Spring is long gone, so why are folks still suffering from allergies?! Sneezing, itchy eyes, runny nose and watery eyes are just a few of the symptoms of seasonal allergies. Unfortunately, spring isn’t the only season that can cause those irritating symptoms. Fall is another season that offers a variety of allergy offenders. Ragweed, the biggest allergy culprit, begins to release pollen in August and sometimes lasts until October. Mold and dust mites, stirred up by turning on heating units can also be bothersome.
Now, that we know what causes those symptoms, what can we do to relieve them? Maybe you reach for the medicine cabinet, or maybe you just suffer through them, or perhaps you’ve been looking for a natural alternative to get rid of the suffering. Look no further. Relief could be just a cup of tea away!
Herbal teas are easy to make and offer wonderful therapeutic benefits. This Allergy Relief Tea recipe uses common herbs and brings results from allergy symptoms rather quickly.
Nettle, Red Clover, Fennel, Peppermint, Calendula, Lemongrass, Lavender and Stevia are the herbs included in this tea and are readily available in most areas. Lucky for us, Buchheit Stores offer a great selection of starter herb plants as well as a huge selection of herb seeds! Growing your own herbs is the best way to insure you’re getting quality herbs. Drying you fresh herbs is easy. Either hang to dry, place on a screen to dry or even better, use a dehydrator!
Each herb in this recipe has specific properties that help with eliminating allergy symptoms.
- Fennel, Calendula and Red Clover work to keep the mucous membranes hydrated to prevent infection
- Nettle is well-known for the natural antihistamine qualities it has and has been used in treating respiratory problems throughout history
- Peppermint can help to open airways
- Lavender can help to prevent infection with due to the antiseptic properties
- Lemongrass and Stevia can be added to enhance the flavor of the tea
Medicinal teas should be prepared as a strong decoction (which just a fancy word for really, really strong tea!). Therefore, for an 8 oz. cup of tea, use about 2 tablespoons of each herb. My favorite way to brew this tea is in a mason jar using 4 to 5 tablespoons per quart of water.
When using a mason jar, just put your herbs in the jar and pour boiling water over herbs. Cover with lid and place in refrigerator overnight. In the morning, strain the herbs and enjoy your tea throughout the day.
To brew on the stove, bring water to boil, add herbs, cover with lid and let steep for 10-20 minutes. Strain herbs and enjoy your tea! To obtain the best relief for your allergy symptoms, drink about 32 ounces of this tea each day during allergy season.
Don’t have all of the herbs? No problem! Each herb can be brewed by itself to bring some relief. For example, the Nettle Leaf is a great antihistamine when brewed alone. A tea blend of Nettle, Peppermint and Lavender is also a tasty combination that provides results as well.
Next time the sneezing begins, just relax, enjoy a cup of tea, and sip away those annoying allergy symptoms!
