Investigating the Effect of Peppermint Cream on Traumatic Nipples in Breastfeeding Mothers

Introduction: Traumatic nipple is among the most common problems of the breastfeeding women which leads to early cessation of breastfeeding. This study aimed to investigate the effect of the peppermint cream on traumatic nipples of breastfeeding women. Methodes: This double-blind randomized clinical trial was carried out on 84 breastfeeding mothers who had referred to the health centers and Children’s Hospital of the city of Sanandaj, Iran in 2014. The selected participants were randomly assigned to two groups of peppermint cream and placebo (liquid-based moisturizing cream). After obtaining the written informed consents, both groups were trained for proper method of breastfeeding and drug use. Nipple pain was measured using the Store scale while nipple trauma through the Champion scale. The data were analyzed through the Chi-square, Fisher's exact test, independent t- test, Mann-Whitney and Wilcoxon tests. Results: The results showed that the mean scores of nipple pain and nipple trauma were significantly lower in the peppermint cream group compared to those in control group. This safe cream can be used to solve this big problem with breastfeeding. In the peppermint cream group, the mean scores of nipple pain and nipple trauma at third (p<0.001), seventh (p<0.001), and fourteenth (p<0.001) days of the intervention were significantly lower than those in the control group. The mean scores of nipple pain and nipple trauma were significantly lower after the four time periods of intervention in peppermint cream group compared to before the intervention (p<0.05). Conclusion The result of Mann-Whitney test showed that the mean scores of nipple pain and nipple trauma were not significantly different between the two groups prior to the intervention.