# Why does mint taste cold? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 9, 2008, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-mint-taste-cold/462739 "2008-09-09T04:44:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![picker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/picker/32/13969_2.png) [@picker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picker)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-mint-taste-cold/462739/1 "2008-09-09T04:44:12Z")
Can’t search right now (I blame **Sampiro** ) but the title says it all. A York Peppermint Patty or an Andes Candy tastes distinctly cool in my mouth. What’s the mechanism behind this? ---
**Author:** ![Busy\_Scissors](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@Busy\_Scissors](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Busy_Scissors)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-mint-taste-cold/462739/2 "2008-09-09T06:56:11Z")
The herb mint contains a molecule called menthol that binds to receptors in the toungue or skin to produce a feeling of cold. Just like the molecule capcaiscin in chillies produces a feeling of hot. Menthol is a natural product that has been used for millenia, so is generally regarded as safe. It’s the ingredient that produces a cold sensation in a lot of candies, chewing gums etc. So the essence of the matter is that the body has receptors that sense temperature and provoke a response in the brain, but it also contains receptors that do the same thing by binding molecules (such as menthol). ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 10:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-mint-taste-cold/462739/3 "2008-09-09T10:20:42Z")
A related question (I assume), which I have asked on here before but without much success, is how menthol acts to clear your nasal passages. It’s used in all sorts of vapour-rubs and lozenges, but why should breathing in menthol fumes clear your airways? ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-mint-taste-cold/462739/4 "2008-09-09T10:30:30Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > A related question (I assume), which I have asked on here before but without much success, is how menthol acts to clear your nasal passages. It’s used in all sorts of vapour-rubs and lozenges, but why should breathing in menthol fumes clear your airways? Or [wasabi](http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=LTrdhqsBZC4), for that matter. (Youtube link.) ---
**Author:** ![Busy\_Scissors](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d78d45/32.png) [@Busy\_Scissors](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Busy_Scissors)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-mint-taste-cold/462739/5 "2008-09-09T11:27:04Z")
Decongestants normally act through vasoconstriction, they shrink the blood vessels in your nose which are responsible for swelling and feeling blocked up. So menthol could be a vasoconstrictor - don’t know if it is or not myself. It is described as such in random google hits. This link [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=MveCDib3DAwC&pg=PA305&lpg=PA305&dq=menthol+as+vasoconstrictor+decongestant&source=web&ots=T6MJvVmoGD&sig=l83ipdd-w-PLfehnGeu7I5NvIz0&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book\_result&resnum=7&ct=result](http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=MveCDib3DAwC&pg=PA305&lpg=PA305&dq=menthol+as+vasoconstrictor+decongestant&source=web&ots=T6MJvVmoGD&sig=l83ipdd-w-PLfehnGeu7I5NvIz0&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=7&ct=result) however, reckons there is no real evidence for menthol acting as a decongestant, it’s more of a subjective ‘feeling of breathing easier’ rather than actually breathing easier:confused: ---
**Author:** ![picker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/picker/32/13969_2.png) [@picker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picker)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2008, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-mint-taste-cold/462739/6 "2008-09-09T22:01:39Z")
Interesting, thanks!