Nourishing Infusions

Nourishing Infusions are my absolute favorite way to add herbs to your everyday life. A nourishing herbal infusion is one of the simplest of herbal remedies out there and yet it can be as complicated as our own bodies.

Freshly poured infusions for me and the honey.

This is an easy and natural way you can nourish the body, restore health, uplift your spirits and beautify your physical temple all in one daily quart size jar! You could always take a multi-vitamin, but the truth of the matter is that our bodies are not naturally accustomed to absorbing nutrients that have been heavily processed into pill form. These infusions are made up of herbs that are in the nourishing category, these herbs are often used as food, are safe in larger amounts and are high in vitamins and minerals. The nutrients in these herbs are infused using hot water that is steeped for a longer period of time than your average cup of tea. This is how the water soluble constituents (vitamins and minerals) in the herbs are extracted in the final result. You can choose your herbs depending on your current health condition or your personal body constitution. You can mix and match nourishing herbs and add smaller amounts of medicinal herbs or flavoring herbs. Nourishing infusions also make great Simples(a remedy with only one herb) and in fact I find that is the best way to start, until you find which herb or herbs your body wants and how they effect you.

How to make a nourishing infusion:

What you'll need:

• 1 oz freshly dried herb matter
• 1 quart size jar
• approx. 1 quart of water

As I said before, nourishing infusions are super simple! They are one of the quickest and easiest remedies to make and a necessary foundation of herbal medicine.

First start your water boiling and find your 1 oz of freshly dried herbs. You can get this out of your garden, wildcrafted, from your local herb store or other reputable herb dealer.

Next, add herbs to your quart size mason jar (you can also use a french press), pour water over herbs to the top and cover with lid. It is very important to cover your infusions as to not lose the water soluble constituents or volatile oils in the steam.

Let your infusion steep for at least four hours or over night. Depending on my day, I'll either wake up and make an infusion to drink in the afternoon or make one the night before to have in the morning. It's up to you.

Once infused, strain off the herbs and squeeze all the moisture you can out of them. You can also drink the infusion through a mate straw or bombilla. Drink as is or add some ice, compost your used herb matter.

You can make these daily, every other day or as often as you can. I recommend doing them daily if you can, especially if you are just starting out. This way you can see the effects of the herbs on your body within a couple of weeks.

Infusion iced and ready to enjoy!

The Herbs:

Raspberry Leaf

Nourishing herbs: 

There are many herbs that are classified as nourishing and while these plants can vary widely in how they grow, look or effect our bodies they have a few key things in common. 1- they are generally safe to take in larger amounts for most people. 2- They are often treated as or called food grade, relating to number 1. 3- They are high in vitamins and minerals. Here we'll take a quick look at some of the most common herbs used in nourishing infusions. Keep in mind, this is a simple overview of the herb's affinities and I'll be naming only the vitamins and minerals that are highest in the plant. Also, this is the tip of the ice berg, and there are many other plants not mentioned in this article.

Nettle: 

Nettles are probably the most common herb used for infusions. It is great for most everyone and is high in Calcium, Magnesium, Zinc and Iron. Nettle infusions are great for people wanting to restore vitality, increase energy levels and pregnant and nursing moms. Because of the high calcium and magnesium levels, anyone wanting to support the skeletal system would benefit from using nettle. Nettles can be very drying to the constitution, if you find this is an issue, you can add a pinch of slippery elm or mallow to your infusion.

Energetics: cooling, dry and slightly bitter

Actions: nutritive, diuretic, adaptogen, astringent, hemostatic

Parts Used: freshly dried young leaves.


Oatstraw: 

Oatstraw is a highly nutritive herb great for adding moisture to the body and supporting the nervous system. It is high in Silicon, Calcium, Magnesium and Chromium. Oatstraw infusions are good for people who wish to support their nerves, bones and those who suffer from inflammation and/or wish to lower cholesterol.

Energetics: neutral and moistening

Actions: nutritive, adaptogen, emollient, nervine, diuretic, cardiac, anti-inflammatory anti-spasmodic, anti-cholesteremic

Parts Used: straw and milky oat tops

Raspberry Leaf:

Raspberry makes a wonderful tonic for the reproductive system. Known for it's uterine toning qualities, raspberry leaf also aids in toning the male reproductive system. Very high in Iron, Manganese and Niacin. Use this in infusions if you need reproductive toning or are low in iron. An infusion of raspberry mixed with nettle makes the perfect pre and post menstrual potion. Also great for pregnant and nursing mothers.

Energetics: neutral and drying

Actions: nutritive, astringent, adaptogen, diuretic, anti-spasmotic, febrifuge

Parts Used: Leaves

Red Clover:

Regular use of Red Clover herb will increase overall health, nourish hormonal imbalances and assist with skin conditions. High in Chromium and many other nutrients, red clover is also anti-cancer and has been renowned for it's positive effects on those with various cancers. I often recommend this herb for women going through menopause, those with chronic skin disorders or certain cancers. Red clover is not appropriate for anyone taking blood thinning pharmaceuticals or for pregnant women.

Energetics: cooling and dry, sweet and salty

Actions: nutritive, alterative, expectorant, antitumor, anticoagulant, diuretic

Parts used: flowers and young leaves

Burdock:

Burdock is used as a tonic for liver and kidneys and is considered a blood purifier. High in Iron, Thiamine, Magnesium and Chromium. Regular Burdock infusions are helpful for those who wish to cleanse the body without detoxing, those with cancer or those with hot skin disorders. Burdock can also be helpful for those with blood sugar disorders as the nutrients present help to regulate the blood sugar. Not appropriate for those with low blood pressure.

Energetics: cool and dry, sweet and bitter

Actions: nutritive, alterative, diuretic, antitumor, demulcent

Parts used: root

Hawthorn:

Hawthorn for the heart is what I think anytime hawthorn is mentioned. It acts as a circulatory stimulant and has a great affinity for the blood pressure. Hawthorn is the plant I use most often as an example in plant wisdom, it knows if your blood pressure is low to bring it up or if it's high to bring it down… tell me a pill that can do that. Not only does it help with circulatory disorders but is used as a regular cardiac tonic, improving heart function. Hawthorn is also a relaxing nervine, so is helpful for stress and anxiety.

Energetics: dry and cool

Actions: Cardiac tonic, astringent, relaxing nervine, diuretic, digestant 

Parts used: leaves, flowers and berries

Comfrey:

Comfrey is a great ally against conditions involving sprains, bruising, breaks or other superficial or internal wounds. As a cell proliferant, comfrey is helpful in restoring strength and repairing tissues in all body systems. Comfrey is very high in calcium and so is helpful for those who suffer bone loss or have any bone disorders. People who suffer from ulcers or other internal wounds would find comfrey helpful, as well as those with lung or bronchial issues. There are alkaloids present in comfrey that can pose potential danger to the liver if taken in large amounts and so is contraindicated for those who are pregnant, have liver disease, young children or those with a history of alcohol abuse.  (scientific research on this was not done working with the whole plant but singular constituents and herbalists were not consulted, so conclusions drawn about the effects of using whole plant comfrey is debatable but caution should still be taken)

Energetics: neutral and moist

Actions: demulcent, expectorant, cell proliferant, nutritive

Parts used: leaves

Additional Herbs:

Once you have your nourishing infusion, you can add additional herbs that can help to balance out the energetics of the herbs or to help with flavor. You can add ginger, clove or cinnamon if the infusion is too cooling for your constitution or in the winter months. Peppermint will cool a warming infusion as well as add a pleasant flavor. Herbs like slippery elm or herbs in the mallow family will add moisture to a drying infusion. A little bit of honey is a fine thing to add but I like to keep in mind that the bitterness in the herbs is there to work with our bodies and that action starts with the taste, so when you mask the bitterness, you mask it's action in your digestive system as well.

Warming spices

Medicinal Herbal Assistance:

There are many ways we as herbalists administer herbs or recommend administering them. There are teas, tinctures, salves, cooked in food, eaten raw, etc… A nice way to take some medicines is to add the correct amount to your daily nourishing infusion. For example, if you are already drinking a nettle and oatstraw infusion everyday and you get a cold. Instead of making a separate tea or taking a tincture (which is totally acceptable), you could add some ginger and elderberries or some yerba mansa to your daily infusion until the cold has subsided.

Putting it together:

So now you know about nourishing infusions and how to make them, so it's time to start experimenting!!! My recommendation, as I said before, is that you start with simples. Pick one herb that you would like to start infusing and give it at least a week by itself. You may not exactly enjoy the taste right away as a strongly infused herb can be rather intense, but give it some time and allow your body to develop a relationship with the plant. (All the plants have different tastes and I happen to enjoy most of them) I recommend you do this even before you add herbs like peppermint or ginger to flavor. After you've developed your relationship with the plant and understand how it reacts in your body, you can start altering the recipe. You can make nettle and raspberry leaf infusions for pregnancy or before, during and after your moon cycle. Burdock mixed with red clover make an excellent team against cancer. You can mix and match any of these herbs together. Just remember the 1oz. herb matter to 1qt. water. 

Nourishing infusions are to be treated as a food. They are a regular addition to your diet and lifestyle to enhance your health and make you feel wonderful! It's nice to make them every day but understanding that life doesn't always allow for that, make them as often as you can. I always feel a difference after drinking just one infusion but to see results in how you feel day to day or with chronic conditions, it's important to drink the infusions often. Good thing they're so yummy!!!! If you can manage every other day, I think you'll be feeling really good.

Have FUN!!!

Ok, I've jabbered on about nourishing infusions, about how much I obviously love them and that they are my favorite but you wont understand that unless you go make one, two, three!!! Let me know about the ones you like most or any special things you've done with your infusions. Bless!!!