A Sleep-Boosting Iced Cherry-Chamomile Tea
By Claire Georgiou, Reboot Naturopath, B.HSc ND
Sleep disturbances are a very common problem that can leave you feeling exhausted and unmotivated. Difficulty sleeping can also negatively impact your weight and health in a big way. Enhancing your quality of sleep is paramount to a healthy mood, good energy levels and a healthy weight. If you’re looking to improve your sleep quality, try this relaxing herbed ice tea — here’s why it’s so effective:
Tart Cherries contain melatonin which enhances sleep onset, depth and length of sleep.
Chamomile is a relaxing and sedative tea that can be enjoyed nightly to help relaxation and it also has benefits for pain and digestive upsets.
Honey in your tea can give you a slight elevation of blood sugar that allows tryptophan to enter the brain effectively to enhance sleep.
Pineapple has shown in research to enhance and raise serum levels of melatonin levels in males. Oranges also showed promise along with bananas of course.
Ingredients
- 1 cup of boiling water
- 2 chamomile tea bags
- 1 tsp of honey
- 1/2 cup of tart cherry juice (I used Lakewood organic)
- 1/2 cup of pineapple juice
- Handful of ice
Directions
- Steep the chamomile for 20 minutes until cooled. (You can put it in the fridge after the first 20 minutes to help cool it.) Remove the teabags.
- Blend all the tea ingredients in a blender.
- Enjoy with extra ice — I also added some frozen pineapple cubes.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 2
Serving Size: 16 ounces
Substitutions
honey – manuka honey