Catnip leaves were chewed to relieve toothache and as crazy as this sounds today, smoked to treat bronchitis and asthma.
Lemon catmint tea taken regularly may slow the buildup of cataracts according to some sources, though it will not prevent them.
It is also a mild tranquilizer. Because of its tranquilizing properties, it sometimes used shortly before bedtime as an aid to sleep.
Its pleasant, lemon-minty vapors were considered a cold and cough remedy, relieving chest congestion and loosening phlegm. The tea is a valuable drink in every case of fever, because of its action in inducing sleep and producing perspiration without increasing the heat of the system.
Parents used to give weak catnip tea to colicky infants and even hang a small bag of the herb around their necks so they could inhale its soothing vapors.
Lemon catmint (Nepeta cataria ‘Citriodora’) drink
