AIS shopCareers

What is it?

  • The use of menthol, when co-ingested with or incorporated into a gel or cold/iced-slurry beverage, may be useful during exercise to facilitate a perception of feeling ‘cool’.
  • Menthol mimics the cold stimulation of thermosensitive neurons (Transient receptor potential melastatin 8; TRPM-8) when applied to mucous membranes.1
    • The sensory impact of L-menthol is directly related to the thickness of the skin, density of afferents, concentration of menthol, repetition and length of time of exposure.2
  • The internal application of menthol (via mouth rinse or ingestion) is potentially ergogenic when performing endurance activities (>2.5 min) in hot environments by ameliorating athlete’s perception of heat stress by reliably improving thermal sensation, and to a lesser extent, thermal comfort and ratings of perceived exertion in the absence of any change in body (i.e., core and skin) temperature.3
    • Further downstream improvements of internal menthol application may include improvements in nasal patency4, alterations in blood flow5 and attenuation of thirst.4

Back to top