Herbal Remedies for Stress Relief: Nature's Calm - NL-092
People suffering from ongoing stress and anxiety disorders often rely on anti-depressants to feel better and go about their daily routine. Long-term usage of such heavy-duty medicines come with several adverse health effects such as nausea, weight gain, excessive sleepiness, dizziness, tremors, headache and sexual dysfunction to name a few.
We all know how ongoing stress impacts our physical, mental and emotional health and may open doors to all kinds of health problems. Chronic stress is known to cause systematic inflammation and increase your risk of heart disease, autoimmune disorders, hormonal imbalances and gastrointestinal disorders. It also creates metabolic disturbances in the body and may cause you to gain weight or develop insulin resistance, pre-diabetes and diabetes.
If you are struggling with stress and anxiety, consuming a healthy diet, sleeping well and exercising regularly are three fundamental steps to get your mental health back on track. Stress reducing techniques such as mindful meditation also help the body and mind to calm down and combat stress and anxiety. You can also benefit from some widely known anti-stress herbs that can naturally help your nervous system to calm down and help the mind to relax, with significant outcomes and no side effects.
Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera): Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) is a very popular herb known for its anti-stress properties. Also known by other names such as Indian ginseng or winter cherry, ashwagandha offers incredible health benefits when it comes to managing stress, anxiety, fatigue and insomnia. It is an adaptogenic herb that reduces cortisol levels and boosts the body’s natural capacity to respond to stress. It also helps you sleep better, which further strengthens your body’s ability to deal with stress.
A good night’s sleep restores overall balance, regulates stress hormones and boosts your immunity, making your body well-equipped to manage stress without feeling overwhelmed. A good night’s sleep restores overall balance, regulates stress hormones and boosts your immunity, making your body well-equipped to manage stress without feeling overwhelmed. Research suggests that ashwagandha reduces stress, anxiety and depression in people with chronic stress. Most of the anti-stress and calming benefits are tied to its anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and adaptogenic properties.
Jiaogulan (Gynostemma pentaphyllum): Popularly known as the ‘Herb of Immortality’, jiaogulan is an adaptogenic herb that helps the body cope with and recover from stress. It works at many levels to calm the nervous system and achieve overall balance in the body. It boosts immunity, promotes sound sleep, combats fatigue, supports adrenal health and regulates stress hormones including cortisol. アマチャヅル is loaded with bioactive compounds that protect the body from oxidative stress and inflammation. In addition, this fascinating herb also encourages the natural production of antioxidants in the body, which further boosts the body’s capacity to fight oxidative damage and allows for better healing, recovery and stress management.
Reishi Mushroom: If you are looking for a powerful herb that can help you fight stress and reduce fatigue, while also support your immunity and heart health, go for reishi mushroom. As an adaptogen and anti-oxidant, reishi calms your nerves, reduce stress and helps achieve overall equilibrium within the body. It helps ease symptoms such as anxiety, and irritability, while promoting deep, restful sleep.
Turmeric: Mostly known for its extremely high anti-inflammatory quotient, turmeric is a popular supplement used to manage inflammatory conditions such as arthritis, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Curcumin, one of the main bioactive compounds present in the turmeric, is responsible for most of the health benefits offered by this yellow spice.
While we may need more high-quality studies to confirm these claims, initial studies do suggest that curcumin (bioactive compound present in the yellow spice turmeric) also helps relieve anxiety and ease symptoms of depression. Curcumin reduces inflammation, boosts serotonin and improves resilience to stress.
References:
Fathi et al. Effect of curcumin supplementation on symptoms of anxiety: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Clinical Nutrition ESPEN. 2024.