Best Tea for PCOS: Spearmint, Cinnamon, Green Tea and 4 More Ranked by Evidence
The best teas for PCOS are spearmint for excess androgens, cinnamon for insulin resistance and irregular cycles, and green tea for the weight and insulin side of the condition. Each has at least one randomised trial in women who actually have polycystic ovary syndrome, which is rarer than you would think from the number of 'hormone balance' blends on sale. Spearmint lowered free testosterone within 30 days in a 42-woman trial, cinnamon improved insulin sensitivity in 8 weeks and nearly doubled the number of periods over 6 months, and green tea reduced weight, insulin and free testosterone over 12 weeks in overweight women with PCOS.
PCOS is three problems wearing one name: too much androgen (acne, hair growth, hair thinning), insulin resistance (weight gain around the middle, cravings, prediabetes risk), and ovulation that happens rarely or not at all (irregular periods, fertility trouble). No tea touches all three, so this guide tells you which lever each one pulls, and it is honest that the trial doses were often capsules of powder rather than cups of tea. A tea plan works best as a layer on top of the things with large evidence: weight loss if you carry extra weight, inositol, metformin, and a combined pill or spironolactone when androgens are the main problem.
See a clinician rather than self-treating if you have gone more than 90 days without a period, if you are trying to conceive and have not within 12 months (6 if over 35), if you have rapidly worsening hair growth or a deepening voice (which can signal something other than PCOS), or if you have PCOS with symptoms of depression or an eating disorder. Those are common with PCOS and are treatable.
Quick answer
- Spearmint tea — 2 cups a day lowered free and total testosterone in a 30-day RCT of 42 women with PCOS; the androgen tea
- Cinnamon tea — improved insulin resistance in 8 weeks and nearly doubled menstrual frequency over 6 months in RCTs (capsule doses)
- Green tea — 12 weeks cut weight, fasting insulin and free testosterone in overweight women with PCOS; mixed in lean women
- Chamomile tea — lowered total testosterone over 3 months in an 80-woman Iranian trial; also the bedtime cup
- Licorice tea — an anti-androgen with blood pressure strings attached; short courses only
- Ginger tea — small metabolic gains and real evidence for period pain; caffeine-free daily option
The 7 best teas for pcos
Ranked by the strength of human evidence. Strong = multiple trials or a meta-analysis. Moderate = a few small trials. Preliminary = early, traditional or animal data.
In a 30-day randomised trial, 42 women with PCOS and hirsutism drank two cups of spearmint tea or chamomile placebo daily; the spearmint group had significant falls in free and total testosterone and rises in LH and FSH, and reported less hair growth, although the objective hirsutism score had not yet moved. A five-day pilot in 21 women found the same hormone shift. It is the only tea tested directly against PCOS's androgen problem, and the effect is modest and reversible when you stop.
- Key evidence
- Grant 2010 RCT, 42 women with PCOS (Phytother Res); Akdoğan 2007
- How to brew it
- 1 tablespoon (2 g) dried spearmint per 250 ml just-boiled water, covered, 5 to 10 minutes; 2 cups a day, daily, for at least 3 months
- Best for
- Women whose main complaints are acne, facial or body hair and scalp thinning
- Cautions
- It adds to spironolactone, finasteride and anti-androgen pills; tell your prescriber. Not for partners trying to conceive if a man is drinking it, and avoid daily medicinal use in pregnancy. Mint can worsen reflux.
Three randomised trials in women with PCOS point the same way: 333 mg of cinnamon extract three times a day for 8 weeks improved insulin sensitivity in a 15-woman pilot; 1.5 g a day for 6 months increased menstrual cycles from about 2.2 to 3.8 over the period in 45 women; and 1.5 g a day for 12 weeks lowered fasting insulin, HOMA-IR and LDL in 66 women. All three used powder in capsules, so a tea from a stick gives you part of the dose, and Ceylon is the kind to drink daily.
- Key evidence
- Kort and Lobo 2014 RCT, 45 women, 6 months (Am J Obstet Gynecol); Hajimonfarednejad 2018
- How to brew it
- 1 Ceylon cinnamon stick, or 1 level teaspoon of Ceylon powder, simmered in 300 ml water for 10 minutes; 1 to 2 cups a day with meals
- Best for
- Insulin-resistant PCOS: weight around the middle, cravings, irregular or absent periods
- Cautions
- Cassia cinnamon carries enough coumarin to stress the liver at a teaspoon a day; buy Ceylon. Cinnamon adds to metformin and other glucose-lowering drugs, so watch for lows. Avoid medicinal doses in pregnancy.
In a 12-week randomised trial of 60 overweight and obese women with PCOS, green tea tablets twice a day reduced body weight, fasting insulin and free testosterone compared with placebo. An earlier Hong Kong trial of 34 women found no significant hormone change over 3 months, so the benefit appears tied to weight and insulin rather than a direct effect on the ovary. The broader literature on green tea for weight (about 1 to 1.5 kg over 12 weeks) and for insulin sensitivity backs this up.
- Key evidence
- Tehrani 2017 RCT, 60 overweight women with PCOS (J Educ Health Promot)
- How to brew it
- 1 heaped teaspoon (2 g) per 250 ml at 75 to 80°C, 3 minutes; 3 cups a day, morning and early afternoon
- Best for
- Women with PCOS who carry extra weight and want a daytime tea that pulls on insulin and fat
- Cautions
- Reduces iron absorption with meals, which matters if your periods are heavy when they come. Caffeine can worsen sleep and anxiety, both common with PCOS. Avoid green tea extract capsules in large doses because of rare liver injury; brewed tea is fine.
Chamomile was the placebo in the spearmint trial and did not move testosterone in 30 days, but a longer Iranian trial told a different story: 80 women with PCOS took 370 mg of chamomile in capsules three times a day for 3 months and their total testosterone fell significantly compared with placebo, with no change in LH, FSH or lipids. That is one trial using capsules, so it stays Preliminary, but chamomile also improves sleep and anxiety in RCTs, both of which PCOS makes worse.
- Key evidence
- Heidary 2018 RCT, 80 women with PCOS, 3 months (J Res Med Sci)
- How to brew it
- 1 tablespoon (2 g) dried flowers per 250 ml just-boiled water, covered, 10 minutes; 1 to 2 cups, one of them an hour before bed
- Best for
- The evening cup, and women whose PCOS comes with anxiety and poor sleep
- Cautions
- Avoid with ragweed or daisy-family allergy. Chamomile adds to sedatives and may potentiate warfarin at high intakes. Safe in normal food amounts in pregnancy; avoid concentrated doses.
Licorice has a documented anti-androgen effect: 3.5 g a day lowered serum testosterone by about a third in a small study of healthy women, and in 32 women with PCOS the same dose added to spironolactone blunted the drug's blood-pressure-lowering side effects while the combination kept androgens down. The catch is glycyrrhizin, which raises blood pressure and drops potassium with regular use, so licorice is a short-course tool rather than a daily tea.
- Key evidence
- Armanini 2007 PCOS trial (Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol); Armanini 2004
- How to brew it
- 1 teaspoon (2 to 3 g) chopped licorice root simmered in 250 ml water for 10 minutes; 1 cup a day for no more than 4 weeks, then a break
- Best for
- Women on spironolactone who get dizzy or low blood pressure from it, under clinician supervision
- Cautions
- Avoid with high blood pressure, heart or kidney disease, low potassium, diuretics, digoxin or corticosteroids, and in pregnancy, where it is linked to preterm birth. Stop if you get headaches, swelling or palpitations.
No PCOS-specific trial exists for ginger, but two of its proven effects line up with the condition. A 2019 meta-analysis of 14 randomised trials found ginger reduced body weight, waist-to-hip ratio, fasting glucose and insulin resistance in overweight adults at 1 to 3 g a day, and it has some of the best evidence of any herb for period pain, which many women with PCOS get in spades when a period finally arrives. It is the caffeine-free daytime cup on this list.
- Key evidence
- Maharlouei 2019 meta-analysis of 14 RCTs; dysmenorrhoea meta-analyses
- How to brew it
- 5 g sliced fresh ginger simmered in 300 ml water for 10 minutes, or 1 g dried powder steeped 5 minutes; 1 to 2 cups a day
- Best for
- Women avoiding caffeine who want a metabolic tea and relief from painful periods
- Cautions
- Mild antiplatelet effect, so flag it if you take warfarin or daily aspirin. Can lower blood sugar alongside metformin. Heartburn at higher doses.
Peppermint is here because people assume it equals spearmint, and it does not. Its anti-androgen evidence is a rat study in which peppermint tea lowered testosterone and altered ovarian tissue; there is no human PCOS trial. Its genuine strength is the gut: peppermint oil is the best-evidenced herbal treatment for irritable bowel symptoms, which are more common in women with PCOS. Drink it for bloating, not hormones.
- Key evidence
- Akdoğan 2004 rat study; peppermint oil IBS meta-analyses
- How to brew it
- 1 tablespoon (2 g) dried peppermint per 250 ml just-boiled water, covered, 5 to 7 minutes; 1 to 2 cups after meals
- Best for
- Bloating and cramping gut symptoms alongside PCOS, or as a flavour change from spearmint
- Cautions
- Relaxes the lower oesophageal sphincter and can worsen reflux. Avoid large amounts with gallstones. Do not swap it for spearmint if androgens are your target.
How to choose
- Androgen-dominant PCOS (acne, hair, thinning scalp): spearmint two cups a day is the core, with chamomile at night.
- Insulin-resistant PCOS (central weight, cravings, prediabetes): cinnamon with meals and green tea in the morning.
- Irregular or absent periods: cinnamon has the only tea-plant trial showing more cycles, and weight loss of 5% does more than any tea.
- If you are trying to conceive, keep spearmint and licorice for yourself only, check green tea caffeine stays under 200 mg a day, and stop licorice before a transfer or once pregnant.
- If you have high blood pressure, skip licorice; hibiscus is the better caffeine-free cup and lowers pressure.
- Give any plan 3 months, which is the shortest trial duration that showed cycle or hair changes.
What to skip
'Hormone balance' and 'fertility tea' blends
They mix a dozen herbs at unknown doses, often including red clover, dong quai and vitex, which act on oestrogen or prolactin and can be the wrong direction for PCOS. Buy single herbs with trial data and know what you are drinking.
Detox teas for 'resetting' hormones
Laxative teas do not change testosterone, insulin or ovulation. They cause dehydration and electrolyte loss, which is a particular problem if you also take metformin or have an eating disorder history.
Raspberry leaf as a PCOS treatment
It is a traditional late-pregnancy tea with no PCOS or ovulation trial. Harmless, but it will not regulate a cycle.
Safety and when to see a clinician
- Tell your prescriber what you are drinking daily; spearmint and licorice add to spironolactone, cinnamon and green tea add to metformin, and chamomile adds to sedatives.
- Licorice raises blood pressure and lowers potassium with regular use; keep courses to four weeks and avoid it entirely with hypertension, kidney disease or diuretics.
- If you are trying to conceive or pregnant, drop licorice and medicinal-dose spearmint, keep caffeine under 200 mg a day, and use ginger and chamomile freely.
- Buy Ceylon cinnamon for daily tea; cassia's coumarin is a liver concern at the doses the PCOS trials used.
- Depression, anxiety and disordered eating are common with PCOS and screening for them is part of the international guideline; tea is not a treatment for any of them.
- See a clinician if you have had no period for 90 days, bleeding between periods or after sex, or hair and voice changes that progress over months.
What matters as much as the tea
- Losing 5 to 10% of body weight, if you carry extra, restores ovulation in a large share of women and improves every PCOS marker; no tea comes close.
- Myo-inositol at 2 g twice daily improved insulin sensitivity, ovulation and testosterone across meta-analyses of RCTs and is the best-evidenced supplement for PCOS.
- Resistance training two or three times a week improves insulin sensitivity independently of weight loss.
- Metformin, a combined pill or spironolactone, chosen by which problem dominates, have far larger effects on cycles, androgens and hair than any herb; the 2023 international guideline sets out when each is first line.
- Sleep apnoea is common in PCOS and worsens insulin resistance; loud snoring or unrefreshing sleep is worth a sleep study.
Frequently asked questions
Does spearmint tea help PCOS?
It helps the androgen side. Two cups a day lowered free and total testosterone in a 30-day randomised trial of 42 women with PCOS, and women reported less hair growth. It does not fix insulin resistance or make you ovulate, so pair it with cinnamon or green tea if those are your problems, and give it three months.
How much spearmint tea should I drink for PCOS?
Two cups a day, each from about 2 g of dried leaf steeped covered for 5 to 10 minutes. That matches the trials. More has not been tested and will not necessarily help; consistency over months is what matters.
Is cinnamon tea good for PCOS?
Yes, with the caveat that the trials used 1 to 1.5 g of cinnamon powder in capsules. At that dose it improved insulin resistance in 8 to 12 weeks and increased the number of periods over 6 months. A simmered Ceylon stick delivers some of that; adding a level teaspoon of Ceylon powder gets you closer.
Can tea regulate periods with PCOS?
Cinnamon is the only tea plant with a trial showing more frequent cycles, and the effect was from about 2 to nearly 4 periods over 6 months, not a monthly cycle. Weight loss of 5%, inositol and metformin have stronger evidence for restoring ovulation. If you have had no period for three months, see a clinician.
Which tea is best for PCOS weight loss?
Green tea, three cups a day, has the most data: about 1 to 1.5 kg over 12 weeks in general meta-analyses, and reduced weight and insulin in a PCOS-specific trial. Cinnamon and ginger help the insulin side without caffeine. None replaces a calorie deficit.
Is green tea safe with PCOS if I'm trying to conceive?
Yes within normal amounts. Keep caffeine under 200 mg a day (about four cups of green tea or fewer), skip extract capsules, and drink it away from iron-rich meals and prenatal vitamins so the tannins do not block iron absorption.
Can I drink spearmint tea on spironolactone?
Many women do, but tell your prescriber. Both lower androgen activity, so the combination can push the effect further than intended; the common signs are breast tenderness, irregular bleeding or low blood pressure. Your dose may need adjusting rather than the tea stopping.
References
- Grant P. Spearmint herbal tea has significant anti-androgen effects in polycystic ovarian syndrome. A randomized controlled trial. Phytotherapy Research (2010)
- Akdoğan M, Tamer MN, Cüre E, Cüre MC, Köroğlu BK, Delibaş N. Effect of spearmint (Mentha spicata Labiatae) teas on androgen levels in women with hirsutism. Phytotherapy Research (2007)
- Kort DH, Lobo RA. Preliminary evidence that cinnamon improves menstrual cyclicity in women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a randomized controlled trial. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology (2014)
- Wang JG, Anderson RA, Graham GM, et al.. The effect of cinnamon extract on insulin resistance parameters in polycystic ovary syndrome: a pilot study. Fertility and Sterility (2007)
- Hajimonfarednejad M, Nimrouzi M, Heydari M, Zarshenas MM, Raee MJ, Jahromi BN. Insulin resistance improvement by cinnamon powder in polycystic ovary syndrome: A randomized double-blind placebo controlled clinical trial. Phytotherapy Research (2018)
- Tehrani HG, Allahdadian M, Zarre F, Ranjbar H, Allahdadian F. Effect of green tea on metabolic and hormonal aspect of polycystic ovarian syndrome in overweight and obese women suffering from polycystic ovarian syndrome: A clinical trial. Journal of Education and Health Promotion (2017)
- Heidary M, Yazdanpanahi Z, Dabbaghmanesh MH, Parsanezhad ME, Emamghoreishi M, Akbarzadeh M. Effect of chamomile capsule on lipid- and hormonal-related parameters among women of reproductive age with polycystic ovary syndrome. Journal of Research in Medical Sciences (2018)
- Armanini D, Castello R, Scaroni C, et al.. Treatment of polycystic ovary syndrome with spironolactone plus licorice. European Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Reproductive Biology (2007)
- Unfer V, Facchinetti F, Orrù B, Giordani B, Nestler J. Myo-inositol effects in women with PCOS: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Endocrine Connections (2017)
- Teede HJ, Tay CT, Laven J, et al.. Recommendations from the 2023 international evidence-based guideline for the assessment and management of polycystic ovary syndrome. Fertility and Sterility (2023)
- Maharlouei N, Tabrizi R, Lankarani KB, et al.. The effects of ginger intake on weight loss and metabolic profiles among overweight and obese subjects: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition (2019)
- Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine (2024)View source
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Ask about tea for pcosThis guide is educational and is not medical advice. Herbal teas can interact with prescription medicines. Talk with a clinician or pharmacist before relying on any of them, especially if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, have a chronic condition, or take medication.