Lamiaceae plants are a group of plants that belong to the Lamiaceae or mint family. They have a characteristic “minty” taste and smell that results from the presence of an essential oil contained within the plant tissues. Studies have investigated the antioxidant properties of a number of planets from the Lamicaea family of plants including dittany, lemon balm, mint, sage, sideritis and sweet marjoram. The results of the study showed that all plant extracts had significant antioxidant capacity, but that sweet marjoram, sage and dittany extracts were found to have a very high capacity to retard lipid oxidation experimentally. These herbs were analysed and found to be rich in phenolic compounds such as hydroxycinnamic acids and flavonoids. All herbal extracts contained both rosmarinic acid and caffeic acid with the exception of mint and sideritis. Many of the antioxidants in the extracts were shown to be water soluble, and this suggests that they may be readily absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract of mammals.
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