Lavender has been famous for its vibrant purple shade and pleasant smell. More importantly, behind its wonderful qualities, this well-known flower also provides considerable benefits for you.
The scent, for starters, is regarded as a natural fragrance that can create a peaceful atmosphere.
The flower buds, either fresh or dried, can be turned into beneficial herbal tea which is loaded with healing properties.
Let’s explore various lavender tea benefits for your health as well as the right procedure to make this herbal infusion on your own!
A. What is lavender tea?
Native to the Mediterranean regions, lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) is one of the most versatile flower plants.
In addition to be a natural adornment in the flowerbed, lavender buds are often turned into many different forms for various uses.
Some of them are lavender soaps, lavender essential oil, lavender extract, as well as lavender tea. They offer calming effect and aromatic fragrance, the qualities which are associated with lavender.
Lavender tea belongs to a type of herbal infusions called tisane. This beverage is made by pouring boiling water onto fresh or dried lavender flowers.
Just like its flower base, lavender tea emits a sweet, relaxing scent that gives peaceful nuance whenever you drink it.
It is also believed that lavender smell can induce sleep and give you a better resting experience at night.
As for the flavor, lavender tea features a blending taste of mint and rosemary.
Without the addition of any sweetener, you can also notice an earthy flavor which bears a little resemblance to the original green tea.
Moreover, because it comes from a flowering plant, you can expect to find sweet and delicate floral taste when drinking a cup of lavender tea.
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B. Lavender Tea Health Benefits
Multiple lavender tea benefits will give your overall health a great advantage.
The benefits offered by lavender tea range widely, from relaxing your body to treating chronic pains.
Here is what lavender tea can do once you start drinking the herbal infusion regularly.
1. Detoxifies Your Body
One of the main functions that lavender tea can perform is detoxification. Because of its antioxidant compounds, lavender can ward off toxins caused by free radicals and pollution.
2. Promotes Better Sleep
Try to drink a cup of lavender tea at night to help you deal with sleep disorders.
The scent and natural compounds of lavender will put your nervous system at a relaxing state. As a result, you will feel calmer and get better sleep at the same time.
3. Nourishes Your Skin
Lavender contains antioxidants and other volatile compounds that will nourish your skin from within.
Some lavender tea benefits for skin include fading wrinkles, treating acne, and preventing premature ageing.
4. Supports Respiratory Health
Take lavender tea as the first aid if you have respiratory problems or often experience difficulty breathing.
This herbal tea can soothe respiratory organs and make you easier to breathe. Its antibacterial properties will also prevent colds and congestion.
5. Reduces Inflammation
Lavender is loaded with anti-inflammatory properties, which can reduce inflammation and alleviate muscle pain.
By fighting the source of inflammation, lavender also protects you from getting more serious ailments.
6. Maintains the Health of Digestive System
The anti-inflammatory properties in lavender tea are also beneficial for your digestive system.
Besides aiding better digestion, they can soothe and resolve several digestive problems, including stomach cramps and diarrhea.
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C. How to Make Lavender Tea
To reap the best of lavender tea benefits, you need to know the right procedure of brewing this herbal beverage.
As mentioned earlier, you can use fresh or dried lavender buds to make a cup of lavender tea. There’s not much flavor difference between using fresh and dried buds.
They are only a matter of functionality: the fresh buds can only be brewed on the same day they are picked, while the dried ones can be stored for later use.
Although it is not always necessary, some tea drinkers often add lavender essential oils to the infusion to enhance the flavor.
However, if you want to go for the original lavender tea with natural taste, using only the flower buds should be enough for you. It will be even better when you grow lavender in the garden.
That way, you can have organic flower buds, which lead to tastier homemade lavender tea.
You can follow this simple lavender tea recipe to get started on brewing your flower-based tisane.
- Preparation note: use around 8 ounces of spring or filtered water for every 2 tablespoons of fresh or dried lavender flower buds.
- Boil the water in a large saucepan.
- Put fresh or lavender flowers in a tea infuser or strainer. Then, place the tool in a teacup.
- Pour the boiling water into the teacup.
- Steep the tea for 8-10 minutes to strengthen the flavor.
- Once the tea has steeped, remove the tea infuser from the cup.
- Now it’s time to enjoy a nice cup of lavender tea. Sip it as it is if you prefer the original taste. Alternatively, you can add honey, sprinkle some sugar, or squeeze some lemon juice to get a sweeter taste.
D. Possible Side Effects of Lavender Tea
The side effects of lavender tea are mainly experienced by people who are allergic to lavender or sensitive to flowers with strong fragrant.
Some allergic reactions that may occur include skin rash, throat irritation, and difficulty breathing.
In some cases, lavender tea can interfere with the production and development of hormones.
That’s why prepubescent males and pregnant women should limit the consumption of this herbal beverage. In prepubescent males, lavender tea may cause a hormonal growth in breast tissue called gynecomastia.
Meanwhile, in pregnant women, the tea can imitate the estrogen hormone, which may influence the state of pregnancy.
In conclusion, lavender tea only has a few side effects in which none of them causes serious problems.
You can easily reduce lavender tea side effects by stop drinking the beverage immediately or restrict the amount you take daily.
Nevertheless, you still need to take those side effects into account as a precaution to get the maximum benefit of drinking lavender tea.
