Made with an organic herb blend of marshmallow root, ginger root, chamomile, and fennel seed. Works together to help with digestion and to reduce bloating, gas, indigestion, heartburn, and nausea.

For those who deal with ulcers this a great product. The marshmallow helps to coat the mucosa and reduce the inflammation.

1-2 teaspoons in 8-10 oz. of hot water. Let it steep for 10 minutes. Drink as needed after meals.

If this tea is too bitter for you try to steep it for less time.

Ginger (Zingiber officinale)

 I am sure Ginger is familiar to a lot of people. As for me, ginger tea is my all-time favorite tea and I drink it every day. Ginger is primarily used in its rhizome form, but you can also use the fresh stalks in soups and stews (I just discard the stalk afterwards). Ginger is a bulb that grows close to the surface of the ground. I have some growing in my basement under grow lights this winter to see how it does – but I will admit it seems to like the summer sun and greenhouse more than my coolish basement. It is easy to grow in the summer. You can get a piece of fresh ginger right from the coop and try growing it in a pot in some light soil. Just make sure you use a big enough pot so the root can spread.

Ginger is used a lot in tea, but it also gets used in cooking and baking. I use it in a lot of soup, broth, and stir-fry bases. I wanted to talk about it during the winter months because of its warming and stimulating properties. Ginger tea (especially with some lemon and honey) is great for someone who has a respiratory cold, sore throat, or is sick without a fever. You actually don’t want to use ginger internally when a fever is present because of its warming properties, it could make the fever worse. You can make a poultice from ginger root for things like pneumonia, bronchitis, and thick mucus in the chest. It will help to thin out the mucus and loosen it, so it is easier and more productive to cough out. To make a poultice you will want to use fresh shredded ginger cooked in a little water to warm and soften it. Then you can apply to some cheese cloth and place it on the chest. If you do not have sensitive skin, you can apply the herb directly to the skin but be sure you aren’t sensitive first.

Ginger is also great for nausea from motion sickness to morning sickness, to something you ate, or if you have a stomach bug. Ginger can be used for those who have a low appetite as it warms the digestive system which helps with increasing appetite, helping with digestion, absorption of food, and elimination.  Ginger is a carminative and helps move air through the GI track, so it helps with gas, belching, and bloating.

For someone who is physically cold from being outside or even someone who has musculoskeletal pain from the cold/damp weather it helps to get your blood flowing and increases circulation. Ginger tea is great this time of year for people with cold hands and feet where there is lack of circulation and the skin is pale in color.  It is a spicy herb, and some people don’t like it for that reason but even if you could manage a couple of sips, you will feel the difference.  Ginger, because of its strong warming properties, can sometimes be overstimulating to some people. I have to be careful not to drink it before bed because it will actually keep me up.

Ginger can thin the blood and it can interact with medications, so I recommend talking to your doctor first if it is something you want to use medicinally.