Mint (candy) facts for kids

Polo mints

Mint is a flavor frequently used in candy, chewing gum and ice cream. Famous brands of mints include Polos (made by Rowntrees, then Nestlé), Altoids, Cadburys After Dinner Mints, Fisherman's Friends, Trebor extra strong mints, Menthos and Wrigleys spearmint gum.

Types

Hard

Package for mints from early 20th century, Mexico from the permanent collection of the Museo del Objeto del Objeto.

Hard mints are hard candies or boiled sweets flavored with mint. Examples of hard mints include starlight mints, also known as pinwheel mints, white, circular, with red or green rays emitting from the middle; candy canes; humbugs; and brand name mints such as Altoids and Ice Breakers.

In addition to breath freshening, mints that actually contain peppermint oil or extract have been popular in helping with digestion after a meal. Peppermint has muscle relaxant properties and therefore may relax the smooth muscles of the GI tract, allowing for easier passage of food contents. However, since the lower esophageal sphincter may be relaxed, peppermint may aggravate "heartburn" or GERD.

Peppermint also seems to be effective in relieving intestinal gas and indigestion. According to the German Commission E Monograph, real peppermint oil or extract has been used for cramp-like complaints in the gastrointestinal tract. This can help to explain why mints with real peppermint oil, in addition to peppermint tea, have been popular for and are frequently used after meals to help with digestion as well as to help freshen the breath.

Soft

Soft mints, such as "dinner mints" and "butter mints", are soft candies, often with a higher butter content, that dissolve more readily inside one's mouth.

Scotch

A "scotch mint" or "pan drop" is a white round candy with a hard shell but fairly soft chewy middle, popular in Great Britain and other Commonwealth nations and in Europe. Scotch mints were traditionally spheroids, more recently moving toward a larger, discoid shape. The name "scotch mint" comes from the specific mint plant Mentha × gracilis. The company Perfetti Van Melle markets scotch mints in a variety of flavours as Mentos candies.

Images for kids

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  Butter mints

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  Bêtise (French for "blunder") is a mint-flavored candy made in Cambrai, France.

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  Opened package of Howard's Mint candies

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  Tic Tac

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  Mints provided to guests at a funeral home in the United States.