The claim that a cup of herbal tea can shift hormone levels sounds like something from a wellness blog, not a clinical trial. Spearmint is one of the few plant-based options where the claim has actually been tested in people through randomized trials, and the data is specific enough to discuss clearly.
Here is a review of the clinical evidence, the mechanism researchers have proposed, and what two small trials have not answered about spearmint for hormonal balance in women with high androgens.
Androgens in Women: A Brief Orientation
Testosterone, dihydrotestosterone (DHT), and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) are produced in women by both the ovaries and the adrenal glands. They matter. They support bone density, muscle, and libido across your reproductive years and beyond. The clinical concern arises when androgens exceed the typical range for women - and can produce excess facial or body hair (hirsutism), acne, and irregular periods.
The most common clinical context for this pattern is polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). The World Health Organization estimates PCOS affects 8 to 13 percent of reproductive-age women globally, and elevated androgens are a diagnostic criterion under most classification systems. The spearmint research has been done in women with PCOS and in women with idiopathic hirsutism - excess facial hair with no clear cause.
The First Signal: A 2007 Pilot Study
Researchers in Turkey recruited 21 women with hirsutism - 12 with PCOS and 9 with idiopathic hirsutism - and asked them to drink spearmint tea twice daily for five days during the follicular phase of their menstrual cycle. No other intervention was introduced.
Free testosterone dropped significantly after five days. Luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), and estradiol all rose. Total testosterone and DHEA-S showed no significant change. The authors concluded that spearmint tea appears to have anti-androgenic properties and may represent an alternative for women with mild hirsutism who prefer not to pursue pharmacological treatment.
There are good reasons to be careful about this finding. Twenty-one people is too small to apply to everyone. Five days is not long enough to see if the hormone change lasts or shows up in hair density - which takes months to change, not days. The study also had no placebo group, making it hard to tell if spearmint itself worked or if people improved just from drinking warm tea twice daily.
The Randomized Controlled Trial
A stronger test came in 2010 when Grant and colleagues published a randomized controlled trial in Phytotherapy Research. Forty-two women with PCOS were randomly assigned to drink either spearmint herbal tea or chamomile tea twice daily for 30 days. Chamomile was a good choice: it let researchers account for the simple effect of drinking warm tea while measuring spearmint's specific effects.
By the end, women drinking spearmint showed bigger drops in free testosterone than women drinking chamomile. Hirsutism scores also improved in the spearmint group. The trial found that spearmint herbal tea has significant anti-androgen effects in PCOS and may have potential as an alternative or adjunct to pharmaceutical anti-androgens in mild cases.
The dose used in both studies was two cups of spearmint tea daily, prepared by steeping dried spearmint leaves in hot water. Neither trial used a concentrated extract, a capsule, or an essential oil. The preparation was simple - and that matters when you're comparing the research to supplements on the market now.
What the Mechanism Research Suggests
Spearmint (Mentha spicata) contains phenolic compounds including rosmarinic acid and several flavonoids. Plant phenolics can interact with how the body makes and responds to androgens in lab tests, and spearmint appears to have this effect.
Animal data is interesting, even if it's not quite confirmation. A study using spearmint essential oil in a rat model of PCOS found improvements in ovarian histology and hormone profiles compared to untreated controls. Translating results from rats to humans requires caution - the model, dose, and form all differ - but this supports the idea that spearmint could affect human hormones.
No human study has confirmed exactly how spearmint lowers free testosterone. The best guess is that it blocks androgen production or how they work, but that's still just a guess.
What a Broader Review Adds
A 2022 systematic review and meta-analysis published in Nutrients examined the effects of various teas on hormone levels and metabolic markers in women with PCOS. Drinking tea was linked to lower androgen markers, though the trials used different teas, different amounts, and different lengths. Spearmint had the strongest evidence for lowering androgens.
A 2024 review concluded that spearmint shows promise in early trials, but there's not enough evidence to use it alone as a treatment. The authors said we need bigger, longer studies using standardized spearmint.
Where the Evidence Falls Short
Two trials total - one small pilot and one randomized trial - involving 63 women, lasting five and thirty days. That is the full human clinical picture as of this writing. Several questions remain unanswered:
- Whether the hormone reduction persists beyond 30 days, or whether the body adapts over a longer period
- Whether the effect is present only in women with clinically elevated androgens, or whether it generalizes to women with typical hormone levels
- What dose actually works - whether one cup differs from two, and how steeping time and leaf amount matter
- Whether the form of preparation (tea versus concentrated extract versus capsule) changes the magnitude of any hormonal effect
- How spearmint stacks up against regular drugs for high androgens
These aren't criticisms - they're what the research points to next.
Dose, Form, and What to Watch for on a Label
The studies used plain spearmint tea - dried leaves in hot water, two cups daily. If you're comparing a supplement to this research, the form really matters. Spearmint extracts haven't been tested in published trials in women with PCOS or hirsutism. A concentrated extract is not the same as tea, and the research doesn't cover capsules.
Spearmint essential oil from animal studies is different - it's very concentrated and shouldn't be swallowed without a doctor. It was not tested in humans, and it's not the same thing.
How a supplement is made and delivered affects how much your body actually gets - we explain this more in our piece on supplement absorption. Understanding what you actually get from a supplement is worth it before you buy.
An Honest Summary
In two small trials, spearmint tea at two cups a day lowered free testosterone in women with PCOS and hirsutism. The 2010 trial is stronger - it used a real comparison group and lasted 30 days. The finding is worth discussing with a doctor and studying more with bigger groups and longer trials.
But it's not a substitute for seeing a doctor about high androgens. PCOS is complex and needs proper diagnosis and a plan made just for you. Spearmint tea might be a safe, cheap addition to your treatment plan - but talk to your doctor about what's right for you.
Check out the Ayurnomics Hormonal Balance collection for supplements studied in women's hormone health, or go back to The Journal for more science-based reading.
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