Whether you want something to warm you up in winter or cool you down in summer, herbal tea can be consumed year-round since from the delightful beverage at any temperature. Medical benefits can even be enjoyed regardless of whether you drink it hot or cold, but these benefits vary largely by the sort of tea you drink.
Herbal teas – unlike standard teas such as green tea, oolong tea, and black tea -are not made from the tea plant known as the Camellia sinensis plant. Instead, herbal teas are derived from various dried flowers, spices, herbs and fruits. This has led to a huge variety of flavors and options when it comes to choosing teas for taste and many benefits. You’ll find organic teas from around the world including China, Africa, and the Americas.
It’s no secret that tea is a popular selection for those who want to improve their health naturally. Unlike coffee and standard teas, most herbal teas are caffeine-free. They also feature nutrients, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that vary with regards to the herbal blend.
Typical health benefits from drinking herbal tea include relaxation, pain reduction and the improvement of body systems such as digestive and immune. Some research also shows anticancer effects and benefits for folks with type 2 diabetes. Listed below are the best health benefits and the herbal teas that you should consume to have them.
Health Benefits of Herbal Tea
1. It Can Help You Unwind
Tea is popularly known for its calming effects and has been used for years and years as the focal point of social events and unwinding after a long day. In the modern world, pressure and stress are often sorted out by taking medication, but the side effects of these medicines can be worse than the strain itself.
Instead, think about using herbal tea to relax and rejuvenate. It’s a safer and more natural option to prescription medicines and can help with anxiety and stress.
The relaxing properties of teas can also aid in sleep issues such as insomnia or restless sleep. Millions of people have a hard time reaching sleep at night whether it’s because they deal with a sleeping disorder, are sick or simply can’t wind down at the end of the day. Valerian tea offers strong, natural sedative properties that will help you’re able to sleep faster and rest better. Since this tea can be powerful, use it sparingly and never consume it for more than two weeks straight.
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Peppermint Tea
Peppermint tea contains menthol, which really is a naturally occurring muscle relaxant (1). Mint tea can help encourage total body relaxation after a stressful day.
Chamomile Tea
Chamomile tea is another favorite that helps soothe and calm. A study by research scientists at the University of Pennsylvania found it could help in treating generalized anxiety disorder (2). It’s also a popular sleep aid which is the perfect bedtime tea.
Lemon Balm Tea
Lemon balm tea works to reduce cortisol, a stress hormone, and doesn’t cause drowsiness, so that it is a fantastic choice if you need to reset halfway through the day.
Passion Flower Tea
Passion flower tea contains the flavone chrysin which aids against anxiety and will let you sleep more peacefully.
2. Tea Boosts Your DISEASE FIGHTING CAPABILITY
Even people who don’t regularly drink tea know the positive effects tea offers when it comes to immunity. It’s why almost all of us decide on a piping hot cup of tea when we’re feeling under the elements. Tulsi tea has been used in Ayurveda to enhance the immune system during and after illnesses, largely partly because it includes antifungal and antibacterial properties. The medicinal properties of tea mean you can quit your cold or flu sooner.
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Dandelion Tea
Dandelion tea has a higher concentration of antioxidants that help eliminate toxins and aid the immune system against infections. Dandelion tea also has strong diuretic properties which can help flush one’s body and get you feeling healthy faster.
Ginseng Tea
Ginseng tea has been found in Asia for centuries to increase overall health. This tea supports the reproduction of white blood cells and prevents virus replication to make the common cold or flu shorter.
Licorice Tea
Licorice tea has a distinctive taste mixture of salty, sour, sweet and bitter that might not be for everybody. If you can stomach the preference, this herbal tea offers strong anti-inflammatory properties that will help with sore body aches that derive from the flu.
Cayenne Tea
Cayenne tea is a surprising choice for healing sore throats and getting rid of persistent coughs. It could seem counterintuitive you can eat spicy teas when you curently have a scratchy, sore throat, but cayenne pepper teas can stop a cold in its tracks.
The active ingredient, capsaicin, really helps to thin mucus that can irritate your throat lining and turn into a cough and sore throat. It also reduces inflammation and clears congestion, making it much easier to breathe.
3. Tea Can Help Reduce Pain and Soreness
Like the common cold and flu, pain is often treated by pharmaceutical drugs, which can have adverse side effects. Alternatively, many herbal teas have properties that will help to minimize pain without the negative side effects.
While research is still ongoing, there were studies that show ingredients such as capsaicin, willow bark and boswellia can help mitigate discomfort. Since herbal teas can have strong ingredients, it is important to seek advice from your physician if you are also taking any pain medications before consuming.
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Turmeric Tea
Turmeric tea has anti-inflammatory properties that can soothe aches and pains from disorders such as arthritis, fibromyalgia and migraines. It can also be used to help alleviate minor pains and aches from tough workouts at the gym or menstrual cramps. You can find turmeric tea at health food stores, inside our web store, or make your own using turmeric root, ginger main, coconut oil, water and lemon.
Feverfew Tea
Feverfew tea is a popular favorite among naturopaths when it involves treating headaches and migraines (3). While more studies are needed, the herb shows only mild side effects such as irritation to the mouth, rendering it a good choice for frequent sufferers of debilitating headaches. This plant is often blended with lemongrass or passion flower in tea for a smoother taste and reduce the risk or irritation.
4. It Can Help Prevent Chronic Diseases
Herbal teas are often high in antioxidants, which work to eliminate free radicals throughout the body and prevent oxidative stress. Tea also contains polyphenols, which studies have shown cause a lower likelihood of cancer. Teas tend to be found in Asia to combat or prevent chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes.
Studies point to the polyphenols, flavonoids and tannins that can be found in herbal teas as the issues for positive health benefits. Polyphenols work to widen the arteries, which can lower blood circulation pressure, reduce cholesterol levels preventing blood clots. Teas such as rooibos and honeybush have antioxidants that have been shown to stop brain deterioration and prevent osteoporosis (4).
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Hibiscus Tea
Polyphenols come from fruits and vegetables therefore the more color your tea has, a lot more polyphenols there are. Teas that are unfermented also have higher amounts of polyphenols, so opt for those as well. Hibiscus tea is a deep red tea that is high in minerals and vitamin C. Hibiscus tea has polyphenols that contain been shown to help lower LDL cholesterol, prevent heart disease and cancer and fight bacteria such E. coli (5).
Rooibos Tea
Rooibos tea is harvested exclusively in the Cederberg Mountains of South Africa. The tea is brewed by steeping tea leaves from the red bush plant in warm water. Rooibos tea contains 50 percent more antioxidants than green tea, which can stop the harmful effects of free radicals (6). Among these antioxidants is aspalathin, which can prevent glucose levels spikes, causeing this to be tea the ideal choice for people with diabetes or heart disease.
5. Tea Can Improve Your Digestive System
Tea is beneficial for your digestive system since it can absorb gas, improve blood flow to the complete digestive system and eliminate free radicals that can cause an upset stomach and indigestion. Herbal teas have phenols that can strengthen both abdominal muscles and the muscles in your esophagus, which can reduce acid reflux and heartburn symptoms (7). Teas also permit your digestive system to more easily absorb nutrients.
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Ginger Tea
Ginger contains the phenols gingerol and shogaol that help stimulate digestive juices such as saliva that help your body improve food (8). Ginger tea is popularly used to treat nausea from motion sickness and morning sickness since it inhibits serotonin receptors, which send the message to the mind that makes you really feel like vomiting.
To aid in digestion, drink ginger tea before a meal or a small cup on your meal. For nausea, you can drink ginger tea beforehand to prevent symptoms or once you begin feeling queasy.
Chamomile Tea
This tea keeps reappearing because it’s calming effects have potential health benefits for a number of ailments. For digestion, the calming effects of chamomile can soothe your stomach, relieve cramps and alleviate symptoms of heartburn.
Chai Tea
Chai tea contains spices including cardamom, black pepper, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves that contain been proven to help improve digestion.
6. It Stimulates Brain Function
While you can drink only a cup or two of tea if you are sick to find the health benefits, if you would like the brain boosting power of tea, you will have to drink tea regularly. The main way herbal teas improve brain function is by increasing blood circulation to the mind, thus providing it with nutrients and essential oxygen for a healthy mind.
7. Like Water, It’s Calorie-Free
Tea is a better-tasting alternative to water that continues to be calorie-free. While studies on the direct effects of tea on weight loss are ongoing, tea can be a tasty replacement for plain old normal water during the day. Remember that while tea itself is calorie-free, adding extras such as sugar or honey can the calories.
tea cup and kettle black steaming herbal tea
Drink Up
Drinking herbal tea can have both short-term and long-term health advantages. Tea can help you beat a cold quickly and can help you stay healthier in the long haul. Make sure to seek advice from a doctor before using teas as a replacement for any medications. Herbal teas come in a number of flavors with a host of health advantages that can make you healthier and happier.
Drinking tea is also a good way to relax and revel in the simple things in life. Whether you try echinacea tea, rosehip tea, or classic chamomile, you’re certain to find flavors you like. Find a tea type you enjoy and brew it piping hot or as a refreshing iced tea. You may also find tea samplers that permit you to try out multiple flavors to find the ones that you like best.
To get the most out of herbal tae health benefits, we recommend brewing with loose leaf tea rather than tea bags. Loose tea contains full leaves that are chock packed with nutrients while tea bags usually support the dust and fannings of large-scale tea production processes. If you want a socially-conscious tea, look for varieties that are Fair Trade certified.
