A Cup of Ginger Tea A Day Will Keep the Doctor Away

As the weather transitions from winter to spring, cold to warmer, wet to wetter, maintaining a healthy balance can be challenging. The unpredictable changes in temperature are common during the Kapha season resulting in a cold, the flu or just feeling sluggish. There are many things we can do to help us during this time like increase our vitamin C intake, take shots of echinacea, oregano oil, and many more. All of these can help, but I am not sure how well they work with the root of where disease begins, our digestion. In considering the importance of maintaining a healthy digestive system to prevent diseases I prefer consuming ginger. The heating element of ginger not only increases the digestive fire needed to maintain an active digestion, but in-turn helps prevent colds. A quick, easy way to incorporate ginger into your daily routine is making ginger tea. A cup or two of fresh ginger tea takes minutes to make and provides the hydrating benefits of water with a little extra zing!

Ginger Tea on the Go!

Time: as long as it takes to boil some water

Ingredients:

• Boiling Water
• 2-3 thin slices of ginger (no need to peel it)
• 12 oz thermos (if larger increase amount of ginger)
• Lime juice -optional
• Honey - optional

Directions:
Pour boiling water into thermos and 2-3 slices of freshly sliced ginger. Cover and steep for five minutes before drinking. Beware it's hot! Add honey and lime to taste prior to steeping (optional).
 

Enjoy!

P.S - If you make yourself a cup of tea every morning, add the 2-3 ginger pieces to it. Get your caffeine and help maintain your digestive fire too. 

 

Tips:

• Ginger is pretty strong, replenishing your thermos with more hot water a couple more times will still give you a boost

• Store ginger in a cool space on your kitchen counter or with your fruits and veggies. Refrigerating ginger takes away its heat in my personal experience

• Ginger travels well! Pack a small piece in your suit case. I get made fun of but it's a great remedy! And helps keep you regular. Many of my sniffles never became colds as I sipped on ginger tea throughout the day. Ginger tea was especially handy on days I had to sit in cold air-conditioned conference rooms for hours

• Like your ginger tea extra spicy? Grate some ginger instead of slicing it or boil ginger and water together for 5 minutes

• Already have a cold? Grate 1/2 teaspoon of ginger, mix with 1 teaspoon honey - and eat! make sure you chew it a bit to release the spices. Do this in-addition to sipping ginger tea throughout the day 

• Taking a little time to treat your body with an affordable, quick, homemade, natural remedy will help reduce or eliminate the time taken away from being sick