View source for Intoxicating Mint

<div>This bushy mint is native to the central Asian</div>
<div>steppes of Turkistan and Uzbekistan. It is gathered</div>
<div>in autumn and hung on the rafters to dry over the</div>
<div>winter. The leaves are used to make a tea that is</div>
<div>sweetened with honey and induces a mild state of</div>
<div>euphoria, although it also can be used as a sedative</div>
<div>(D. McKenna 1995, 103*). In Russian folk medicine</div>
<div>and phytotherapy, the plant is also used to</div>
<div>treat allergies and skin diseases and to promote</div>
<div>blood coagulation (Schultes and Hofmann 1992,</div>
<div>47*).</div>
<div>The dried material (leaves) contains up to 17%</div>
<div>lagochiline, a diterpene alkaloid (the average is &nbsp;around 30/0; Schultes 1970,41*; Tyler 1966, 287*).</div>
<div>Numerous studies are available in the Russian</div>
<div>literature. The plant is, or at least was, listed as a</div>
<div>natural tranquilizer in the Russian pharmacopoeia</div>
<div>(D. McKenna 1995, 103*; Scholz and Eigner 1983,</div>
<div>78*).</div>

[[Category:Ethnobotanical]]