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Do you feel weak and fatigued often? Got tummy issues? Skin problems? What about lower back pain? If so, you just might be experiencing the effects of inflammation on your body. Chronic inflammation is a silent assassin, contributing to roughly 50% of deaths worldwide. Luckily, there are 5 important herbs and spices that can help heal inflammation, along with 5 important lifestyle changes.
What is Inflammation? Why is Inflammation Bad?
Inflammation is our body’s natural defense against threats, like bacteria and viruses. It helps us recover from the flu or a scraped up knee by sending attention to that area.
The problem? When our bodies trigger this immune response when there is no outside threat that it can fight off. If your body is sending out these inflammatory cells when you’re not sick or hurt, your body will end up damaging itself and causing long term problems.
Why would your body hurt itself? Well, things like chronic stress, lack of sleep, inflammatory foods (fried, processed, sugary), smoking and alcohol, will put stress on your body. When your body endures these things on a regular basis, it will constantly be trying to fight the “threat”, which will eventually lead to tissue death, thickening, and scarring of connective tissue. Sadly, this leads to a plethora of issues, like autoimmune disorders, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, arthritis, asthma, cancer and Alzheimer's disease.
BUT, there is good news. You can fight inflammation naturally with these 5 teas and tips.
How To Reduce Inflammation Naturally
1. Get enough sleep.
Depending on your genetics, age and activity, you should be sleeping in the range of 7-9 hours every night. Put those screens away at night, and drink some Lush Lavender tea to calm you down. If you are suffering from insomnia, try Nitey Nite.
2. Avoid fried foods.
High fat, oily foods are extremely inflammatory. Instead, cook at home with small amounts of Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
I personally love using an air fryer because then I can crisp up foods without inflammatory saturated and trans fat! This is the air fryer I use and I love it! I've had a few over the years and this has been my favorite so far.
3. Avoid alcohol.
Alcohol is very inflammatory, as it causes your gut and liver to work extremely hard to process the toxins. Chronic drinking will lead to persistent systematic inflammation (leading to disease). Instead of alcohol, try one of our awesome mocktails.
We've made quite a few awesome mocktails over on Instagram and TikTok, but here are two great ones that I am sure you are going to love!
Lush Lavender Spritzer Tutorial on Instagram. Get the tea.
Cranberry Apple Tart Mocktail Tutorial on Instagram. Get the tea.
4. Avoid red meat.
Research shows both processed and red meats are high in saturated fat, which causes inflammation.
Instead, try eating fish high in healthy fats, like Wild Salmon, Sardines, Anchovies, Macerel or Herring. There are also amazing vegetarian sources of protein that you can use to replace red meat. Check out these anti-inflammatory vegetarian high protein recipes.
5. Eat anti-inflammatory foods.
Some of the most anti-inflammatory foods are berries, avocado, broccoli and mushrooms.
Every day try to eat one of these foods. Dr. Gregor is a great source that I love to look to and I think that his daily dozen is extremely powerful! It can be hard to get all these foods in every day, but do what you can and trust me, you'll feel the benefits.
Try these powerfully anti-inflammatory herbs and spices: Turmeric, Ginger, Tulsi, Rooibos and Calendula.
Drink Turmeric Tea for Inflammation
When most people think of a natural anti-inflammatory food, most people think turmeric. And for good reason! Turmeric is well established in the literature to be extremely anti-inflammatory because of its active ingredient, Curcumin. Curcumin has powerful anti-inflammatory effects and is a very strong antioxidant.
Try these anti-inflammatory turmeric tea blends: Lucky Morning Spice and Happy Place.
Try this yummy latte recipe with turmeric.
Drink Ginger Tea for Inflammation
Ginger’s anti-inflammatory benefits are well known and well studied. Gingerol is the main bioactive compound in ginger. It’s responsible for much of ginger’s medicinal properties. Ginger has been shown to be effective against inflammation, osteoarthritis, jaw pain, rheumatism, and inflammation-induced pain. It has been shown to help with muscle pain, especially in women with menstrual pain. Using both turmeric and ginger, Happy Place is amazing for inflammation relief.
If you want to learn more about ginger, check out this blog.
Drink Tulsi Tea for Inflammation
Tulsi acts as a strong inhibitor of COX-2 and is beneficial for all illnesses that result from inflammation, including acne, eczema, arthritis, pain, and more. Tulsi is also strongly protective against heart disease. This is why tulsi is a star player in our best-selling herbal blend, Inflammation Relief.
Try the best anti-inflammatory Tulsi tea: Inflammation Relief
Learn more about the powerful herb.
Drink Rooibos Tea for Inflammation
Rooibos contains zero caffeine, doesn’t get bitter like green tea does if you over-brew it, but like green tea, it’s loaded with important antioxidants. Rooibos is powerfully anti-inflammatory and packed with anti-oxidants, reducing your risk of many diseases. We have tons of Roobios (because it's so awesome), but I think you're going to want to try our blends Happy Place and I Heart Pomegranates for their awesome extra anti-inflammatory benefits.
Drink Calendula Tea for Inflammation
Calendula is a gorgeous yellow flower that demonstrates both anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor properties. There are many emerging uses of Calendula because of this, from wound care to skin care. Drinking it in the form of tea can help you reduce your chronic inflammation and heal internally. If you want to try calendula for inflammation, I would recommend Daily Detox, which is a medicinal blend that also contains herbs that will help you with liver and kidney support.
If you want to join the community on Instagram and TikTok where we heal ourselves together, follow along with us and get the Tea Talk Box. This is a new box that we curate monthly, so that you can easily follow along with our recipes, tips and demos updated every day on social media. August's Box focuses on inflammation so if you want to get Happy Place and Inflammation Relief without committing to a full size, check it out!
If you liked this blog, check out this Anti-Inflammatory Iced Tea Recipe.