 30-35.
• Peppermint essential oil showed antibacterial action dependant upon concentration, food pH, composition, storage temperature and the type of bacteria.  From:  Tassou, C. C., Drosinos, E. H., & Nychas, G. J. E. (1995). Effects of essential oil from mint (Mentha piperita) on Salmonella enteritidis and Listeria monocytogenes in model food systems at 4 and 10 C. Journal of Applied Bacteriology, 78(6), 593-600.
• Thyme, origanum, clove, and orange essential oils were the most inhibitory against foodborne bacteria and yeasts. Cumin, tea tree, and mint also provided inhibition.  From:  Irkin, R., & Korukluoglu, M. (2009). Growth inhibition of pathogenic bacteria and some yeasts by selected essential oils and survival of L. monocytogenes and C. albicans in apple–carrot juice. Foodborne pathogens and disease, 6(3), 387-394.
• Mentha piperita and Myrtus communis showed antimicrobial activities against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans. From:  Yadegarinia, D., Gachkar, L., Rezaei, M. B., Taghizadeh, M., Astaneh, S. A., & Rasooli, I. (2006). Biochemical activities of Iranian Mentha piperita L. and Myrtus communis L. essential oils. Phytochemistry, 67(12), 1249-1255.
• Thyme, sweet fennel, marjoram, mint, oregano, sage, savory, and thyme showed antibacterial activity against Bacillus species. From:  Özcan, M. M., Sagdıç, O., & Özkan, G. (2006). Inhibitory effects of spice essential oils on the growth of Bacillus species. Journal of medicinal food, 9(3), 418-421.
• Plant oils of 52 species were tested against key bacteria.  Lemongrass, oregano and bay inhibited all organisms, and rosewood, coriander, palmarosa, tea tree, niaouli, peppermint, spearmint, sage and marjoram inhibited all organisms except P. aeruginosa.  Carrot, patchouli, sandalwood and vetiver inhibited Gram-positive bacteria and C. albicans. Myrrh and cypress inhibited only Gram-positive organisms and mandarin oil inhibited only C. albicans.  From:  Hammer, K. A., Carson, C. F., & Riley, T. V. (1999). Antimicrobial activity of essential oils and other plant extracts. Journal of applied microbiology, 86(6), 985-990.
• Essential oils of thyme, peppermint, pennyroyal, caraway, and fennel showed antibacterial activity against S. aureus and E. coli.  From:  Mohsenzadeh, M. (2007). Evaluation of antibacterial activity of selected Iranian essential oils against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli in nutrient broth medium. Pak J Biol Sci, 10(20), 3693-3697.
• Mentha piperita (peppermint), Mentha pulegium (pennyroyal), Mentha spicata (spearmint), Pelargonium graveolens (geranuim), Rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary), Thymus leptobotrys (thyme), Thymus pallidus (thyme), Thymus satureioides (thyme) and Citrus limon (lemon) essential oils of Morrocco  were steam distilled and minimum inhibitory concentrations were assessed against ten bacteria strains (Enterobacter cloacae, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella Typhimurium, Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Enterococcus faecalis, Streptococcus equinus and Streptococcus pyogenes), two yeasts (Candida albicans and Candida glabrata) and two fungi (Aspergillus niger and Penicillium funiculosum). Two thyme species showed the strongest antimicrobial properties while peppermint, spearmint and T. pallidus gave intermediary results.   From:  El Asbahani, A., Jilale, A., Voisin, S. N., Aït Addi, E. H., Casabianca, H., El Mousadik, A., … & Renaud, F. N. (2015). Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of nine essential oils obtained by steam distillation of plants from the Souss-Massa Region (Morocco). Journal of Essential Oil Research, 27(1), 34-44.
• Hyptis atrorubens (bushmint), and its constituents: methyl rosmarinate and rosmarinic acid demonstrated bactericidal power.  From:  Abedini, A., Roumy, V., Mahieux, S., Biabiany, M., Standaert-Vitse, A., Rivière, C., … & Hennebelle, T. (2013). Rosmarinic acid and its methyl ester as antimicrobial components of the hydromethanolic extract of Hyptis atrorubens Poit. (Lamiaceae). Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2013.
• Origanum vulgare (oregano), Thymus vulgaris (thyme), Lavandula angustifolia (lavender), Mentha piperita (peppermint), and Melaleuca alternifolia (tea tree) were tested against 32 erythromycin-resistant streptococci; oregano, thyme, and the carvacrol constituent showed the strongest antimicrobial activity.  From:  Magi, G., Marini, E., & Facinelli, B. (2015). Antimicrobial activity of essential oils and carvacrol, and synergy of carvacrol and erythromycin, against clinical, erythromycin-resistant Group A Streptococci. Frontiers in microbiology, 6, 165.
• Peppermint and spearmint were effective against the proliferation of Helicobacter pylori, Salmonella enteritidis, Escherichia coli O157:H7, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and methicillin sensitive Staphylococccus aureus (MSSA). From:  Imai, H., Osawa, K., Yasuda, H., Hamashima, H., Arai, T., & Sasatsu, M. (2000). Inhibition by the essential oils of peppermint and spearmint of the growth of pathogenic bacteria. Microbios, 106, 31-39.
• Citrus aurantium (bergamot), C. limon (lemon), Lavandula angustifolia (lavender), Matricaria chamomilla (chamomile), Mentha piperita (peppermint), M. spicata (spearmint), Ocimum basilicum (basil), Origanum vulgare(oregano), Thymus vulgaris (thyme), and Salvia officinalis (sage) along with their constituents were tested against human pathogenic bacteria.  The highest and broadest activity was shown by O. vulgare oil and carvacrol had the highest antibacterial activity among the tested constituents. Other significant constituents included: camphor, 1,8-cineole, linalool, linalyl acetate, limonene, menthol, a-pinene, b-pinene, and thymol.  From:  Soković, M., Glamočlija, J., Marin, P. D., Brkić, D., & van Griensven, L. J. (2010). Antibacterial effects of the essential oils of commonly consumed medicinal herbs using an in vitro model. Molecules, 15(11), 7532-7546.
• Hospice patients with terminal cancer had improved oral health with using a mixture including geranium, lavender, tea tree, and peppermint.  From:  Kang, H. Y., Na, S. S., & Kim, Y. K. (2010). Effects of Oral Care with Essential Oil on Improvement in Oral Health Status of Hospice Patients. Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing, 40(4)
• Aegle, ageratum, citronella, eucalyptus, geranium, lemongrass, orange, palmarosa, patchouli and peppermint, were tested for antibacterial activity against 22 bacteria, and twelve fungi. From:  Pattnaik, S., Subramanyam, V. R., & Kole, C. (1995). Antibacterial and antifungal activity of ten essential oils in vitro. Microbios, 86(349), 237-246.
• An essential oil solution with tea tree, peppermint, and lemon reduced bad breath in patients.  From:  Hur, M. H., Park, J., Maddock‐Jennings, W., Kim, D. O., & Lee, M. S. (2007). Reduction of mouth malodour and volatile sulphur compounds in intensive care patients using an essential oil mouthwash. Phytotherapy Research, 21(7), 641-643.

ANTIVIRAL

• Prunella, peppermint, rosemary and thyme extracts provided antiviral activity against Herpes 1 in vitro.  From:  Reichling, J., Nolkemper, S., Stintzing, F. C., & Schnitzler, P. (2008). Impact of ethanolic lamiaceae extracts on herpesvirus infectivity in cell culture. Forschende Komplementärmedizin/Research in Complementary Medicine, 15(6), 313-320.
• Extracts from lemon balm, peppermint, prunella, rosemary, sage, and thyme showed action against Herpes types 1 and 2.  From:  Nolkemper, S., Reichling, J., Stintzing, F. C., Carle, R., & Schnitzler, P. (2006). Antiviral effect of aqueous extracts from species of the Lamiaceae family against Herpes simplex virus type 1 and type 2 in vitro. Planta medica, 72(15), 1378-1382.
• A peppermint oil might be an effective topical virucidal agent in recurrent herpes infection.  From:  Schuhmacher, A., Reichling, J., & Schnitzler, P. (2003). Virucidal effect of peppermint oil on the enveloped viruses herpes simplex virus type 1 and type 2 in vitro. Phytomedicine, 10(6), 504-510.
• Melissa officinalis, grapefruit mint, peppermint, basil, perilla, prunella, and winter savory showed potent anti-HIV-1 activity. From:  Yamasaki, K., Nakano, M., Kawahata, T., MORI, H., OTAKE, T., UEDA, N., … & MURATA, H. (1998). Anti-HIV-1 activity of herbs in Labiatae. Biological and Pharmaceutical Bulletin, 21(8), 829-833.
• Essential oils from Columbia of the Labiatae family showed the most anti-herpetic activity, with Lepechinia salvifolia (pitchersage), Hyptis mutabilis (bushmint), Lepechinia vulcanicola (pitchersage), Mintostachys mollis (mint) and Ocimum campechianum (basil) inhibiting activity during early stages of the herpes infection.  From:  Brand, Y. M., Roa-Linares, V. C., Betancur-Galvis, L. A., Durán-García, D. C., & Stashenko, E. (2016). Antiviral activity of Colombian Labiatae and Verbenaceae family essential oils and monoterpenes on Human Herpes viruses. Journal of Essential Oil Research, 28(2), 130-137.
• Tea tree, lavender, mint, thyme, and juniper showed varying degrees of in-vitro action against S. aureus.  From:  Nelson, R. R. (1997). In-vitro activities of five plant essential oils against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium. Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, 40(2), 305-306.
• Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis), peppermint (Mentha × piperita), and sage (Salvia officinalis) exhibited a high and concentration-dependent activity against the HIV-1 infection.  From:  Geuenich, S., Goffinet, C., Venzke, S., Nolkemper, S., Baumann, I., Plinkert, P., … & Keppler, O. T. (2008). Aqueous extracts from peppermint, sage and lemon balm leaves display potent anti-HIV-1 activity by increasing the virion density. Retrovirology, 5(1), 1.

ANTIFUNGAL

• Rats were cured completely of the dermal fungi tested with peppermint oil.  From:  Soković, M. D., Glamočlija, J., Marin, P. D., Brkić, D. D., Vukojević, J., Jovanović, D., … & Kataranovski, D. (2006). Antifungal Activity of the Essential Oil of Mentha. x piperita. Pharmaceutical biology, 44(7), 511-515.
• Camphor, menthol, thymol and oil of Eucalyptus citriodora were the most efficacious components against the tested toe fungus organisms in vitro.  From:  Ramsewak, R. S., Nair, M. G., Stommel, M., & Selanders, L. (2003). In vitro antagonistic activity of monoterpenes and their mixtures against toe nail fungus pathogens. Phytotherapy Research, 17(4), 376-379
• Mint showed in-vitro antifungal activity.  From:  Pandey, A. K. (2003). Composition and in-vitro antifungal activity of the essential oil of menthol mint (Mentha arvensis L.) growing in central India. Indian drugs, 40(2), 126-128.
• Essential oils of cinnamon, peppermint, basil, origanum, clove, and thyme caused a total inhibition of fungal development on maize kernels without a phytotoxic effect.  From:  Montes-Belmont, R., & Carvajal, M. (1998). Control of Aspergillus flavus in maize with plant essential oils and their components. Journal of Food Protection®, 61(5), 616-619.
• The high fungistatic effects of clove and peppermint oils may be useful for treating skin fungi.  From:  El-Naghy, M. A., Maghazy, S. N., Fadl-Allah, E. M., & El-Gendy, Z. K. (1992). Fungistatic action of natural oils and fatty acids on dermatophytic and saprophytic fungi. Zentralblatt für Mikrobiologie, 147(3), 214-220.
• In a study of 30 different vaginal isolated strains of C. albicans to twelve essential oils, compared to the three of the mainly used drugs (clotrimazole, fluconazole, itraconazole), mint, basil, lavender, tea tree oil, winter savory and oregano essential oils inhibited both the growth and the activity of C. albicans more efficiently than clotrimazole.  From:  Bona, E., Cantamessa, S., Pavan, M., Novello, G., Massa, N., Rocchetti, A., … & Gamalero, E. (2016). Sensitivity of Candida albicans to essential oils: are they an alternative to antifungal agents? Journal of Applied Microbiology.
• Thirty plant oils were tested, and eucalyptus, peppermint, ginger grass and clove showed strong antifungal activity against candida albicans.  From:  Agarwal, V., Lal, P., & Pruthi, V. (2008). Prevention of Candida albicans biofilm by plant oils. Mycopathologia, 165(1), 13-19.
• Of 35 medicinal plants tested, the essential oils from 13 plants showed anti-Candida activity: Aloysia triphylla (lemon verbena), Anthemis nobilis (Roman chamomile), Cymbopogon martini (palmarosa), Cymbopogon winterianus (lemongrass), Cyperus articulatus, Cyperus rotundus, Lippia alba, Mentha arvensis, Mikania glomerata, Mentha piperita, Mentha sp., Stachys byzantina, and Solidago chilensis. From: Duarte, M. C. T., Figueira, G. M., Sartoratto, A., Rehder, V. L. G., & Delarmelina, C. (2005). Anti-Candida activity of Brazilian medicinal plants. Journal of ethnopharmacology, 97(2), 305-311.
• Sixteen essential oils and forty-two pure constituents were tested against Candida albicans. Origanum vulgare, Satureja montana, Mentha piperita, Cinnamomum verum, and Cymbopogon flexuosus along with the pure constituents (by family) of, β-phellandrene, carvacrol, 1-decanol, and trans-cynnamaldehyde.  From:  Tampieri, M. P., Galuppi, R., Macchioni, F., Carelle, M. S., Falcioni, L., Cioni, P. L., & Morelli, I. (2005). The inhibition of Candida albicans by selected essential oils and their major components. Mycopathologia, 159(3), 339-345.
• Oregano and mint were antifungal against Aspergillus ochraceus.  From:  Basilico, M. Z., & Basilico, J. C. (1999). Inhibitory effects of some spice essential oils on Aspergillus ochraceus NRRL 3174 growth and ochratoxin A production. Letters in Applied Microbiology, 29(4), 238-241.
• Mentha piperita and Myrtus communis showed antimicrobial activities against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans. From:  Yadegarinia, D., Gachkar, L., Rezaei, M. B., Taghizadeh, M., Astaneh, S. A., & Rasooli, I. (2006). Biochemical activities of Iranian Mentha piperita L. and Myrtus communis L. essential oils. Phytochemistry, 67(12), 1249-1255.
• Oregano, thyme, cinnamon bark, lemongrass, clove, palmarose, peppermint, lavender, geranium, Bourbon, and tea tree reduced fungus in heated footbath water.  From:  Inouye, S., Uchida, K., Nishiyama, Y., Hasumi, Y., Yamaguchi, H., & Abe, S. (2007). Combined effect of heat, essential oils and salt on the fungicidal activity against Trichophyton mentagrophytes in foot bath. Nippon Ishinkin Gakkai Zasshi, 48(1), 27-36.
• Peppermint oil demonstrated antifungal activity.  From:  Saharkhiz, M. J., Motamedi, M., Zomorodian, K., Pakshir, K., Miri, R., & Hemyari, K. (2012). Chemical composition, antifungal and antibiofilm activities of the essential oil of Mentha piperita L. ISRN pharmaceutics, 2012.