A Favorite Herb: Holy Basil/Tulsi
Every single night I drink tulsi rose tea. I even take it with me when I travel, that’s how much I love it. Tulsi is a sacred Ayurvedic herb that also goes by Holy Basil. It’s latin names are *Ocimum tenuiflorum* (or *Ocimum sanctum* L.) I’ll just call it Tulsi and explain why it’s also called, “Elixir of Life” given all it can do in the body for healing practices. I, personally, like the calming aspect of it. Tulsi is in the mint family but it doesn’t taste minty. Not to get nerdy but in human, animal and cell studies, it has been shown to be adaptogenic, metabolically supportive, modulatory to the immune system, anticancer, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, hepatoprotective (liver), antimicrobial, and have antidiabetic effects(1). Whew! That’s a lot!
Busting Melatonin Myths
Let’s bust some myths around the powerful hormone, melatonin! There are a lot of controversies out there that I want to clear up! Starting with the facts, melatonin has multiple jobs in your body. While it’s called a hormone, it’s a powerful antioxidant and has antiviral, anti-inflammatory and heavy metal binding properties. In fact authors in this paper(1) state, “Melatonin has been effectively used to combat oxidative stress, inflammation and cellular apoptosis and to restore function in a number of human trials.”