Article by Torsten Peterson, Wellness Assistant Manager
This week we just passed one of the hottest heat waves of the summer so far, and we are sure to see more before the end of the season. Many of us don’t tolerate it very well, and it can significantly impact our quality of life. Dealing with heat can also worsen inflammation, gut health concerns, and heart and kidney concerns. Coping with sunburns makes it even harder to regulate our heat, as well as adding to the inflammation our body may already be addressing. Not to mention, hot weather aggravates our mood and can make us feel sensitive and irritated, or even worsen existing mental health concerns.
There are a few herbal and mineral categories that are especially helpful in supporting us through above-comfortable temperatures.
Hydration strategies –
Demulcent herbs prepared in an overnight infusion can be incredibly supportive to helping the moisture of our body stick around longer and ensure we don’t become dehydrated from the amount of sweating required at this time. Demulcent herbs contain both minerals and long chain polysaccharides that help to replenish the fluids of the mucous membranes and support the kidneys, which are working harder when we are sweating and losing moisture through heat exposure. Overnight infusions of moistening demulcent herbs such as marshmallow and linden are excellent choices. Overnight is best since demulcent herbs extract best in room temperature water, so you’ll get the most out of your herbs if they are prepared this way. I usually use 2-4 tablespoons of marshmallow root in a quart of water, 3-4 tablespoons of linden, or a combination. When it comes to marshmallow, you can work with the shredded or powdered root.
Some people like to work with a ready-made preparation of marshmallow such as Town Farm Herbal Electrolyte Mix or Avena Botanicals Marshmallow Elixir.
While many of us are looking to limit sugars, adding a small amount of your preferred sweetener actually increases the hydrating capacity of your beverage and improves absorption of electrolytes. Maple syrup is an excellent choice as it does contain some trace minerals.
Mineralizing herbs such as nettle, raspberry leaf, oatstraw (also demulcent), red clover, alfalfa, etc. can be excellent choices to diversify the mineral profile of your hydrating beverage. Some of these herbs like nettle and alfalfa can be a little on the drying side on their own due to diuretic properties, but this can be balanced by blending with a demulcent herb like oatstraw, linden, or marshmallow. Mineralizing infusions are an excellent way to replenish mineral loss from sweating. Increased stress also depletes our minerals even without sweating, so the busy season is an excellent time to think about mineral rich herbs and foods. If you are sweating heavily, incorporating seaweeds such as Atlantic Holdfast Soup Mix into grain dishes or eating foods like cold seaweed salads is also another excellent way to replenish minerals.
Premade electrolyte preparations are of course also an excellent way to make this simple, with products such as the previously mentioned Herbal Electrolyte Mix or Trace Minerals Concentrace. Keep in mind these products are desalinated, so if you have especially salty sweat or exercise heavily, you may want to add a pinch of Himalayan or Real Salt to your beverage as well.
Citrus fruits are well known for their ability to assist with electrolyte absorption and for providing trace copper. I also simply find some lemon juice incredibly helpful for helping me adjust to the flavor of saltier water. Now I’m so used to it that I prefer the taste of my mineralized water by far.
Diaphoretic supports –
Diaphoresis is another word for sweating. Relaxant diaphoretics reduce tension and allow for sweating to occur with less effort. These herbs include members of the mint family, with some like peppermint especially famous for their support in breaking fevers, but this support in releasing heat can support us in hot weather too. One of my favorites is lemon balm who supports and soothes disrupted digestion, while also pacifying an irritated mood, relaxing tension in the body, and relaxing the pores to be able to release heat. I like to add it my mineralizing iced tea or take it as a glycerite such as Avena Lemon Balm Glycerite or Maine Medicinals Relax and Restore. Relax and Restore includes Lemon Balm, Tulsi, and Skullcap – all relaxant diaphoretic members of the mint family, along with relaxant Passionflower and stabilizing Schisandra which has been traditionally taken to support energy levels and prevent fluid loss.
Other relaxant diaphoretics include strongly relaxant bitter herbs like motherwort (also a mint) and blue vervain. These are perfect choices if you are struggling to handle the heat as well as struggling to handle the stress of the season. I almost wrote this week’s article all about Angry August and the way this time of year gets to our moods. Blue Vervain is blooming all along our roadsides, and I can honestly feel it calling out as a reminder for all of us Mainers to breathe, relax, and remember to cool down. The strong bitter flavor of the medicine communicates to our digestion and nervous system to pivot and rest, while also relaxing the pores and allowing for a cooling sweat.
Directly cooling herbs and foods –
Cool as a cucumber is a phrase so old it’s corny, but in the heat of the moment we often forget what we already know is good for us! Same goes for intensely hydrating foods like watermelon. These foods will help us replenish fluids and electrolytes while also directly cooling us.
I mentioned citrus above, but other sour herbs can be incredibly refreshing here too – while the sour flavor stimulates digestion, the overall impact on the body is cooling. Other sour flavored herbs like sumac, hibiscus, and rosehips can be incredibly refreshing and cooling to the system. The astringency of sumac, hibiscus, and rose can also help us to manage fluid loss and soothe gut irritations.
My favorite short-term response to cool myself down by far is actually not internal – it’s rosewater. I keep a small rosewater spray bottle in my car and in the painful moment when I sit down and feel like I’m in the sauna, I spritz myself for immediate relief. Rose is a well renowned cooling herbal support, mentioned in some of the oldest herbal texts available to us including the Charaka Samhita.
Please keep safety in mind. Take frequent breaks when working in the sun and encourage coworkers to take breaks. If you work with above mentioned herbs, do so frequently, every hour at the least. Most importantly, know the signs of heatstroke.
Review this resource from Mayo Clinic if you don’t know how to recognize the signs of heatstroke in yourself or others.
Disclaimer:
We are not doctors. The information provided in this article is for educational purposes only. There are no state or federal authorities in the U.S. that license herbalists. The staff at Blue Hill Co-op do not prescribe, offer medical opinions, or practice medicine. Please reach out to your primary care provider or seek emergency support if you require medical care.
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