The Heat Makes You Sleepy
Drinking a hot beverage should also be part of a relaxing bedtime routine because heat is known to make people feel sleepy. Heat can make us feel tired for several reasons.
When you feel nice and warm, this can create a drop in blood pressure, which may make you feel tired. This is because our blood pressure is also low when were asleep.
The body has a natural blood pressure cycle in which it rises in the morning, reaches its peak mid-afternoon, and begins to fall back down during the evening. A warm tea could help that process if you still feel more energetic during the evenings.
Can Tea Help You Sleep
The answer is both yes and noit largely depends on what kind of tea youre drinking and how your body responds to caffeine. In general, tea is great for bedtime. From preparing it to sipping it, tea has a calming effect and the ritual of bedtime tea can help you wind down at night. In fact, drinking tea has become a nighttime ritual for many people. The process of boiling the water, steeping your tea and waiting for it to be ready to drink can be a very tranquil, mindful experience. It helps your brain and body wind down from your crazy daywhich can make preparing the tea as relaxing as drinking it.
Another great thing about incorporating tea into your bedtime routine is that is can get you away from your screens and in the mindset of sleep. By taking 20 minutes to sip a cup of tea at night, you get a chance to decompress and unwind instead of scrolling through social media and exposing your brain to harmful blue light before bed. This can help get you in the habit of meditating and reflecting on your day rather than being in front of a screen before you go to sleep.
Benefits Of Tea Before Bedtime
Herbal teas have a variety of benefits other than just being relaxing. Herbs have been a natural way of treating a variety of ailments for thousands of years.
For example, lemon and peppermint ease digestion, and cinnamons potent blend of antioxidants is known to help control bad cholesterol, regulate blood sugar, and even eliminate gas! I could go on about cinnamon, but Ill save it for an upcoming section.
Theres some evidence that our ability to absorb nutrients increases as we sleep, so if you opt for an herbal tea with nutritional properties, your body may get some added benefits.
If youre drinking it at night, avoid putting sugar in it. The extra calories right before bed will sabotage your weight goals, and the stimulating effect of sugar could end up keeping you up later.
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This Is The Best Tea To Put You To Sleep
Herbal blends often include calming varieties such as chamomile and lavender.
There are a variety of teas that can help with insomnia and anxiety, New York-based internist Dr. Frank Contacessa told The Daily Meal in an email. Chamomile, valerian root, and lemon balm can have calming effects and even relax the muscles.
In one study of postpartum women in the Journal of Advanced Nursing, regularly drinking chamomile tea daily for two weeks led to short-term sleep benefits. And a 2010 study showed that chamomile had many health benefits including treating insomnia.
Just be sure to double-check that your tea is caffeine-free before downing a cup at bedtime. The good news is herbal teas are typically caffeine free, so you should be in the clear if you stick to those blends.
Need some suggestions? One of our favorite best teas to put you to sleep is the appropriately named Celestial Seasonings Sleepytime. It features soothing herbs like valerian, spearmint, and, of course, chamomile to help you hit the hay. Bigelow Sweet Dreams Herbal Tea is another great option with similar ingredients and a hint of rose blossoms to really get you in the bedtime mood.
Chamomile Tea Side Effects
While there are potential benefits to drinking this beverage, you should also be aware of any possible side effects. Potential side effects associated with this herb include nausea, vomiting, and interference with blood thinners. Additionally, if you have a pollen allergy, you should avoid this product because it may cause an allergic reaction.
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Is There Any Scientific Evidence To Back Up The Sleep Inducing Claims Of Chamomile Tea
It is widely accepted that chamomile is an effective sleep aid. So much so that it is found as the main ingredient in a sleepy tea blends, teas that make use of multiple sleep inducing ingredients, to combat insomnia.
But if you are suffering from sleepless nights, and have tried other natural sleep aids that have made similar claims, you have a good reason to be skeptical.
Fortunately, there are quite a few studies that indicate chamomile may be an effective sleep aid.
In 2009 a German study explored the effects of chamomile on patients with mild to moderate anxiety. Patients taking chamomile showed significantly greater reduction in anxiety than those taking a placebo.6
A follow up study in 2012 showed that chamomile also has powerful antidepressant activity, and may be useful in treating depression, in addition to the previously observed anxiety reduction. Perhaps most interesting was that the effects of chamomile seemed to increase with continued use. Your body does not appear to develop a tolerance to chamomile.7
A preliminary study looked at the effects of chamomile and sleep with findings showing that chamomile may be used to treat patients with chronic primary insomnia. Chamomile may be particularly suited to those that who take a long time to fall asleep or those who wake up multiple times across the night, as well as those who have an adverse reaction to their current insomnia medication.8
How Long Should It Steep
You should steep your drink for at least three minutes before removing the bag. This allows enough time for the flavors and compounds to be extracted.
For loose leaf tea, place 1 teaspoon into an infuser, then put the infuser into your mug. After that, pour in boiling water. Steep for three minutes and then remove the infuser.
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Green Tea Fights Aging
Just as powerful as ginseng tea, this extremely popular tea is rich in polyphenols that have effects like reducing inflammation and aiding in the fight against cancer.
Green tea is in fact 30% polyphenols, including large amounts of a catechin called EGCG. Catechins are natural antioxidants that aid in the prevention of cell damage and provide several other benefits.
EGCG, and substances like it can reduce the formation of free radicals in the body, helping protect cells and molecules from damage.
Free radicals such as these are commonly known to play a role in aging and all sorts of other diseases.
This wonderful also tea contains small quantities of minerals that are important for overall health, so it may be worth picking up some green tea when visiting your next local tea shop.
How To Make Sleep Tea
All our teas and tisanes have brewing guidelines, so follow the directions on the pack to make the perfect herbal sleep tea as part of your bedtime routine. Weâll tell you how long to brew your loose leaf tea or tea bag, and at what temperature – so donât worry, itâs easy.
T2 brewing guides also give great tips on which teas like to perform solo and which will happily team up with a little milk or honey. Weâll also suggest which teas can multi-task as a scrumptious hot brew and as a refreshing iced tea to cool you down on hot summer nights.
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Does Green Or Black Tea Make You Sleepy
Yes, if you drank green, black, or white tea, and had too much of it, it can downright tire you out and youll want asleep within the hour.
Bear with me.
If you rarely ever drink anything with caffeine in it, then even the little amount in tea will be potent for you.
We each have our own resistance to caffeine, and that can be made stronger by ingesting more and more caffeine. Its why heavy coffee drinkers can go to sleep after a cup of coffee, and end up drinking more and more coffee.
But if you drink too much caffeine in one go ? Like 3 cups of green tea in an evening ?
The that will overwork your system and youll end up tired, since your blood pressure and alertness were much too high for a short amount of time.
Its milder forms include sweating, heart flutters, and general anxiety.
Some people are more prone to these effects. I for one dont get the shakes after too much green or black tea, but I had my fair share of staring at the ceiling, wishing Id fall asleep already.
When it comes to green tea, black tea, even white tea, these contain caffeine.
This means that they will keep you up, but not as much as a cup of coffee since:
- tea contains much less caffeine than coffee
- L-theanine in tea makes caffeine work differently
- tea is warm, and will relax you by warmth alone
When you brew yourself a nice cup of green tea, youre ingesting antioxidants, caffeine, tannins, and L-theanine. Now, the way L-thenine works is that it binds itself to the caffeine molecules.
How Can You Harness It
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Wake around the same time each day, ideally around 7am.
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Calm your nervous system first thing, this can be with meditation, some gentle exercise or with simple rituals like making your morning coffee or tea.
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Spend some time outdoors in the morning, the light will generate melatonin, a hormone that regulates the sleep-wake cycle.
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Ayurveda suggests carrying out more demanding work first thing. So if you’re working get those spread sheets done first thing and have time for creativity in the afternoon.
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Minimise mental activity in the evening. Try to avoid working, doing life admin or sending those long text messages/ emails just before bed.
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Create a restful routine, think of little habits that can help calm the body and mind before bed. Try running a warm bath infused with epsom salts and soothing herbs, or snuggle up with a cup of Night Time tea.
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When going to bed keep your room dark as this signals ‘sleep time’ for your circadian rhythmn.
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Many people believe that going to bed early is better for a good nights sleep, but what is more important is routine. Try and go to sleep and get up at the same time every day.
If you’re looking to improve your nightly routine to sleep well then try our Sleep with Ease progamme. A free 7-day step by step guide to getting a better night’s sleep, including helpful tips from our herbal experts, meditations and a digital sleep diary to track and monitor your progress.
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The 6 Best Bedtime Teas That Help You Sleep
Good sleep is crucial to your overall health.
Unfortunately, about 30% of people suffer from insomnia, or the chronic inability to fall asleep, stay asleep, or achieve restorative, high-quality sleep (
Herbal teas are popular beverage choices when it comes time to relax and unwind.
For centuries, they have been used around the world as natural sleep remedies.
Modern research also backs herbal teas ability to aid sleep.
This article explores 6 of the best bedtime teas for catching some zs.
For years, chamomile tea has been used as a natural remedy to reduce inflammation and anxiety and treat insomnia.
In fact, chamomile is commonly regarded as a mild tranquilizer or sleep inducer.
Its calming effects may be attributed to an antioxidant called apigenin, which is found in abundance in chamomile tea. Apigenin binds to specific receptors in your brain that may decrease anxiety and initiate sleep .
A study in 60 nursing home residents found that those who received 400 mg of chamomile extract daily had significantly better sleep quality than those who did not receive any .
Another study involving postpartum women who had poor sleep quality found that those who drank chamomile tea for a 2-week period reported overall better sleep quality than those who did not drink chamomile tea .
However, a study involving people with chronic insomnia found that those who received 270 mg of chamomile extract twice daily for 28 days experienced no significant benefits .
How To Sleep Better At Night Naturally
A lack of sleep can leave the body and mind feeling exhausted, creating anxiety and stress. But even if you get to bed on time, it’s not always as easy as simply closing your eyes and drifting off.
Fear not, our Senior Herbalist answers common questions about sleep, and explores little changes we can all make to our daily routine and night time rituals to help get a much better night’s rest.
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Release Of Nerve Cell Receptors
A study published in PubMed supports the claims that hibiscus has sedative and anxiolytic effects. Specifically, it states that the onset of sleep has been reduced while there is an increase in sleeping time, especially when given repeatedly.
Another study further verifies the anxiolytic effects of hibiscus plus its capability of helping prevent depression. It was found that hibiscus contains cyanidin and quercetin, which both stimulate serotonergic and dopaminergic processes in the body.
Serotonin is a type of neurotransmitter that affects the sleep-wake pattern and emotional stability. Increased serotonin is said to help individuals sleep longer and peacefully, while a low level of serotonin will wake you up a few times while youre asleep. You would also have difficulty going back to sleep. Low serotonin level has also been connected to insomnia.
Dopamine, on the other hand, is believed to help manage restless leg syndrome, which sometimes causes difficulty in sleeping and causing you to wake up multiple times while sleeping. That is because of the involuntary movement of the legs and, at times, even other parts of the body.
What Is Lettuce Water
Its lettuce leaves and hot water. Thats it. The hot water wilts the lettuce and it mildly flavors the water. You cant really taste it.
It comes to us via Shapla who heard that it helps you sleep. She took some lettuce, put it in a cup with a bag of peppermint tea, then poured hot water on it and took out the lettuce and tea. Apparently it tastes like nothing and it made her sleepy. I happened to have lettuce in the fridge and at 3 in the morning, after staring at multiple lettuce water tiktoks I was more than ready to give it a try.
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Why Is Chamomile Tea The Ultimate Sleep Aid
Unlike other sleep aids, that only focus on one cause of sleeplessness, chamomile tea can provide relief to a variety of sleep disruptors, including:
1. Insomnia First and foremost, chamomile fights that annoying sensation where you dont feel tired. If you glance at the clock and see that it is well past your bedtime, and you dont feel tired yet, sipping on chamomile tea can induce that sleepy feeling.
2. Anxiety Anxiety and insomnia go hand in hand. Your racing, unwanted thoughts bring with it a night of restlessness. A cup of chamomile tea before bed will help calm your mind long enough that you can drift off to sleep.
3. Depression Drinking chamomile tea before bed can help rid you of that worn-out unwanted companion that clings to you like a cloud of hopelessness. While it wont outright cure depression, it can rid you of these unwanted feelings long enough to fall asleep.
4. Indigestion The cause of sleeplessness that I most identify with. But perhaps thats because I overeat too close to bed. A cup of chamomile tea can treat your upset stomach, reducing muscle spasms and inflammation, so that you can sleep pain free.3
Dark Chocolate The Delicious Superfood
Dont get too excited with this one everything in moderation, of course!
And Im not just referring to any chocolate Im talking specifically about dark chocolate and cacoa nibs, which are both immune system boosting super foods.
Weve already covered free radicals in this article, and dark chocolate is one of those wonderful super foods that helps fight against such free radicals.
It does this with its high antioxidant profile which is believed to neutralize free radicals and protect the body from their damage.
Dark chocolates antioxidants include vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals helpful plant compounds. Much like other immune boosting foods on this list dark chocolate will also help balance cholesterol, blood pressure, and improve heart health, and cognitive function.
You now have a healthy excuse to eat some dark chocolate but, go for the lowest sugar and highest cocoa content varieties you can find to reap the most rewards.
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What Tea Is Good For Sleep
Regardless if you are healthy or sick, proper rest is very important for your immune system. It is even more important if you are sick. There are many people who have problems sleeping, and while this article will cover all the steps to you need to put yourself in the proper state of mind prior to sleeping. A great resource is this article from the Sleep foundation.
While their recommendations do not specifically mention tea, it is step number 2 – practice a relaxing bedtime ritual which can incorporate caffeine free herbal teas. A cup of relaxing herbal tea about an hour or so before bed will greatly assist your body with the wind down process.