Natural Choices — Health Food, Organic Produce, Gluten Free, Vitamins, Supplements — Columbus, Bartholomew County, Indiana

Posts Tagged ‘herbal teas’

Despite it being summer time and people being out and about and active in so many ways, there are nights when it is difficult to sleep. It could be stress, it could be lack of physical activity to wear you out, or it could be a myriad of other things. On those nights, it doesn’t matter to me what is causing me to stare wide-eyed into the darkness, all I know is that I want to go to sleep.

There are several herbs and plants that can provide some relief – and help you get some shut-eye, on a regular basis.

Chamomile has long been used for a relaxing tea.

Chamomile, besides being a great herb for digestive upset, is also widely known and used as a bedtime beverage in tea.

My grandma used to say a little chamomile tea is the best thing for most things that ail you. She would drink a cup of tea before bed and swear she slept like a rock.

It is the root of the valerian that is used in natural supplements.

Valerian is another plant known as an effective and reliable sedative and sleep aid.

According to the American Botanical Council, valerian is not like over-the-counter and prescription products in that it is not habit-forming nor does it leave you with that drowsy or hung-over feeling in the morning.

Another great way to ease into a good night’s sleep is to develop the habit of a relaxing bath before bed. Frontier National Products Co-op suggests a milk bath. Their easy instructions:

Infuse a handful of chamomile flowers and jasmine flowers in a small pot of warm milk for a few hours. Pour into your bath water.

Sounds like something you can start while preparing dinner and have ready just in time to take a nice, relaxing bath before going to bed.

Keeping dried lavender in a dish or bath has a relaxing effect in a home.

Getting sufficient recuperative sleep is critical to good health and long life.

Finding  ways to get a good night’s sleep naturally is not as difficult as you might think. Stop by Natural Choices and peruse the dietary supplements to find combinations specfically formulated to be sleep aids. Then check out the tea selections and herbs to find what you need or want to create your own tea and bath regimen.

You might also look at the essential oils to find those oils such as jasmine or lavender to use in aromatherapy and make your bedroom a scented haven for relaxing, restful sleep.

–Ellie of the Natural Choices Blog Team

I am well into my month of no soda pop, drinking only tea and water. I have to admit, I do feel better.

But all this talk about tea has made me realize, even though I have been a tea-drinker for many years, I don’t really know what “tea” is. I mean, coffee comes from the coffee bean. There are so many varieties of tea, so where does it come from?

According to Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary, tea is:

1 a: a shrub (Camellia sinensis of the family Theaceae, the tea family) cultivated esp. in China, Japan and the East Indies, 1 b: the leaves, leaf buds, and internodes of the tea plant prepared and cured for the market, classed according to method of manufacture (as green tea, black tea or oolong) and graded according to leaf size (as congou, orange pekoe, pekoe or souchong)

But then, you might ask, what about all the flavored and herbal teas? Well, Webster refers to them, too:

3: any of various plants somewhat resembling tea in properties; also: an infusion of their leaves used medicinally or as a beverage

Alvita is just one of the brands of teas you'll find at Natural Choices.

The idea I take hold of from that is the “medicinal” comment about teas since that has always been the bent when offered a cup of black tea, green tea or an herbal tea. The powerful anti-oxidants in green and white teas can do so many things like lowering the rate of heart disease, cancer and Alzheimer’s. Not to mention the calming effect and stress reduction that comes from holding a hot cup of tea in your hands and just smelling the aroma – no matter what the type, flavor or brand is, it’s like a little cozy hug.

An added important note about teas: many teas have caffeine. Many herbal teas are caffeine-free and others may be decaffeinated. But you have to read the labels closely. If you monitor or eliminate caffeine in your diet, pay attention to the teas you purchase. The shelves are lined with a tremendous selection of decaffeinated and tasty teas at Natural Choices in Columbus, Indiana. You might have trouble just picking one, or two, or even three!

Healthy for you, tasty, and calming. Sounds like time for a cup for me!

–Ellie of the Natural Choices Blog Team

In my last blog, we looked at the first in Dr. Jacob A. Teitelbaum’s 3-step process to re-gain vitality in life – nutrition. Now we move forward into step No. 2 – rest your body.

One of the biggest complaints Americans voice is feeling fatigued so much of the time. We do work hard, play hard, and accomplish a lot. But there is a great cost to our energy and health if we don’t give our bodies the rest it needs. Dr. Teitelbaum, along with many others, tells us that it is through rest that our body repairs itself and rebuilds the energy we need for daily functioning.

According to the National Sleep Foundation, determining the ‘right’ amount of sleep is not easy as each person is unique. The proper amount for a person depends on many things including age, health, gender, stress levels. There are so many factors to take into consideration that a person can only determine how much sleep they need based on when they feel their absolute best.

To further the mystery of the proper amount of sleep we need, the National Sleep Foundation explains:

Another reason there is “no magic number” for your sleep results from two different factors that researchers are learning about: a person’s basal sleep need — the amount of sleep our bodies need on a regular basis for optimal performance — and sleep debt, the accumulated sleep that is lost to poor sleep habits, sickness, awakenings due to environmental factors or other causes.

My solution is to begin with a recommended average and then add or subtract time to the point when I feel I am at my best. I know this will take a long time to determine. But once I get there, I think I would be able to adjust for changes. At least I will understand the relationship between the amount of sleep I get and how I feel and perform in my daily life.

Sometimes getting that sleep is a challenge. At some point everyone lies down in bed and stares into space because for some reason, sleep doesn’t come.

Dr. Teitelbaum says,

Because good quality sleep is how the body repairs and re-energizes itself, it may be helpful to use herbal products to promote good quality sleep. There are many natural supplements that are marketed as sleep formulas…Look for a supplement that has a blend of herbs that promote deep sleep, such as valarian, L-theanine, hops, passionflower, Jamaica dogwood and wild lettuce. This combination of herbs is important…taking only one or two of these herbs alone is much less likely to be effective. (Emphasis added.)

Taking care of our body means giving it the downtime it needs and making sure the sleep we get is of good quality. You can find a wide selection of supplements at Natural Choices in Columbus, Indiana to help with making sure your sleep is sound and restorative. There is also a good selection of herbal teas at Natural choices to add to your evening routine when preparing for slumber. And, as always, there will be a friendly staff person to guide you in finding the natural, healthy products you need.

–Ellie of the Natural Choices Blog Team

Natural Choices is the place to find fresh, organic foods and produce in Columbus, Indiana. Outside Columbus, it is simply a phone call away.