5 Types of Tea
(and one cup of coffee)
To Help You Sleep
Did you know a cup of tea a day keeps the sleep struggles away?
It is a known fact that tea can be very beneficial to our overall health. Specifically, tea can be really relaxing, and actually help us get a better night’s sleep. Below are 5 types of tea and why they can be useful to getting a calm night’s rest:
Green Tea
Many people agree that green tea has a plethora of health benefits, including the many listed by Mental Health Global. But the question is, how can green tea help you sleep?
Studies in Japan have uncovered the exact ingredient in green tea that helps you sleep: L-theanine. This amino acid fosters a more relaxed state in their subjects, and improves their actual sleep experience. Additionally, the subjects have a better mental state while awake during the day. To read the summary of the study, click here.
The only thing to watch out for with green tea: many contain caffeine so be sure to get one without it!
Jasmine
Tegan Jones, writer for lifehack.org, swears by drinking Jasmine tea every day due to its many health benefits: weight loss, anti-aging, stress relief, and more. Jasmine is frequently used in aromatherapy, so the scent that eminantes from the tea is relaxing in itself. The active compounds of jasmine tea also help settle the digestive system, which can help you decompress and sleep easier.
@shamrocksam let us know that she just tried a new Jasmine Green Tea that works wonders! The brand is Knightsbridge, and she got it from a store called Lidls. Unfortunately we don’t have this store in Israel or the US, so for anyone in the UK, let us know if you’ve tried it and how it’s worked for you.
Chamomile
This plant is extremely effective as tea and for aromatherapy “to treat insomnia and to induce sedation,” according to a study done in 2010 by Srivastava, Shankar, and Gupta. It often produces tranquilizing effects. To read the full study, click here. Chamomile aids in helping many other struggles, including cancer activity, common cold, cardiovascular conditions, and something that I can greatly relate to, eczema. Since ancient times, the therapeutic effects of chamomile have attracted people all over the world.
Spearmint
Spearmint is a great option to include in tea because it is less strong than its counterpart, Peppermint. The aroma is very refreshing, which tends to be calming for many people. One huge bonus of spearmint is its ability to cure nausea, stomachache and indigestion. A very beneficial component of spearmint is rosmarinic acid, because of its ability to break up mucus, therefore unclogging airways and helping with asthma, allergies and colds. And of course, it aids in relaxation and helps you get a good night’s sleep and wake up the next morning feeling refreshed.
Lavender
Out of all the different plants listed, lavender is probably used for the widest variety of things. However, in tea form, it can be very tranquilizing, and is often used around the world for medicinal purposes. A study published in 2011 in the “Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine” found that “patients who were treated by inhaling lavender oil experienced significant reduction in stress levels and reduced levels of pain when hypodermic needles were inserted.” Inhaling the lavender scent from the tea also slows nervous system activity, helping treat anxiety, insomnia, stress and depression.
Personally, I love drinking tea before bed (as long as it’s caffeine free!). My favorite so far has been Bigelow Sweet Dreams Herbal Tea.
I love this tea because of its minty kick. I’m a big mint fan, but if mint isn’t for you, try something else. As a chamomile tea, it is extremely relaxing. Personally, the minty smell that emanates from the cup is enough to make me sleepy, but it also helps if you have an upset stomach!
Here are a few other bedtime tea suggestions:
Celestial Seasoning’s Sleepytime Herbal Tea
It is all natural, and contains chamomile, spearmint, lemongrass, tilia leaves, orange blossoms, hawthorn and rosebuds. It actually tastes good too, and I don’t have to add anything to it. They even have Sleepytime Lemon Jasmine Green Tea, Sinus Soother Wellness Tea, and Herbal Vanilla Tea. I’ve had them all, and they taste great, and make you feel relaxed and, best of all, sleepy.
Yogi Bedtime Tea
My boyfriend swears by any and all teas made by Yogi. One of his favorites is the Kava tea. Specifically, the bedtime tea is a great option to drink right before going to sleep. It contains ingredients such as Chamomile Flower, Valerian, St. John’s Wort, Lavender, Cinnamon, and Spearmint. It is very flavorful and will surely bring you to a state of relaxation. The strong blend of ingredients is sure to make you sleepy.
So, now I’m here to tell you that tea is not the only drink that can help you sleep.
The answer is yes.
What most people don’t realize is that the effects of caffeine are SHORT LIVED. This is the reason that most people have to drink multiple cups of coffee a day. However, we may be using coffee totally wrong. Rather than helping us wake up, it may be the thing to help us fall asleep. Here’s why:
Adenosine
One of the main functions of caffeine is to shut down our body’s adenosine receptors, which are responsible for slowing us down. So, when these are shut down, we gain energy. However, once the caffeine has left your body, you are left with extra adenosine receptors, which will ultimately slow you down and make you even more tired than you were before drinking that cup of coffee.
Diuresis
The other thing coffee makes you do is frequently urinate. This causes fluids to quickly leave our body. Drink too much coffee, and too many fluids will leave, causing you to be dehydrated. If you aren’t also drinking water at the same time, this dehydration will cause your blood to thicken and move more slowly than usual, sending less oxygen to your brain, and therefore making you feel tired and drowsy.
So, in reality, coffee can also be extremely beneficial to sleep strugglers. The best strategy to trying this out would be to drink a cup about an hour or two before bed.
To read the article from roastycoffee.com, click here.
Let us know what kind of tea (or even coffee) you like to drink before bedtime!
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