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See the published and edited article here: @Head Plus Heart.

Yes, I’m hooking you with the lure of glowing skin but adaptogens offer so much more than a boost to your appearance. There’s a reason why adaptogens have been getting their time in the spotlight, especially over the past couple of years.

My favourite way to get an adaptogenic boost is by making adaptogenic teas, adding a concentrated herbal tincture to my drinks, or adding powdered herbs to my smoothies. Below I’m sharing five of my favorite adaptogen tea blends, all of which are simple to create at home. But first, here’s a 411 on what adaptogens are and how they support our health and even appearance.

What Adaptogens Are

Adaptogens are a class of plants (herbs and mushrooms) that help our body adjust to physical, chemical, or biological stressors. There are more than 70 different types of adaptogens, many of which have been used in Eastern Healing practices for centuries. The term adaptogen was coined in the 1940’s when Nikolai V Lazarev of Russia named them from the Latin word ‘adaptare’, meaning ‘to adjust’.

An adaptogen is a substance that is defined as having three characteristics. These include: lack of toxicity, non-specific action, and a normalising action on the body. Adaptogens by definition are safe for long term use, and act as ‘tonics’, which act to strengthen and ‘tonify’ our biological system. They also increase resistance against multiple stressors by balancing the production of cortisol, our stress hormone, which helps us adapt to our changing environment. In other words, they help bring the body into a state of balance, or homeostasis.

The Right Adaptogen for the Job

With so many adaptogens to choose from (see our list of the most powerful adaptogens here) the best place to start, is to identify areas where your body might need more support. We all cope differently with stress- and with life- and the following plants can be a valuable support to our daily diet, particularly in times of change or uncertainty.

Getting that glow! Adaptogens that improve your hair, skin and nails. Antioxidants from herbs abound and are the most useful quality for improving your healthy glow. Turmeric, Moringa, Nettles, Oatstraw, Raspberry and Dandelion Leaf are packed with antioxidants that make you glow. Amla (Phyllanthus emblica) which is known to have 20 times more vitamin C than oranges is also great for enhancing hair growth and pigmentation, whereas Astragalus may be the best for skin disorders like burns or small tumours. He shou wu (Reynoutria multiflora) can diminish hair loss, and holy basil contains ursolic assic – one of the herbs that impvoes skin elasticity and reduces wrinkles. Hallelujah! Shatavari can be applied topically for sores and also helps improve skin tone and lustre.

Adaptogens that improve your sleep. Relaxing nervines can be the key to a good night’s rest after a busy day, encouraging the body to let down, digest, and unwind. Ashwaganda (Withania somnifera) can help with challenges such as anxiety, fatigue, and insomnia, and is also supportive of the endocrine system – offering a gentle boost to an underactive thyroid, and nourishing the adrenal glands. Other herbs like Skullcap (Scuttellaria lateriflora), Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata), Lemonbalm (Melissa officionalis), Chamomile (Matricaria lateriflora) and Hops (Humulus lupulus) can give a hypnotic effect, allowing for a deeper sleep and improved overall rest.

Adaptogens that improve your mood. Lightening up can be as simple as taking the time for tea. Adding herbs like Rhodiola (Rholdiola rosea), Schizandra, Siberian Ginseng, Damiana, and Lemonbalm, can work together to lift the spirits. Stronger herbs like St. John’s Wort can also be used, but should be taken consistently to garner consistent results.

Adaptogens that improve your mental focus. Tulsi (Ocimum sanctum) and Gotu Kola (Centella asiatica) both belong to a class of plants called nootropics which translated from Greek means ‘acting on the mind”. These adaptogens can help with forgetfulness, mental clarity, focus and concentration.

Adaptogens that support immune function. Ashwaganda (Withania somnifera) is immune modulating, so it can balance out immune responses in the case of hypo or hyper-immune function. Ganoderma spp and Eleuthero can also be used as modulators, but also can have a stimulating effect on the immune system, so are useful at the first signs of a cold or flu. Astragalus on the other hand is best used preventatively, so you might want to skip it if you’re already sick.

Adaptogens that boost energy and stamina. Ashwaganda, Eleuthero, Gotu Kola, American ginseng can be used in cases of fatigue or for restlessness as they help to balance the body’s production of cortisol.

Adaptogens that support women and men’s health. Ashwaganda (Withania somnifera) is rich in iron, which can help women who lean toward anemia due to heavy bleeding. Aprodesiac herbs can also boost libido and Eleuthero, Schizandra, Shatavari, Maca and Damiana can enhance sexual drive. Endocrine function is also enhance by plants.

With Adaptogens, Quality Matters

The key with any of the above is to know that not all adaptogens are created equally and the way a herb is grown, harvested, and the part of it used (flower, root, stem) gives each adaptogen it’s unique potency or lack thereof. Not all products are created equally, either. When you source a plant-based product it’s important to check that all of the ingredients are things you recognize. Note: powders may not last as long as the dried cut/sifted herb simply because they have more of the surface area exposed, whereas tinctures have the longest shelf life due to the fact that they preserve the plant constituents in alcohol. In general, using the actual dried herb, flower, or mushroom vs. powder always makes the adaptogen more powerful.

Herbs for Mood Control and Mental Clarity

Simple herbal remedies can give your mind and mood a boost. One method is to start using one herb at a time (called a ‘simple’ extract), to help foster a relationship and a connection with the plant and it’s medicine. When you find a plant that is synergistic with you, you’ll know it! If there’s no effect, it might not be the plant you need, or the effect may be subtle.

Every plant has unique gifts, and some plants work better for some people.

Living in harmony with our environment is easier than you might think. Just like whole foods, whole plants integrate in our bodies much more easily than most pharmaceuticals, which are often derived to have a hard hitting effect, plants are much more gentle and need to be used more often. Usually two or three doses of a plant per day is required to feel the effects, and some plants may take weeks before their gifts are delivered fully.

Herbs bring health balance gently, guiding us toward homeostasis, and happiness!

Professional practitioners can use plants separately or together in a formula to achieve powerful results. Synergistic combinations make medicines stronger, and some formulas (such as tonics) can be created to support specific bodily functions and systems.

Combinations of plants are best recommended by a professional, who is trained in their formulation.

Herbal Actions Indications Cautions / Contraindications

The GIT (Gastrointestinal tract) is comprised a long tube referred to as the alimentary canal, that runs from the mouth to the anus, and the associated organs that interact with it along the way. The canal is lined with surface epithelial cells, a mucosal and submucosal layer, as well as a muscle layer made up of smooth muscle cells. The layers of the gut have a network of nerves called the ENS (enteric nervous system), which contain over 100 million neurons, similar to those in the brain. The enteric nervous system supports digestive processes with parasympathetic stimulation (rest and digest response), and is inhibited by sympathetic stimulation (fight or flight, or stress response).

Did you know that 95% of our body’s serotonin (our feel-good hormone) is produced in the gut?

If you listen to your gut with a stethoscope, you should hear lots of gurgles as food is digested and broken down through hydrolysis – adding a water molecule to break down food for absorption. The process of digestion begins in the mouth, where the first level of breakdown occurs through mastication.

Mechanical digestion (chewing) adds saliva to our food, which begins to break it down on it’s way to the stomach. Muscular churning in the fundus of the stomach mixing it with gastric juice, an extremely acidic substance that helps turn the food into a liquid substance called chyme. Muscular peristalsis moves chyme into the small intestine through a process of gastric emptying, generally about 2-6 hours after eating, depending on what you’ve eaten (fruit and veg take about an hour, and meat can take up to 6 hours in the stomach to be broken down).

Chemical digestion progresses in the small intestines, where most of the nutrition from our food is digested and absorbed by the body. This process is supported by the organs of the liver, gall bladder and pancreas, which regulate bile secretions and blood sugar levels. Bile is a substance that breaks down fats to assist with their assimilation. The last stage of digestion happens in the colon, which works to reabsorb water, and excrete undigestible fiber and other waste products, including unwanted hormones.

By accurately assessing the location of the problem, we can use herbal support to enhance lots of different phases of digestion!

Is there enough or too little stomach acid? How much bile is being produced? What is the condition of the organs of digestion? What is the condition of the surface of the alimentary canal? How hydrated is the body in general? How often are bowel movements?

Let’s not forget the most important indicator of a healthy digestive system: our DIET. A diet rich in fibre and low in saturated fats and animal protein can improve our gut health the most. Pre-biotic foods, fermented foods, and a diverse diet rich in fruits and vegetables is the best way to enhance our microbiome, and our capacity to have a healthy and functional digestive system.

Herbal Support: Strategize and target your digestive phase and take corrective action!

BITTERS

Achillea millefolium, Artemisia vulgaris, Eupatorium perfoliatum, Humulus lupuls, Tanacetum parthenium, Arctium lappa.

CARMINATIVES

Mentha X piperita, Matricaria recuitita, Melissa officinalis, Occimum sanctum, Foeniculum vulgare, Piminella anisum

ADAPTOGENS / NERVOUS SYSTEM SUPPORT

Hypericum perfoliatum, Avena sativa, Passiflora incarnata, Scuttellaria lateriflora

CHOLOGOGUES / CHOLERETICS

Curcuma longa, Taraxacum radix/folia, Artemesia vulgaris, Dioscorea villosa, Hydrastis canadensis, Silybum marianum

MUCILAGES

Plantago officinalis, Althaea officinalis, Glychyrriza glabra, Ulmus rubra, Aloe vera

ANTIPARASITICS

Artemesia absynthium, Juglans nigra, Szygium aromaticum

LAXATIVES
Aloe vera, Glychyrriza glabra, Coffee arabica, Linum usitatissimum, Plantago psyllium, Senna alexandrina, Rumex crispus

ASTRINGENTS
Capsella bursa pastoris, cinnamomum verum, Plantago major, Ulmus rubra

References:
Waller, Pip. Holistic Anatomy: An integrative Guide to the Human Body. North Atlantic Books 2009
Marciano, Marisa. Evidence Informed Botanical Medicine. Professional Health Systems 2015

Read the edited and published version on HeadplusHeart.com!

Dragging myself through a funk, I languish around the house washing dishes and spot cleaning surfaces. I’m acutely aware of my inner mind’s agitation, and my body is restless and stressed. I mention it to my partner and he says mildly “maybe it’s your hormones?”, and at that moment I feel like I’m going to snap into a rage, and I remember my period is due. He’s right, but how can he be so candid about my hormonal balance when he has NO idea what it’s like to live through mood fluctuations, a heavy menstrual bleed, or the feeling of walking around with an extra 10 lbs of water weight in your pelvis, or a fetus for that matter? Not that men can’t be compassionate (and my partner is), but I’m not sure they truly empathize with the multitude of hormonal issues that women face at so many stages in life. It can be hard to be a woman, but with a few simple tools we can make it easier on ourselves!

From menarche to menopause, there are a plethora of reasons that our hormones can be out of balance in our society. Environmental toxins from pollution in our cities, additives in our cleaning and body care products, use of plastics, unclean drinking water, and even the food we eat can throw our delicate hormonal system out of balance. Daily stress also takes its toll, especially for today’s ‘superwoman’ who may be working long hours, caring for a family, and managing a social life or garden plot. Our ‘fight or flight’ sympathetic nervous system response can mean we neglect our reproductive and digestive needs, and when our system is stimulated by stress and daily demands, we may not be able to take a ‘three day holiday’ each month to rest. Many of us end up surrendering to ‘hormonal controllers’ such as the birth control pill to effectively set and control the amount of hormones in our system, or resort to drastic surgical measures to get things under control (there are cases where surgery is absolutely necessary).

The question is, how can we harmonize with nature to support and optimize our reproductive health, and help us through life’s transitions from maiden, to mother, to crone? What tools are there to help our endocrine system and reduce our risk of hormonal-related problems such as PMS, uterine fibroids, ovarian cysts, PCOS, endometriosis, polycystic breast disease, cervical hyperplasia, cancer, and more? Is there something beyond what drug stores and orthodox medicine may have to offer? While ‘allopathic’ strategies focus on quantitative measurements to take control our blood hormone levels or surgical excision of offending tissues, there are other solutions out there that may have a more qualitative approach to managing common symptoms.

Somewhere between food and medicine there is a field. In that field grows a plethora of botanicals – leaves, flowers and roots – many of which have been used for centuries by native communities to care for, heal, and support reproductive and hormonal health, but this isn’t something that is commonly talked about in our doctor’s offices when we’re getting a prescription for oral contraceptives. It’s something that we’ve had growing at our feet all along – the companion of an ageless old friend, Mother Nature.

It must be noted that diet is extremely important to hormonal health, with excessive amounts of caffeine showing a direct correlation to the development of uterine fibroids, and cruciferous vegetables showing a link to our estrogen and thyroid levels. Fibre plays a huge role in hormonal clearance from the intestines, and a lack of dietary fibre (constipation) can cause reabsorption of these offending hormones, circulating them instead of excreting them. Gut health and our microbiome must be considered with hormone balancing as a major part of our ‘wholistic’ system, not just a sum of its parts. This points directly back to what we are consuming, as regular use of antibiotics can wreak havoc on our natural gut flora. Pre-biotic foods like leeks, onions, garlic, and bananas as well as fermented foods like kimchi, miso or sauerkraut can be great ways to help restore out-of-balance gut flora, and this may be necessary before our hormones can come into balance. The direct link between the gut and the hormonal system cannot be understated.

Symptoms of hormonal imbalance are often related to the balancing act between our main sex hormones, estrogen and progesterone. More often than not, the scale is tipped toward the ‘estrogen dominant’ side, which may affect our cycle length, as well as our endometrial thickness. Phytoestrogens are one plant class that we use to describe plants containing estrogen-like substances, constituents such as isoflavones and lignins (found in flax seed). By acting like endogenous estrogen, these plant substances (although much weaker) are able bind to estrogen receptor sites and effectively ‘turn down’ the levels of circulating estrogen. This can be of benefit in both estrogen dominant and estrogen-deficient states, making them one of the most useful and versatile options for hormonal balancing. Soy is one of our best food examples in this plant class, a wonderful protein-rich legume, best consumed when it’s organic, unprocessed, and fermented, like tempeh. Yum!

Other phytoestrogens include Red clover (Trifolium pratense), which you may have seen growing in a park in your neighbourhood with it’s beautiful pink flowers, Hops (Humulus lupulus) which is found in beer (cheers!), and Chaste Tree Berry (Vitex agnus-castus) which may be the most widely used plant ally for hormone imbalances. When we consume phytoestrogens, our body sends feedback to the hypothalamus and pituitary to alter the production of these hormones at the source, nudging our body back into balance. Chaste Tree Berry in particular can be used for hormonal modulation in the botanical treatment of fibroids (benign uterine tumours), which are common in 20-40% of menstruating women. As a dopamine agonist, it acts directly on the pituitary to reduce prolactin release, which may play a role in fibroid growth. It can also help balance the mood in cases of PMS, reduce mastalgia (breast pain), stabilize the hormonal system when coming off birth control pills, balance irregular menstruation, and help stimulate milk production in new mothers. No wonder it’s the most widely used plant for women’s hormones at all stages.

Not just hormone balancers, other useful natural plant allies work as tonics for our system (improving tone and function). These include Raspberry Leaf (Rubus ideaus), Shepherd’s purse (Capsella bursa-pastoris), Witches Herb (Alchemilla monicola), and Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) for their ability to reduce excessive uterine bleeding (mennorrhagia) by their astringent and tonic effect on the uterus. Black Cohosh (Cimicifuga racemosa) is a primary herb for menopause and a soothing nervous system relaxant, but can also aid fertility, reduce premenstrual headaches/migraines, regulating and normalizing hormone balance, particularly in menopause. Dan Gui (Angelica sinesis) is known by the Chinese as ‘the women’s ginseng’ acts as a powerful anti-inflammatory but has been used in TCM for centuries for women’s health to boost energy and strength following childbirth.

The health of our liver (the largest gland in the body) determines how effectively hormones are cleared from our system, as it is directly responsible for manufacturing the building blocks necessary for hormonal production. Herbs that work on the liver and bile system are called choleretic (increase bile flow) or cholagogue (increase bile volume) and act through what’s known as ‘the bitter principle’. Chammomile (Matricaria recuitita), Dandelion Root (Taraxacum officinalis) the Chinese herb Schizandra (Schizandra chinensis), and Mugwort (Artemesia vulgaris) acts as emmenagogues, helping encourage expulsive activity of the uterus to start or increase menstrual flow. These bitter plants have a direct effect on period pain, especially for congestive, hot-headed irritable conditions as the bitter flavour acts to cool and boost elimination. These herbs also have been traditionally used by herbalists to care for women before and after child birthing, and have a valued role in digestion to support irritable bowel and constipation.

While it may be tempting at first to treat botanicals like drugs, their behaviour in our bodies is decidedly different and milder than our medical counterparts. For this reason, botanicals should be taken more often and sometimes at higher doses to reap their rewards. To do this, we need to start to change how we treat our bodies – boiling the kettle for tea, rather than popping a pill. Integrative medicine is now focused on the collaboration between herbs and drugs, rather than an either/or dynamic which has historically separated fields of quality care in our communities.

Noticing the complexities of the many aspects of our health, I recognize a similar complexity found in nature, and I trust that women’s bodies are naturally connected to the world around us – the phases of the moon, the turning of the tides. Although I suspect men have this connection too, it seems more pronounced in me each month and it makes me wonder if as wise women we have a responsibility to honour this connection. I trust Mother Nature’s care is a gift that can integrate with my body easily, and as a conscious citizen of the planet, I see it as part of my role to include botanicals as a valuable ally for my health. With a slight shift in my perspective, I feel grateful for the gift it is to be a woman!

References and Further Reading:

Gladstar, Rosemary. Herbal Healing for Women, 1993.
Romm, Aviva. Botanical Medicine for Women’s Health, 2010.
Tricky, Ruth. Women, Hormones and the Menstrual Cycle, 2011.