If ever there was a herb created especially for women, it is the Penny Royal, known scientifically as Lysimachia nummularia.

There are two species of the plant — the English Penny Royal and the American Penny Royal. The English Penny Royal is the type that grows in Jamaica and it is from the mint family. Both, however, have the same effect.

Penny Royal has been used extensively by generations of Jamaican women for all manner of female concerns, from maintaining a curvaceous figure of expelling an unwanted foetus.

The plant is said to contain properties similar to oestrogen, which carries a myriad of benefits for women. It is important to note that people familiar with the plant know that it must absolutely not be taken if a woman is pregnant.

This is because the plant carries potent properties that can be used to induce abortion and serious health problems can result if it is not used properly.

At the same time, a tea of the plant taken a few days before menstruation can help to suppress a heavy flow and it can also be used during parturition (prior to the delivery of a child). It is also rumoured to be able to clear a blocked tube if a woman wants to get pregnant.

But of all its qualities, the one most women gravitate toward is the maintenance of a curvy figure. I know women who ardently consume the tea and maintain an hour glass figure well into old age.

Additionally, none of the women who grow Penny Royal for me are obese or fat, and they live in the same area of Hanover that is the birthplace of famed Jamaican-born sprinter Merlene Ottey.

Penny Royal is also good for women who want to keep fit, but should be taken with professional advice from people who know about the herb.

Meanwhile, the plant is also said to have antibiotic properties and I have heard an anecdote of Penny Royal saving an entire family in St. Elizabeth from certain death due to food poisoning. The tea is useful for colds and fevers and it has a pungent smell, which is used as an insect repellent.

Sufferers of gas pains should find this plant useful, and it is said to be able to strengthen the lungs to resist infections and relieve prostate and back problems in elderly men. Younger men are advised not to consume too much due to its estrogen-like qualities.

Penny royal grows abundantly in the high hills of Hanover and some low lying areas of Westmoreland, St. Elizabeth and St. Catherine.