Can Spearmint Tea Clear Up Acne? I Drank it Every Day for a Month to Find Out

Social media these days is so full of skincare “hacks” and trends, it’s impossible to keep up with all of them. It’s even harder to try them all, which is actually a good thing because some of them are just wild. #snailmucus

Through all of it, one that caught my eye in particular is spearmint tea. It’s easy to obtain, affordable, yummy, and has been shown to positively impact people who suffer from acne. So, I decided to try it for 30 days and see how it stacks up against my decades-long acne.

Can Spearmint Tea Clear Up Acne?

Treating acne is very individualized, which is why even if something works for so many others, there are still so many of us struggling no matter what we try.

While there is little scientific research analyzing spearmint tea’s ability to treat acne, the research that is out there is promising.

A 2015 study by the American Academy of Dermatology found that drinking two cups of organic spearmint tea daily reduced inflammatory acne lesions by 25% after one month, and by 51% after three months.

When compared with 100mg of Minocycline, a prescription antibiotic often prescribed to treat acne, taken once daily, after three months of use, the number of acne lesions was reduced by 52%. However, 20% of the patients experienced side effects while taking Minocycline, whereas spearmint tea induced no side effects.

As far as I can tell, spearmint tea either works to help heal acne or it doesn’t, and it’s largely dependent on your type of acne and what’s causing it. Spearmint tea doesn’t seem to make acne worse, though, so there’s that.

How Spearmint Tea Helps Fight Acne

Some forms of acne are caused by bacteria, specifically Propionibacterium acnes, and is highly inflammatory, which is why antibiotics like minocycline and doxycycline are so commonly prescribed to treat acne. However, long-term use of antibiotics can cause antibiotic resistance, among many other severe side effects.

Cue spearmint tea.

Spearmint is rich in antioxidants and has anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory compounds (the most of any mint), which makes it helpful in treating inflammatory acne.

Spearmint has also been shown to have anti-androgen effects, like spironolactone when it’s used to treat acne.

Androgens are sex hormones, testosterone being the primary androgen. They play a significant role in sebum (oil) production. Too much testosterone can lead to excess sebum production, which is a major contributing factor to acne. Excess sebum causes oily skin and clogged pores, leading to acne breakouts.

A randomized controlled trial studied the effects spearmint tea has on women with PCOS. It concluded that drinking spearmint tea twice a day every day resulted in a reduction in free and total testosterone levels, proving it to have anti-androgen effects and thus reducing sebum production.

Benefits of Spearmint Tea

• Anti-bacterial (kills bacteria)
• Anti-inflammatory
• Rich in antioxidants (fights free radical damage)

Aside from being a cozy warm cup of tea with a relaxing aroma, drinking spearmint tea to help combat acne poses fewer side effects than the alternative prescription antibiotics and topicals. It is far less likely to cause side effects compared to anti-androgen medications and antibiotics like spironolactone, minocycline, doxycycline, and the like.

Is Spearmint Tea Safe to Drink Every Day?

There are some mixed reviews on whether drinking spearmint tea every day is safe or not. As with anything, I think it really comes down to the individual.

When I was doing research into this, I read some concerning reviews about how drinking spearmint tea caused hormonal issues for some women. To be safe, I asked my Naturopath if it was safe for me to drink daily, and for me personally, she said it was fine as long as I wasn’t experiencing any negative side effects.

I was most concerned about my menstrual cycle being thrown off, but I decided to go ahead with this 30-day trial of drinking spearmint tea every day. Luckily, I did not notice any changes to my cycle or any other negative side effects.

Who should not drink spearmint tea

One thing to note is that because spearmint has been shown to lower androgens, it may not be ideal for men to consume long-term. As always, regardless of your gender, please speak with your healthcare professional before consuming spearmint tea to see how it may impact your health.

Here’s What Happened When I Drank Spearmint Tea Every Day for 30 Days

To put it to the test, I drank one glass (approximately 16 ounces) of Traditional Medicinals Spearmint Tea every day for 30 days to see if it would help clear up my skin.

For the test, I kept my diet the same. I ate gluten, dairy, corn, soy, rice, oats, eggs, refined sugar, some junk food, granola bars, and ate out on occasion. No foods were off-limits, but I didn’t just eat the not-so-healthy stuff. I also drink at least 64 ounces of water a day, but it usually ended up being closer to 90 ounces.

I took several supplements daily and continued taking them during this trial as well:

• Vitamin D + K2
• B-Complex
• Vitamin C
• Ultimate Omega
• Selenium
• L-theanine
• Iron
• Probiotic
• Cortisol Manager

Also important to note: I still took hot showers, because January, but my face wasn’t in the water that long except to rinse it off after cleansing.

I did not change any products or steps in my skincare routine during this time, which is shown below.

Morning Skincare Routine

• Rinse with warm water
• Apply Image Skincare VITAL C Hydrating Anti-Aging Serum
• Apply Image Skincare VITAL C Hydrating Intense Moisturizer

Evening Skincare Routine

• Cleanse with Image Skincare VITAL C Hydrating Facial Cleanser
• Exfoliate with Young Living Mint Satin Facial Scrub (2-3x/week)
• Apply VITAL C Hydrating Anti-Aging Serum (5 nights/week)
• Apply Osea Seaglow Overnight Serum AHA Treatment (the other 2 nights/week)
• Apply Image Skincare VITAL C Hydrating Repair Crème

I tried to keep my normal routines and habits as consistent as I could to make the results as conclusive as possible.

Spearmint Tea for Acne Before and After

I took pictures the day I started this spearmint tea challenge and then again on day 30. These are my results.

Before:

This is my skin on day 1 of drinking spearmint tea every day for 30 days. Not the best lighting, but you can see the texture, especially on my forehead, as well as some scarring around my chin.

The side profile pictures show more of the scarring and little clogged pores I have everywhere. And sorry about the closeup of my chin, but that’s what it actually looks like. That’s actually what my whole face looks like up close and personal. :/

My main skincare concerns are:

• Very oily skin
• Rough, bumpy texture all over
• Dead skin buildup
• Large pores
• Sebum plugs
• Inflammatory acne and acne caused from dead skin buildup
• Acne scars and hyperpigmentation
• Dull, uneven skin tone

My acne has really improved over the last few years, but I still struggle with all of the above. Not nearly to the degree I used to, but the acne is still very prevalent and I just want it gone.

Week 1:

Within the first week, I noticed my skin looking a bit more even in color. Less red, more glowy almost. It looked like some of the scarring on my cheeks and chin started to fade, which is probably why it looked more even.

It was hard to say if my skin was less oily, but it did start to feel a little less dry around day 7 in the evening. I also noticed the inflammatory acne on my back (red, painful pimples) were mostly gone.

Week 2:

After the first week, I didn’t notice much of a difference in any of my skin concerns. I did have a breakout on my left cheek, which seems to happen pretty regularly, but it cleared within a few days. The spearmint may have helped it heal faster, but it’s honestly hard to say.

Week 3:

The week leading up to my period is always influential on how my skin looks. I had a few breakouts, especially on my chin. They seemed like pretty standard breakouts, not really any less severe than usual. Again, I didn’t really notice any additional improvements by week 3.

Week 4:

By week 4, I was feeling pretty bummed that I didn’t see better results. Aside from the initial appearance of more even skin tone and potential glow, there wasn’t a noticeable change in my acne and general skin concerns.

Comparing the before and after (even though the lighting is different), I do feel like I see a slight difference in the full face shot, mostly in my skin looking a little less dull. But in the close-ups, it’s pretty apparent the clogged pores, dead skin buildup, and even the breakouts aren’t any better.

A few things to note:

1. The studies above mention drinking 2 cups of spearmint tea every day, but they fail to specify if it’s 16 ounces total, or drinking a mug of spearmint tea two times a day. I chose to drink 1 mug that was approximately 16 ounces once a day. Perhaps drinking twice as much in one day would yield better results? It’s hard to say.
2. The studies also indicate that spearmint tea’s main benefit is in lowering androgens, which lowers testosterone and reduces sebum production. I don’t suffer from hormonal acne anymore due to other changes I have made over the years, so perhaps that’s why I didn’t see results. The type of acne I have (more inflammatory and just caused by dead skin buildup) isn’t necessarily the type of acne spearmint tea is supposed to help (hormonal, cystic acne).
3. Looking at those pictures, it’s hard to tell I have acne, but I do, especially on my cheeks and corner of my forehead. And really clogged pores. This whole trial has made me realize that I no longer have cystic hormonal acne, or fungal acne, and I think my biggest skin concern these days is actually combatting the dry, dead skin that keeps clogging my pores and hopefully *that* will finally give me clear, glowing skin. So it’s no wonder this didn’t particularly help me.

Regardless, everyone’s body and everybody’s acne are different, so my results may be totally different from yours.

As long as it’s safe for you to consume, I think it’s worth doing a trial of your own where you drink spearmint tea every day for 1, 2, 3 or more months and maybe even drink it twice a day instead of just once like me. 😊