Tagged with 'relaxation'

Coping with stress, fatigue, or anxiety? Ashwagandha can help!

Lavender has many uses, and relaxation is one of its primary ones.

Fact: everyone benefits from a good night sleep! If you’re holiday shopping for a night owl or someone whose sleep is disrupted by shift work, insomnia, jet lag, or children, you’re guaranteed to find some gift ideas here. The gift of better sleep is priceless because even just minimal sleep loss takes a toll on your mood, energy, hunger hormones, and ability to handle stress. A combination of any two or more gifts would make a great gift basket, which I personally love receiving!

To Promote Sleep

Sweet Dreams Melatonin Products: For the traveler experiencing jet lag or the loved one who just changed work shifts, melatonin is such a simple remedy for sleep deprivation considering it can take over one’s life! Melatonin is a hormone naturally produced in the body that helps control sleep and wake cycles. It helps reset our internal clock, and may promote sleepiness, lessen the time it takes to fall asleep, and lengthen sleep duration. This product comes in liquid or capsule form.

Dr. Mercola Sleep Mask with Lavender: Good quality sleep is nothing to take for granted, and if you know an on-the-go person, or you are one yourself, you understand there isn’t time for an energy lull during the day. 

This 100% cotton mask combines the benefits of light elimination with the aromatherapy of lavender and chamomile. Wearing a sleep mask at night blocks light from clocks, electronics, and outside lights, helping the body get the uninterrupted, rejuvenating rest it needs. The scent of lavender promotes a sounder, more restful sleep. With over 100 million Americans reporting occasional sleep problems, the gift of better sleep is sure to be well received.  

Boiron Quietude: This natural, homeopathic remedy works for temporary relief of occasional sleeplessness or restless sleep associated with nervousness, worries, or exhaustion. Unlike other sleep aids, Quietude is non-habit forming without any grogginess. It would make a great stocking stuffer for adults and children ages 12 and up.

Hyland’s Calms Forte 4 Adults: This homeopathic sleep remedy is used for the temporary relief of simple nervous tension and sleeplessness. Homeopathy is great because it’s natural, non-habit forming, and you won’t wake up with a foggy, groggy feeling in the morning.

Ancient Minerals Magnesium Lotion with Melatonin is a topical magnesium lotion with melatonin. This is no ordinary lotion. Topical application of magnesium allows the mineral to be absorbed through the skin to be quickly transported to cells in the body. Magnesium is an essential mineral that helps to relax muscles and nerves, and aids in the production and regulation of sleep inducing hormones. Follow a relaxing bath with an application of this lotion and you’re certain to head off into a deep, restorative night of slumber. 

Seeking Health Optimal Sleep is a blend of vitamins, minerals, and adaptogens that naturally promote relaxation. It's melatonin-free, for those who prefer non-hormonal sleep support.

Dragon Herbs Lights Out is an effective and safe herbal formula intended for occasional sleeplessness. The combination of safe herbs help calm emotions like worry, fear, and anxiety, and melts away all your tension.

To Promote Relaxation and Comfort

Medi-Rub Foot Massager: If you want to change someone’s life, this is the perfect gift! This foot massager is wonderful for anyone on their feet all day, athletes, “week-end warriors,” people with fibromyalgia, diabetes, or plaguing injuries, or frankly, anyone who wants to relax the tension in their body. The foot massager is designed to increases circulation and stimulate blood flow in the feet and calves. This gift will be like a never-ending spa treatment for the person who receives it!

Cuddle Ewe Underquilt and Free Pillow: This is a top gift for him or her! The underquilt is placed between your mattress and fitted sheet. It’s made from soft, supportive wool batting wrapped in a breathable cotton cover. As a bonus, the underquilt comes with a cuddle ewe pillow. The combo of the two is certain to transform any bed into a rejuvenating sleep retreat!

Naturepedic Organic Pillowtop: Delight your loved one with comfort and luxury that will be appreciated for years. This 3” pillow top is made of organic cotton, and is ideal for older kids and adults. With its “plush” feel and full body contouring comfort, you’ll definitely give the gift of a great night sleep every night!

To Rejuvenate After an Exhausting Day

Chi’s Enterprise Bath Detox: Eastern alternative medicine meets western science. This all-herbal, salt-free rejuvenating detox extracts waste and toxins through the skin, and all you do is relax in the tub for 20-30 minutes! Sounds like a cool gift to me!

Bath soaks, magnesium therapy, a sleep-promoting mask, luxurious bedding, and even a top of the line foot massager-- these gifts are sure to bring rest, relaxation, and restoration to anyone on your holiday list. 

Happy Holidays,

Kelly Harrington, MS, RDN

Registered Dietitian Nutritionist for Live Superfoods

After a busy holiday season, take some time to relax, reflect, and sip on a nice cup of green tea. It tastes great, you’ll receive some surprising health benefits, and feel relaxed.  

Here are some exciting facts about green tea:

1) It contains a powerful amino acid called l-theanine. It increases alpha brain wave activity, which induces relaxation. In addition, it combines with caffeine in a way that produces relaxed alertness.

2) Green tea contains two of the most potent antioxidants of all the flavonoids. Flavonoids have demonstrated anti-inflammatory, anti-allergenic, anti-viral, anti-aging, and anti-carcinogenic activity. It may lower cholesterol levels and rates of heart disease as well as some types of cancer.

3) It’s a good source of EGCG, a polyphenol that may help reduce inflammation, lower cholesterol, prevent cancer and boost the immune system.

4) Green tea is being studied as a potent weapon against Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. Although the studies differ widely in technique, all focus on ways the polyphenol, EGCG, effect important areas of the brain. They found EGCG prevented the formation of the potentially dangerous amyloid aggregates associated with Alzheimer’s disease. 

5) Green tea offers antibacterial properties. One study suggests drinking green tea enhances the effects of antibiotics, even against drug-resistant bacteria and "superbugs."

6) If you’re looking to sip some EGCG, white and green tea have the highest concentration of EGCG, oolong tea the ‘middle’ amount, and black tea the least. 

Introduce yourself by substituting a cup of green tea for a cup of coffee; you (and your heart) will soon be enjoying the health benefits of this delicious beverage!

In Health and Happiness,

Kelly Harrington, MS, RDN

Registered Dietitian Nutritionist for Healthy Goods

References:

1. Rosenberg, Irwin H., MD. "Green Tea Protects Brain Cells." Tufts University Health & Nutrition Letter 31, No.4 (June 2013): 7. Print.

2. S Borgwardt, F Hammann, K Scheffler, M Kreuter, J Drewe and C Beglinger. Neural effects of green tea extract on dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 66, 1187-1192 (November 2012)

3. Hyunge, Suk-Joon, DeToma, Alaina S., Brender, Jeffrey R., et al. Insights into antiamyloidogenic properties of the green tea extract (−)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate toward metal-associated amyloid-β species. PNAS 2013 110 (10) 3743-3748

4. Rushworth, Jo V., Griffiths, Heledd H., Watt, Nicole T., and Hooper, Nigel M. Prion Protein-mediated Toxicity of Amyloid-β Oligomers Requires Lipid Rafts and the Transmembrane LRP1 J. Biol. Chem. 2013 288: 8935-8951.

Every night before bed, I flip on the switch to the aromatherapy diffuser in my 2-year-olds bedroom. I add 5-10 drops of lavender oil and wait for the sweet, balsamic, floral aroma to fill his room. I was slightly skeptical initially, but I swear by this scent for helping my son relax while we complete his bedtime routine.

Lavender’s high concentration of volatile oils are responsible for its distinctive and pleasing fragrance. The relaxing experience of smelling lavender led to its therapeutic use in aromatherapy centuries ago.  As it turns out, lavender actually has many uses, and relaxation is one of its primary ones.

Other aromatherapy benefits include balancing, soothing, normalizing, calming, relaxing, and healing. Lavender is primarily used either dried or as an essential oil.

Anxiety and Depression

I don’t know many people who like going to the dentist so here’s something worth considering, and so simple…dental patients who smelled lavender prior to their appointment had a decrease in their anxiety levels (1).

A suggestion for improving mood is adding a 3 mL mixture of 20% lavender oil and 80% grape seed oil to daily baths. This combo produces small improvements in mood, compared with baths containing grape seed oil alone.

Calming and Soothing

Research has confrimed lavender produces a slight calming, soothing, and sedative effect when its scent is inhaled. In one study, a blend of lavender and bergamot (orange) oils proved effective for inducing a calm, relaxing effect on a person (2). This could be used before bed, in the car after a long day, at your office desk, or anyplace you want to find your zen.

Insomnia/Sleeplessness

Developing research suggests using lavender oil in a vaporizer overnight, or on a gauze pad left beside the bed, might help some people with mild insomnia. Short-term inhalation of lavender oil has also been used as a sleep aid (3).

Attention women transitioning through menopause; if you’re experiencing sleep problems, one study showed after 12 weeks of lavender aromatherapy, midlife women with insomnia had improvements in the quality of their sleep (4).

If you’re a mom of a newborn, bathing your very young infant in lavender-scented bath oil found babies cried less and spent more time in deep sleep after bath (5).

Agitation

Using lavender to reduce agitation has been studied in patients with dementia, and study results have been mixed. In one study, nightly use of lavender oil in a bedside diffuser for 3 weeks reduced agitation in patients with various types of dementia. However, in another study, continuous use of lavender oil on a pad attached to a patient's shirt had no effect in a small group of patients with advanced dementia. More research needs to be done.

Mix and Match

Lavender combines well with many oils including citrus, clove, patchouli, rosemary, clary sage and pine.

Considerations When Purchasing Lavender

Look for pure essential oils of the highest quality. Important criteria to consider when selecting essential oils include the following: 100% pure and natural, country of origin, growing season, extraction method (ie: distillation, expression), plant part used and the reputation of the company providing the oils.

Bottom Line: Considering we’re in the midst of a busy, often hectic holiday season, lavender would be awesome for staying sane and relaxed when needed.

In Health and Happiness,

Kelly Harrington, MS, RDN

Registered Dietitian Nutritionist for Healthy Goods

References:

1. Lehrner J, Marwinski G, Lehr S, Johren P, Deecke L. Ambient odors of orange and lavender reduce anxiety and improve mood in a dental office. Physiol Behav. 2005 Sep 15;86(1-2):92-5.

2. Hongratanaworakit T. Aroma-therapeutic effects of massage blended essential oils on humans. Nat Prod Commun. 2011 Aug;6(8):1199-204.

3. Wheatley D. Medicinal plants for insomnia: a review of their pharmacology, efficacy and tolerability. Journal of Psychopharmacology. 2005;19(4):414–421. 

4. Li-Wei Chien,Su Li Cheng,and Chi Feng Liu. The Effect of Lavender Aromatherapy on Autonomic Nervous System in Midlife Women with Insomnia. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012; 2012: 740813.   

5. Field T, Field T, Cullen C, Largie S, Diego M, Schanberg S, Kuhn C. Lavender bath oil reduces stress and crying and enhances sleep in very young infants. Early Hum Dev. 2008 Jun;84(6):399-401.