Fill your kettle. Grab your favourite teacup or teapot. Blend a few key ingredients. Get comfortable. Now … warm yourself with some of these DIY tea blends with therapeutic benefits.
Fill your kettle. Grab your favourite tea cup or teapot. Blend a few key ingredients. Get yourself comfortable. Now … enjoy a quick cup, a pot, or—if you’re using dried plants—a big batch of DIY herbal tea to have on hand for weeks to come.
Energy
This tea will restore waning energy, without the crash that comes with coffee or sugar. Zesty spruce has a high dosage of vitamin C, so it was used by early Europeans to help ward off scurvy. Today, vitamin C has been shown in recent research to reduce fatigue. Rhodiola naturally boosts energy levels while relieving stress, and mint refreshes and awakens.
1 part fresh or dried spruce needles
1 part fresh or dried wild mint (or peppermint)
1 part dried rhodiola root
Use 1 Tbsp (15 mL) tea per 1 cup (250 mL) boiling water. Steep for a minimum of 7 minutes.
Digestion
This tea blend is formulated to kick-start sluggish digestion and to calm stomach upset. Wild mint stimulates digestion, is thought to soothe stomach irritation or nausea, and promotes the flow of bile. Yarrow, a flower in the same family as camomile, is used to calm indigestion and heartburn.
1 part dried or fresh yarrow (flowers, leaves, and stems)
1 part dried or fresh wild mint (or peppermint)
Use 1 Tbsp (15 mL) tea per 1 cup (250 mL) boiling water. Steep for a minimum of 7 minutes.
Antistress
Too many deadlines can leave us feeling frazzled. This stress-relieving tea uses the power of valerian root to ease anxious feelings, and the scent of juniper berries is said to calm the nerves. Goldenrod may reduce inflammation. This is also a great bedtime tea.
1 part dried valerian root
1 part fresh or dried juniper berries
1 part fresh or dried goldenrod (leaves and flowers)
Use 1 Tbsp (15 mL) tea per 1 cup (250 mL) boiling water. Steep for a minimum of 7 minutes.
Cold and flu
Drink this tea to fend off any viruses coming on. Nettle is thought to help modulate the immune system and provide some antiviral effects, while camomile might help fight infections and boost the immune system. The menthol in wild mint helps open up sinuses and calm the stomach, and a final squeeze of fresh lemon gives a boost of vitamin C.
1 part fresh or dried nettle leaves
1 part dried camomile
1 part fresh or dried wild mint (or peppermint)
Squeeze of fresh lemon juice (as a garnish, to be added after steeping)
Use 1 Tbsp (15 mL) tea per 1 cup (250 mL) boiling water. Steep for a minimum of 7 minutes. Add a squeeze of lemon juice, and enjoy.
Beauty
This tea can help make hair shiny, nails strong, and skin glowing. Horsetail has the power of silica, which helps strengthen fingernails, hair, and skin, while blueberries—high in antioxidants—help prevent long-term skin cell damage. Wild rose petals are thought to have antioxidant effects. When brewing this tea, keep blueberries and rose petals unfiltered and chew them as you sip to enjoy the full benefits.
2 parts dried horsetail
1 part dried organic blueberries
1 part fresh or dried wild rose petals
Use 1 Tbsp (15 mL) tea per 1 cup (250 mL) boiling water. Steep for a minimum of 7 minutes.
Weight management
Drink this tea before and/or after meals to reduce cravings and encourage mindful eating. Bedstraw has been used traditionally for weight loss and as a diuretic. Dandelion also acts as a mild diuretic and has been shown in animal studies to help support and protect the liver, which regulates fat storage and controls blood sugar. Munching on dried apples and/or raisins while drinking this tea can increase satisfaction by providing fibre and sweetness.
1 part dried or fresh bedstraw (leaves and roots)
1 part dried or fresh dandelion leaf
1 part dried or fresh dandelion root
Pinch of raisins and/or dried apple (to float on top of tea)
Use 1 Tbsp (15 mL) tea per 1 cup (250 mL) boiling water. Steep for a minimum of 7 minutes.
Ready-to-use medicinal tea blends
If you’re short on time or frequently on the run, you might find it easier to simplify the DIY process. There’s no shortage of delicious medicinal tea blends at natural health retailers. They’re typically already blended in tea bags, making it easy to get the relief you’re after. Here are just a few examples of the many kinds of medicinal teas out there.
Immune-boosting
If we feel a bug coming on, or we know we’ll be exposed to cold and flu viruses, it’s a good idea to stock up on an immune-boosting tea.
What to look for:
- echinacea
- elderberry
- peppermint
Cold and flu
When we’re feeling under the weather, there’s nothing like a hot drink to soothe and comfort—plus medicinal ingredients can help open our respiratory passages.
What to look for:
- ginger
- elderberry
- licorice
- peppermint
- cinnamon
Digestion
Stomach upset, bloating, indigestion? Sometimes we just can’t escape them. A warm therapeutic cuppa might just help.
What to look for:
- peppermint
- ginger
- fennel
- marshmallow root
Sleep or anxiety
Everyone needs a little help sometimes to get a good night’s sleep or calm our nerves.
What to look for:
- chamomile
- passionflower
- lavender
- lemon balm
- valerian
