Herbs such as Basil are used in kitchens everywhere to season meals with just the right touch.  But did you know they can be used for your health as well?  Basil has healing properties for both mind and body with some amazing benefits.

Basil, aka Saint Joseph’s Wort, is an herb belonging to the mint family.  Sweet Basil has a strong clove scent due to its high concentration of eugenol, which has antiseptic and anesthetic properties.  Lime and Lemon Basil have a strong citrus scent due to their high concentration of limonene, which has anti-cancer and weight-loss properties.

The eugenol and rosmarinic acid in Basil boost the brain’s production of dopamine and serotonin, which can be mood boosting.  Along with Ginseng, some studies suggest it may help the body adapt to stress and when consumed on a regular basis, Holy Basil can reduce anxiety and associated stress and depression in people with anxiety.  It can also help with mental clarity.  It shows promise in studies for Alzheimer’s disease as well.

Just putting fresh Basil in your salad can help insure the safety of your fresh produce with its antibacterial properties.  Its inflammatory benefits can relieve arthritis as well as many other health issues.

A nice hot cup of Holy Basil tea can help relieve congestion and respiratory issues as well as helping with your mind, mood, and stress.  So the next time you head to the grocery store, consider putting Basil on your list for the health of both your body and your mind.

Cinnamon, as well as many other spices we use to flavor our foods, actually have numerous health benefits when used regularly.  Besides making your oatmeal tastier, cinnamon can help lower your bad cholesterol (LDL) and raise your good cholesterol (HDL) and helps the body burn stored fat.  Regular consumption may lessen the effects of high-fat content meals by reducing the after meal blood sugar, aiding in the treatment of type 2 diabetes.  It helps muscle cells remove sugar from the bloodstream and has a positive effect on blood markers.

This amazing spice has antibacterial, antiviral, and anti-fungal properties and research suggests it may even help prevent the HIV virus from entering cells.  It can aid in clearing lung congestion and, like garlic, it can help fight bad breath and IBS.

Its antioxidant and free radical properties may slow the signs of aging and even slow the growth of cancer cells.  It can help with systematic inflammation, reducing headaches and arthritis and boosts circulation and energy by increasing blood flow.  Adding it to a warm, soaking bath can also alleviate muscle pain.  It can even assist women in the treatment of endometriosis, menorrhagia, uterine fibroids and cramps.

It contains epicatechin, compounds that boost brain neurons that, like dark chocolate, can assist with the treatment of ADHD, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s diseases and improve motor functions.  It can help increase muscle mass from satellite cells that surround muscles used to repair and restore tissues.  Even the cinnamon scent itself can boost brain function as well!

Cinnamon comes in ground powder, sticks, bark oil, and capsules and can be added to apple water, tea, coffee, oatmeal, tapioca, bakery items and endless other possibilities.  Be careful to use Ceylon cinnamon and NOT Cassia since Cassia has a high concentration which in large doses can cause liver toxicity and have blood thinning actions and can reduce the good bacteria in your gut.

With all the health benefits you can reap from regularly adding cinnamon to your diet, isn’t it worth a consideration?

With the holiday season upon us, between shopping, travel plans, and family gatherings, anxiety levels rise and your body reacts by producing a “fight or flight” chemical reaction.  These hormones put your body at greater risk for illness, high blood pressure and a multitude of other health issues.

Although burying your head in the sand and cancelling plans is one response, there are other more helpful ways we can choose if that is not a viable option.  If we apply simple yet effective measures to help the body cope, we reduce the production of those hormones which in turn helps reduce the anxiety that causes it.

Hand reflexology methods can be applied regardless of where you are, as long as you can spare just a few moments.  Each part of the hand is connected to different parts of the body.   The fingertip pads represent glans in the center of the brain.  Applying pressure to them can help with sleep issues such as insomnia.  The next set down on your fingers , corresponds to your neck.  Pressure to the inside area below your pinkies can help clear the lungs, bronchial, and chest.

Even if you don’t follow a reflexology guide, merely gently massaging your fingers and focusing on slower breathing can lower your stress response and help both your mind and body and possibly even head off a panic attack or tension headache.  Once you turn this practice into a habit, you may want to look into a reflexology chart and see what techniques you can use to improve a number of other health issues.

Every little bit you can do to keep you in control of how stress affects you gives you a better chance of enjoying those times, creating the positive memories you can look back on as a treasure.  Don’t you owe it to yourself to give it a try?

When was the last time, if any, that you stood in your outside area (your yard or even your front stoop) and closed your eyes for even five minutes?  What do you remember hearing?  If you closed your eyes at your next free five minutes, what would you hear? Are there birds in surroundings trees?  Can you see them in your mind?  My favorite is our back porch where we feed the birds.  I have even gotten to the point of knowing the voices of a variety of the bird’s sounds such as the cardinals, the tufted titmouse and the white-breasted nuthatch.  At one point, when we had more frequent visits from the hummingbirds, I even knew the sound of their voices when I stopped and listened close enough,  And that’s without looking!

Is the air crisp or warm?  Now that Fall is upon us we have days that start out crisp and warm up without getting hot.  Maybe that’s why so many people  choose Fall as their favorite season.  What do you smell?  There are scents in the air that can bring me back to first grade  when we gathered leaves to iron between two sheets of wax paper that we hung around the class.  It amazes me that throughout the fifty-plus years the same scents can be noticed in the air.  Are there any that you can relate to?  Looking at the answers to these questions would bring to life your other senses to slow your mind down.

Meditation, which is the definition of taking that five minutes, has been around for centuries and can be as simple as a few minutes of pause, to a multi-step training program.  There’s even an app called Calm to help you relax and focus.  No matter which variety you choose, the health benefits are enormous.  The body has an underappreciated ability to heal itself when given the right tools, and meditation is an important one.  Taking the time to be aware of your surroundings can give your body a sense of being grounded.  It will also give you a clearer head.  Have you ever tried to change your frame of mind and then the solution to an issue came to you?

In the fast-paced world we live in, few people take the time to pause.  As a result, health issues are on the rise from the never ending pressure of the rat race we find ourselves sucked into.  The stress caused by this rat race literally causes your brain to emit hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline that when chronically produced are harmful to your entire body.  High blood pressure, heart disease, chronic inflammation, and a weakened immune system are just some examples of chronic stress issues. Unfortunately we very rarely can just quit running the rat race before it kills us.  Many turn to multiple medications for physical ailments that result, and each one has it’s own side effects and consequences.  Before you know it, you’re looking back at the days when your health didn’t get in your way and you enjoyed life more, but there are steps you can take to change that.

Meditation pauses can literally change the chemical production healing chemical to healing chemical such as DHEA, serotonin, and gamma aminobutyric acid, or GABA. DHEA hormones have a direct impact on your lifespan.  Doctors can even use your DHEA levels to determine your physiological age that is a more accurate health age than just your “years”, and the higher the reading, the better.  Meditation can boost your production of DHEA.  Every one of us has the ability to utilize that by spending five minutes (which may seem long) any chance we get.  Your outlook tends to be more positive and your physical being responds in a healing mode.  Tension and anxiety are reduced and as a result, your mind clears and becomes sharper.

The feel of the air, sounds and scents will hold in your memory for years to come.  Nature has a way of healing your body and calming your mind and we are lucky enough to live in an area with plenty of nature’s riches.  Here in New England we have the benefit of the four seasons that have their own unique beauty.  Our scenic calendars can attest to that.  Just taking a slow breath of air through your nose can even tell you what season it is.  Are we in your favorite season now?  What does your favorite season sound or smell like?  Just contemplating those things can use up your five minutes.  If you start your day with this, time won’t seem as limiting.  Open your eyes and your on a more positive footing.  Reboot before you try to be productive.  Now that you’ve invested the time it took to read this, why don’t you give it a try.