The Cultivating Wellness column explores natural health through food and herbal healing. You can expect to find recipes that support full-body health from the inside out.
Seasons of transition can take their toll on our overall well-being.
Read Also
Farm & Family – March 27 edition
Trust, teamwork and resilience: three ingredients every farm family knows they need to run a farm. But wait until you…
Through late winter into early spring, our bodies begin to feel the building energy that comes with increasing daylight, but this is juxtaposed with the fatigue of winter dragging on. It’s not uncommon to hear in the clinic at this time of year complaints of sluggish digestion, restlessness, dragging cold and flu symptoms and energy issues. Caring for our digestive health is an important aspect of supporting whole health but becomes even more important in this transition season.
The best description I’ve ever read about our digestive system compared digestive function to the function of a compost pile. A healthy compost pile requires just the right balance of moisture and heat to appropriately break down what’s added to it and to produce an effective product. Our digestive system works in much the same way. Digestive fluids, such as bile and stomach acid, function as the necessary “heat”, initiating breakdown and absorption through the gut. The gut lining, made up of mucous membranes and microbiome, houses the moisture that helps move food and waste along the chain for either absorption or elimination. Of course, this is a very simplified and summarized explanation.
When we have too much heat and not enough moisture, or vice versa, we can experience symptoms like irritable bowel syndrome, bloating, indigestion, slow or no elimination or elimination that occurs too quickly, malabsorption of nutrients, pain and reflux. Different foods can affect all these symptoms differently, however when we really break it down (pun intended), often what’s most helpful isn’t major diet changes so much as it is supporting the foundational needs of gut health and balancing the moisture to heat ratio.
A flavour profile that is traditionally linked to bile production and improving digestive functioning is the bitter flavour. Lucky for us, finding bitter flavours is easy to do in our western diet, though perhaps uncommonly turned to. For those who experience bloating, cramping, constipation and gassiness, adding a bitter flavour in the form of tea or taste can be an effective way to get the best of our inner composting system online and soothe the symptoms associated with imbalances.
Peppermint is one of the most well-researched and proven herbs to combat irritability in the digestive tract. Research has shown peppermint to be an extremely effective remedy for irritable bowel syndrome. Not only does it support a decrease in pain and tension through the digestive tract, beneath its fresh minty flavour there’s a mild bitter which works to stimulate the production of bile, circulation, stomach acid and appropriate breakdown of nutrients.
Citrus peel has a long history of being used as a primary bitter remedy in many cultures. The peel contains a high amount of vitamin C, too, which supports the lining of our gut while providing a pre-biotic boost to the gut biome.
Ginger provides our system with a gentle bitter and warm spice, settling and soothing while supporting nutrient breakdown.
Lemon juice with water bolsters our stomach acid and capacity for breaking down food within the gut.
The recipe offered here is for a simple digestive tea you can try at home. Ideally, this tea can be sipped warm or cool about thirty minutes prior to meals. Alternatively, you can also drink it if you’re experiencing acute digestive discomfort.
If digestive issues are common for you, it’s important to seek medical advice from a qualified health professional. While many digestive concerns can be resolved at home with nutritional and lifestyle-based adjustments, symptoms related to digestion can also be a signal of broader health issues. Speak with your trusted health providers if symptoms worsen or persist.
Digestive health tea
- 1 tbsp. dried peppermint or 2 tbsp. fresh peppermint (Any mint can be used as a substitute.)
- 1/2tbsp. fresh or dried lemon or orange peel
- 1/8 tbsp. dried powdered ginger
- 1/2 to 1 tbsp. lemon juice (optional)
- Honey to taste
- 2 cups hot water
Combine all ingredients in a tea strainer or French press and cover with boiling water to steep, covered, for 10-20 minutes. Sweeten with honey if desired and store in your refrigerator for up to three days.
