Most Hindu people consider Tulsi sacred and use it in religious rituals too. Tulsi plant is grown and worshipped in many Indian homes. And it is commonly used in home remedies, especially for fighting cold and cough. Now, even scientific research is proving Holy Basil’s beneficial effects on physical and mental health.

What do scientific studies say?

Hundreds of scientific studies have examined the medicinal properties of Tulsi through in vitro, animal and human experiments. As per the National Center for Biotechnology Information, it has been found that Tulsi has a unique combination of actions that include: Antimicrobial (including antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, antiprotozoal, antimalarial, anthelmintic), anti-diarrheal, anti-oxidant, anti-cataract, mosquito repellent, anti-inflammatory, chemopreventive, hepato-protective, radioprotective, neuro-protective, cardio-protective, anti-diabetic, anti-hypertensive, anti-hypercholesterolemia, anti-carcinogenic, anti-pyretic, anti-allergic, analgesic, immunomodulatory, memory enhancement, central nervous system depressant, anti-asthmatic, diaphoretic, anti-tussive, anti-thyroid, anti-fertility, anti-emetic, anti-spasmodic, anti-arthritic, anti-ulcer, adaptogenic, anti-stress, anti-leukodermal and anti-coagulant activities. All these pharmacological actions help the body and mind against a wide range of chemical, physical, infectious, and emotional stresses. And they also help in restoring physiological and psychological functions.

Benefits of Tulsi

Tulsi is considered a potent adaptogen and its unique combination of pharmacological actions help in promoting wellbeing and resilience. (An Adaptogen is a herb that can help with the adaptation to stress and the promotion of homeostasis.) As per some studies, Tulsi (Ocimum sanctum Linn) can help in relieving physical, chemical, metabolic and psychological stress. Tulsi also has a broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. This includes activity against a range of human and animal pathogens which suggests it can be used as a hand sanitizer, mouthwash, and even water purifier. Holy Basil can also help in healing wounds.

Daily consumption of Tulsi (Holy Basil) can reduce the risk of infections and promote general health and wellbeing. It may also give luster to the complexion, sweetness to the voice, and enhance beauty, intelligence, stamina, while relieving stress and anxiety. It is said to provide relief in a range of conditions including anxiety, asthma, cough, fever, dysentery, diarrhea, indigestion, vomiting, arthritis, eye diseases, otalgia, hiccups, gastric, cardiac and genitourinary disorders, skin diseases, back pain, ringworm, insect, snake and scorpion bites and malaria.

1. Tulsi is Anti-Inflammatory:

The anti-inflammatory properties of Tulsi can help in a variety of diseases and disorders. It has several enzyme-inhibiting oils, including eugenol, linalool, and citronellol. Tulsi helps in reducing inflammation, the risk of heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and inflammatory bowel conditions. Chewing of Tulsi leaves may give relief in fever, headache, cold, cough, sore throat, and flu.

2. Rich in Disease-Fighting Antioxidants:

Tulsi essential oil can help fight free radical damage and protect DNA structure and cells. It has two water-soluble flavonoid antioxidants – orientin and viceninare. These help in strengthening the immune system, protecting the cellular structure, DNA. And they may also delay the effect of skin aging.

3. Skin Care:

Tulsi essential oil or Holy Basil essential oil is an excellent skin cleanser. Its ability to clean the skin from within makes it a good choice for people with oily skin. It helps in removing dirt and impurities that may block skin pores. Tulsi has strong anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties that can prevent the formation of acne. Some people also use Tulsi leaves for treating ringworm and several skin disorders. Regular use of Tulsi essential oil, paste of Tulsi leaves, or ointments can prevent premature aging and keep the skin healthy.

4. Heals wound and protects against infection:

Tulsi has antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, and analgesic (a painkiller) actions. Extracts made from Tulsi leaves may help in healing wounds sooner. It may also help in preventing the wound from getting infected. Experimental evidence shows that Tulsi can increase wound-breaking strength and speed up wound healing. Tulsi also has anti-ulcer and ulcer-healing activity. Some people even use Tulsi after surgery to accelerate healing and protect their wounds from infections.

5. Home Remedy for Cough:

Indians commonly use Tulsi to get relief in cough and cold. You can add Tulsi leaves while brewing tea. Indian households use different recipes of Tulsi leaves or flowers decoctions with ginger, cloves, black pepper, black cardamoms, etc. to soothe cold and cough and fight respiratory infections. Some people take Tulsi leaves’ juice (a few drops) and honey for relief in cough, cold, and sore throat.

6. Benefits of Tulsi include Detoxification:

Many of the physiological benefits of Tulsi result from its ability to help with the body’s internal housekeeping and protection of the body from toxin-induced damage. This may be because Tulsi, especially Krishna Tulsi (black/purple varieties), has a high content of phenolic compounds and antioxidant properties. Laboratory studies suggest that Tulsi can protect against toxic chemical-induced injury by increasing the levels of anti-oxidant molecules and enhancing the activity of antioxidant enzymes.

7. Stress Buster:

Benefits of Tulsi include its excellent ability to fight stress. Tulsi can help in reducing the body’s toxicant stress, physical stress, metabolic stress, and mental stress. Tulsi essential oil may reduce depression and anxiety too. By stimulating neurotransmitters that regulate the hormones, Tulsi may help you feel more relaxed, happier, and energetic. You can use Tulsi essential oil, drink Tulsi tea, or just chew 10-12 Tulsi leaves to reduce your stress.

8. Immunity Booster:

Tulsi has anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal qualities that can protect against many infection-causing pathogens. It may also boost immunity and help protect against infections. Many experts recommend Tulsi pills, Tulsi tea, water boiled with Tulsi leaves for boosting immunity. And Tulsi may be effective against malaria and dengue fever as well.

9. Tulsi can lower cholesterol and prevent heart diseases:

Holy Basil leaves can lower the cholesterol level in the body and help prevent cardiac diseases. By reducing metabolic stress, it can also help with weight loss, and managing cholesterol levels. Animal studies have shown fresh Tulsi can lower “bad” cholesterol (LDL-cholesterol) and increase “good” cholesterol (HDL-cholesterol). One animal study has also shown that the oil in Holy Basil (eugenol) can lower stress-induced cholesterol levels. Tulsi leaves can act as a tonic for the heart.

10. Lower your blood sugar:

Tulsi is also beneficial for people with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes. All parts of the Holy Basil plant can help reduce blood sugar. Tulsi can help in reducing diabetes-related problems like weight gain, hyperinsulinemia, or excess insulin in the blood, high cholesterol, insulin resistance, and hypertension.

How to use Holy Basil for better health?

As you can see, there are many benefits of Tulsi or Holy Basil. The list above is only a small glimpse of them. So, include Tulsi in your healthcare regime. If you can grow a Tulsi plant in your garden, you can take advantage of the fresh Tulsi leaves.

You can make Tulsi tea easily. Or you can make Tulsi concoction with ginger, cloves, black pepper, black cardamoms. It is called Tulsi Kadha in Hindi. If you google, you’ll find many recipes of Tulsi Kadha. You can also make a paste of Tulsi leaves for skincare. Mix it with aloe vera to get a soothing face mask. You can also use Tulsi essential oil to relieve stress, headache, etc. Tulsi supplements are easily available too in the form of pills or capsules.

However, before consuming fresh Tulsi or Tulsi supplements, consult your doctor. If you take Tulsi supplements, read the directions on the label carefully and don’t take more than the recommended dosage.

The post The Health Benefits of Tulsi that make it the Mother Medicine of Nature appeared first on WellnessHub Nourishing Your Mind, Body, and Soul.

Experts fear that low and middle-income countries like India will see a higher rate of anxiety and depression during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. While the immediate necessity is to address the respiratory infections due to COVID-19, the growing threat of stress, anxiety, depression both in the community and among health workers must not be ignored. Once the immediate crises is over, we would need systems in place to assess and treat individuals who need mental health care.

If the COVID-19 pandemic is making you anxious too, don’t ignore it. Instead, make efforts to manage your anxiety and feel better. The following few suggestions can help.

How to manage your stress and anxiety during COVID-19 pandemic

1. Acknowledge your feelings:

First of all, acknowledge and accept that you are feeling anxious, stressed, or depressed. Hiding your fears and keeping up a bold face might do more harm than good. Anxiety can increase your worries manifold. It can disturb your sleep patterns and make it difficult to concentrate on work. Stress and anxiety can also lower your immunity and worsen preexisting health problems. And they can cause an increased dependence on alcohol, tobacco, or other drugs.

It is, therefore, important to acknowledge your fears and anxiety. Don’t feel guilty about it. The world is facing an unprecedented problem, and getting worried about it is understandable. But you need to manage this worry and prevent it from turning into a mental health problem.

2. Limit your consumption of news:

At a time when people are locked within homes, consumption of news has increased manifold. You want to know the latest count of COVID-19 cases in your country. You want to know the rate of fatalities. And you want to know every step that the government is taking to curtail this pandemic.

But so much consumption of news can have its adverse effects. Some news sources might even sensationalize a news story, creating unnecessary panic among people. Avoid all such news sources. Do not believe the content on social media without checking its veracity.

The best strategy would be to choose one or two trusted news sources and resist the temptation of hunting for the pandemic stories wherever you can find them. Also, limit the times you access the news sources. Watching the news one or two times in a day is enough for you to stay informed while preventing unnecessary anxiety. Instead of consuming news all day long, watch something entertaining and fun.

3. Educate yourself:

If you fear you might have COVID-19, educate yourself about its symptoms. But don’t spend hours googling about it. Instead, check out the trusted sources like government or WHO websites. Watch your symptoms calmly. And contact your doctor only when necessary. The healthcare system is already overloaded in most countries. So disturbing your doctor every time you cough or sneeze is not a good idea.

4. Make healthy lifestyle choices:

When you stay inside your home all day and for so many days, it is easy to get languid and listless. But you must stay active and maintain a healthy lifestyle. This includes taking a nutritious diet, exercising regularly, maintaining good personal hygiene, and keeping your home clean and well ventilated. Avoid bad habits like smoking and too much alcohol consumption. Think positive thoughts and adopt healthy habits. Take sufficient sleep and try to relax. Yoga and meditation can help reduce your stress and anxiety.

5. Spend time with family:

Spending quality time with your family will help you relax. Our busy lifestyle often demands the sacrifice of family time. If your area is under lockdown, it is a perfect opportunity for you to enjoy time with your family. Turn off the TV, put your phones and iPads aside, and talk with your dear ones. Share jokes, reminisce good memories, and enjoy family time. Even if you are in self-isolation or home quarantine, you can still converse with your family members. Just follow the necessary precautions recommended by your doctor.

6. Stay at home, but be social:

Staying locked at home no longer means being cut off from the world. And social distancing does not mean cutting down your connections with your loved ones. Instead of spending hours reading worrying news stories on your phone, use it to talk to your colleagues, friends, and relatives. Social interactions are beneficial for reducing stress and anxiety. So talk to friends, renew old bonds, share some laughs and motivating messages, and keep the anxiety and depression away.

7. Do things you enjoy:

You will feel less worried if you engage yourself in something you enjoy. Activities like singing, dancing, gardening, handicrafts, etc. can keep you engaged and make you feel happy. If you don’t have a hobby, pick up one now.

You can also make the best use of Coronavirus lockdown time by gaining new knowledge or skill. You can start some online courses. Or even YouTube videos can teach you cool new skills like Do-It-Yourself crafts.

In short, do something fun, and let it help you forget your worries.

8. Talk to your children to ease their anxiety:

It’s not only the grownups that are feeling anxious about the COVID-19 pandemic. Even children and teenagers are experiencing anxiety. When parents get worried, children notice it and feel worried too. And if a family member is affected by the Coronavirus, children can feel scared and stressed out. Parents must understand this and talk to their children about the Coronavirus problem. Listen patiently to all the fears and questions of your children. Explain to them the details about the COVID-19 in age-appropriate language. Remove their worries. You want to keep your children safe from Coronavirus. Reduce their worries about it too.

Conclusion:

Anxiety and stress can affect your immunity and aggravate your preexisting health issues. While a dangerous virus is spreading over the world, it is vital that you stay physically and mentally strong. So, avoid the things that are increasing your worries. And engage yourself in activities that can make you healthier and happier.

We hope the tips mentioned above will help you manage stress and anxiety during COVID-19 pandemic. If you continue to feel troubled, consult a doctor. Also, look out for any disturbing symptoms in your family members. These might include the person alienating himself or herself from all others, showing increased anger or mood swings, loss of appetite or difficulty in sleeping. If you notice any marked change in someone’s behavior, don’t ignore it. If you and your family can’t help such a person towards better mental health, seek medical advice.

The post How to manage your stress and anxiety during COVID-19 pandemic? appeared first on WellnessHub Nourishing Your Mind, Body, and Soul.