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Herb library · Herb · Nepeta cataria

Catnip

A mint-family garden plant famous for what it does to cats, drunk by people as a tea for sleep, nerves and upset stomach. The tea itself has not been tested in people; the one real trial is of catnip oil as a mosquito repellent.

Traditional use

A European plant naturalized across North America. In 1898 King's American Dispensatory described catnip tea given warm to bring on sweating in fevers and to produce sleep, for colic in children, for nervous headache and restlessness (often with valerian and scullcap), and for delayed periods. Today it is sold as a calming tea, and its oil, rich in nepetalactone, is being developed as an insect repellent.

What studies show

  • Limited

    Mosquito repellent: one field trial in Uganda (2026) tested lotions with 2% or 6% catnip oil on people's skin. Both lowered mosquito landings compared with a plain lotion, and the 6% lotion did about as well as 15% DEET. It is a single study.

  • Insufficient

    Sleep, anxiety and digestion: a search of PubMed found no trials in people of catnip tea or extracts for these uses, so there is no evidence either way.

Be careful of

Cautions

  • ConditionChildren: a 1997 case report describes a toddler whose alertness was depressed after eating a large quantity of catnip, with no other cause found. Keep dried catnip away from small children.
  • NoteBecause the tea has not been studied in people, its side effects and interactions are not known.
  • Ask a clinicianTalk with a clinician or pharmacist before using this if you take prescription medicines, are pregnant or breastfeeding, or are giving it to a child.

From the old books

What herbals and dispensaries of the past printed. History, in their words.

“It is very much liked by cats, preventing, it is said, attacks of fits.”
Harvey Wickes Felter and John Uri Lloyd, King's American Dispensatory (1898), vol. 1, p. 465. See the page of King's American Dispensatory, vol. 1, p. 465 (opens in a new tab) · Read the full passage from King's American Dispensatory, vol. 1, p. 465
“Catnip should be collected each year in June and July, when flowering, and the coarser stems and branches rejected. It deteriorates in value, hence the necessity of gathering it annually.”
Harvey Wickes Felter and John Uri Lloyd, King's American Dispensatory (1898), vol. 1, p. 465. See the page of King's American Dispensatory, vol. 1, p. 465 (opens in a new tab) · Read the full passage from King's American Dispensatory, vol. 1, p. 465

Sources

  1. Evaluating repellence properties of a catnip essential oil-based mosquito repellent using the human landing catch method in Eastern Uganda (Sci Rep, 2026) (opens in a new tab) · NIH · read September 25, 2026
  2. Catnip and the alteration of human consciousness (Vet Hum Toxicol, 1997) (opens in a new tab) · NIH · read September 25, 2026
  3. PubMed search: catnip or Nepeta cataria, clinical trials and case reports (opens in a new tab) · NIH · read September 25, 2026

Reviewed September 25, 2026.