EFFECTIVITY OF PEPPERMINT-SCENTED MASK PATCHES IN REDUCING

DROWSINESS AMONG SHS STUDENTS

ALON, ADRIELA YSABEL C.

AÑONUEVO, ALESUND D.
GUTIERREZ, VINZ DENMARK U.
VALENCIA, CHRISTIAN LLOYD A.

A TOPIC PRESENTATION PAPER SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENTS FOR THE PRACTICAL RESEARCH 2

October 2022

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Outline of the items to present:

1. Thesis Title and Thesis Statement

2. Rationale (or Background of the Study)
a. Current State of the Field
b. Current or Conventional Practices
c. Research Gap
d. Statement of the Problem
3. Research Questions and/or Objectives
4. Hypotheses (if applicable)
5. List of References (just flash the slide; no explanations needed)

Include in the Rationale section all pertinent information and references used to support your
research. References used in the Rationale should match those listed.

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 THESIS TITLE

Effectivity of Peppermint-Scented Mask Patches in Reducing Drowsiness Among SHS Students

THESIS STATEMENT

Peppermint-scented mask patches significantly affect the alertness of students.

CURRENT STATE OF THE FIELD

In the clinical setting, drowsiness being a major indicator of fatigue is a transitional

period between a person’s waking consciousness and dream life. The most frequent cause of
excessive fatigue is inadequate sleep, which is often voluntarily done especially by students these
days. Other contributing factors include working at night, taking naps throughout the day, using
alcohol, drugs, cigarettes, inactivity, obesity, and specific medications (Stuart, 2021).

Different people begin their days in various ways. While some people could feel
refreshed after a full night's sleep, the remainder of individuals start their days feeling completely
tired. According to the State of Sleep Health in America (2022), 70% of individuals report
getting inadequate sleep at least once a month in America, with 11% getting insufficient sleep
every night. Sleep-related disorders are estimated to affect 50 to 70 million Americans of all ages
and socioeconomic backgrounds. As those with sleep issues battled through the remainder of the
day, several pieces of advice such as the usage of peppermint-scented products were offered.

Several studies are being made in the medicinal field specifically in the field of
aromatherapy regarding the effectiveness of peppermint concerning one's alertness. A study by
Czar (2009), specified how aromatherapy can determine how specific brain regions are affected
by various essential oils. According to his research, aromatherapy and the use of essential oils,
such as eucalyptus and peppermint, can effectively stimulate specific brain regions that are
known to control a person's level of attention. Hence, this type of study is relevant up to this day

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as it will shed more light on how specific essential oils activate the brain to increase alertness
and the impact of particular aromatherapy smells on alertness in diverse contexts.

CURRENT OR CONVENTIONAL PRACTICES

The medicinal plant peppermint or mentha piperita has garnered more attention
nowadays due to its health benefits for the food and pharmaceutical community. It is frequently
utilized in conventional medicine and folk remedies for the treatment of gastrointestinal issues
and activities on the neurological system due to its chemopreventive potential, renal effects,
antiallergenic effects, anticancer, and antibacterial components (Masomeh et al., 2017).

Research showed that cardiovascular patients were observed to experience less fatigue by
inhaling scents like peppermint mostly through a diffuser as part of their aromatherapy routine
(Mahdavikian et al., 2021). According to the findings of a study conducted by Mahachandra et
al. (2015), peppermint also has the ability to be used as an in-vehicle fragrance to keep drivers
alert. Participants took part in the experiment in a car-driving simulator laboratory, where they
were exposed to two driving conditions: with a placebo and with peppermint fragrance. The
participants' alertness level was measured using an electroencephalograph (EEG) during 30
minutes of driving.

RESEARCH GAP

To the best of our knowledge, there are little to no studies yet conducted locally
about our topic “Effectivity of peppermint-scented mask patches in reducing drowsiness
among SHS students”. There were several products from l15 shopping industries
regarding our topic but no studies were provided, thus leading us to other articles
overseas. Their products were specifically made only for the peppermint's aroma which
helps to reduce unwanted odors. Our suggested product has the added benefit of
increasing a person's alertness. Therefore, this study aims to discover the gaps in other
studies such as the alertness of people when using Aromatherapy in an inclusion setting.

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 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Lack of sleep could result in affecting a student's health and even their academic
performance in school. Sleep deprivation reduces the students' alertness in school and even at
home, which could result in many cases of students sleeping during learning class hours. This
study aims to help students by using the aroma of peppermint plants to help them stay focused
and awake. The topic was directed towards its main objective of discovering the effectiveness of
Aromatherapy on SHS students' alertness from Christian School International. The study
determines the cause and effects of drowsiness on their personal life and academic performances.

OBJECTIVE AND QUESTIONS

With students being the participants of this study, determining whether the use of
peppermint oil fragrance is effective in relieving drowsiness during class hours can be observed.
This quasi-experimental research aims to answer the succeeding questions in order to pursue the
objectives of this study. The following are the general and specific questions, respectively:

General Research Question:

1. How does peppermint scent help reduce drowsiness?

Specific Research Questions:

1. Is there a significant effect of peppermint scent on the sleepiness scale of an individual?
2. Is there a difference between the sleepiness scales among the control and treatment
groups?
3. How do the participants measure their energy levels?
4. How many hours of sleep do the participants have?
5. Do they often feel drowsy?
6. How can peppermint mask patches be a reliable product?

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 HYPOTHESES

Null Hypothesis: Peppermint scent will reduce the drowsiness of a person.

Alternative Hypothesis: Peppermint scent will not reduce the drowsiness of a person.

REFERENCES

Czar, K. (2009). “The effects of aromatherapy on alertness in an inclusion setting.” The

Corinthian, 10 (1), 7.
https://kb.gcsu.edu/thecorinthian/vol10/iss1/7/

Mahachandra, M., Yassierli & Garnaby, E.D. (2015). “The Effectiveness of In-vehicle
Peppermint Fragrance to Maintain Car Driver's Alertness.” Process Manufacturing, 4,
471–477.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.promfg.2015.11.064

Mahdavikian, S., Fallahi, M., & Khatony, A. (2021). “Comparing the Effect of Aromatherapy
with Peppermint and Lavender Essential Oils on Fatigue of Cardiac Patients: A
Randomized Controlled Trial.”
https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/9925945

Masomeh, L., Narges, M., Hassan, R., & Hadi, A. (2017). “Peppermint and Its Functionality: A
Review.” Arch Clin Microbiol. 8 (1989-8436).
doi: 10.4172/1989-8436.100054

Patrick, Y., Lee, A., Raha, O., Pillai, K., Gupta, S., Sethi, S., Mukeshimana, F., Gerard, L.,
Moghal, M. U., Saleh, S. N., Smith, S. F., Morrell, M. J., & Moss, J. (2017). “Effects of
sleep deprivation on cognitive and physical performance in university students.” Sleep
and biological rhythms, 15 (3), 217–225.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s41105-017-0099-5

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State of Sleep Health in America (2022). “The State Of Sleep Health In America In 2022.”
American Sleep Apnea Association.
https://www.sleephealth.org/sleep-health/the-state-of-sleephealth-in-america/#:~:text=In
%20America%2C%2070%25%20of%20adults,report%20insufficient%20sleep%20every
%20night.&text=It%20is%20estimated%20that%20sleep,all%20ages%20and%20socioec
onomic%20classes

Stuart, A. (2010, January 21). “Medical Causes of Excessive Sleepiness.” WebMD.

https://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/sleep-apnea-daytime-sleepiness

Norrish, M. I., & Dwyer, K. L. (2005). “Preliminary investigation of the effect of peppermint oil
on an objective measure of daytime sleepiness.” International journal of
psychophysiology: official journal of the International Organization of Psychophysiology,
55 (3), 291–298.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2004.08.004