# Why do mints make water taste really cold? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 11, 1999, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mints-make-water-taste-really-cold/2707 "1999-08-11T20:56:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 1999, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mints-make-water-taste-really-cold/2707/21 "1999-08-21T14:55:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Nick, when I have used Altoids for what you are implying, it did not really have what I > would call a cooling effect. It was closer to putting ben-gay on that area. When I get a cold and am all congested, I get myself a tin of Altoids and pop 'em constantly. They always clear my sinuses (shouldn’t the plural of ‘sinus’ be sinii? 😉 and allow me to breathe through my nose again…Can anyone explain why mints have this decongestant effect? If you’ve never tried this, you should, its much better then Sudafed or Contac which have in the past decongested me to the point of pain when my sinuses completely dry up. ---
**Author:** ![dougie\_monty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 1999, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mints-make-water-taste-really-cold/2707/22 "1999-08-21T23:01:00Z")
Put Ben-Gay in my \* mouth?? \* You couldn’t get me to do that at \* \*\* gunpoint!!! \* \*\* ---
**Author:** ![typertrphy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/858c86/32.png) [@typertrphy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/typertrphy)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 1999, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mints-make-water-taste-really-cold/2707/23 "1999-08-21T23:37:00Z")
Of course you would NOT put Ben-Gay in your mouth, but then- you wouldn’t cram Altoids up your bum either 🙂 Typer ---
**Author:** ![typertrphy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/858c86/32.png) [@typertrphy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/typertrphy)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 1999, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mints-make-water-taste-really-cold/2707/24 "1999-08-21T23:38:00Z")
Look. It was the logical progression in thought. However, I apologize for it…a bit too crude, even if we all thought it anyway \…sorry, all. Typer ---
**Author:** ![ishimitangas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/5e9695/32.png) [@ishimitangas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ishimitangas)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 1999, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mints-make-water-taste-really-cold/2707/25 "1999-08-22T00:11:00Z")
My favorite mints are St. Claire’s Truly Organic Peppermints! “Refreshingly Cool, Deliciously Potent!” They come from Boulder, Colorado and are made with pure peppermint oil. The peppermint taste is pure and very strong. Suggestion: try eating about 7 of these at once and then drinking a glass of ice water. You will think you have died and gone to one of the cold hells. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 1999, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mints-make-water-taste-really-cold/2707/26 "1999-08-22T20:52:00Z")
Mints do not produce a cool sensation by any evaporative qualities of the aromatic oils; otherwise, this effect could be reproduced by placing a thermometer into a sealed vial of mint oil. Rather, it is a _selective_ numbing of the heat receptors in the mouth, producing an innaccurate perception of the “absence of heat”. * * * TT “Believe those who seek the truth. Doubt those who find it.” --Andre Gide [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mints-make-water-taste-really-cold/2707.md?page=1)