Calming Ingredients.

Sipping on a hot cup of high-performance tea doesn't just make it feel as though your anxiety is melting away with every sip.  According to research, it may actually be easing your anxiety on a scientific level.

Although people have been drinking tea for centuries to soothe ailments like sleep, sore throats and anxiety, researchers are just now finding evidence to support these effects.

While more research is needed, scientists have started to identify the major active compounds that give all kinds of tea (both herbal and "true" tea) its mental-health benefits.

We scoured research journals and found 4 ingredients that have a solid foundation of research to support their anti-anxiety benefits.

Chamomile

There's a reason why we recommend pouring yourself a cup of Relax Organic Sleep Tea before bed. Studies show that chamomile, which is a major ingredient in Relax Organic Sleep Tea, has some serious calming properties. In fact, a 2016 study published in Phytomedicine found that sipping on chamomile tea helped those with generalised anxiety disorder reported feeling less anxiety symptoms than those who drank a placebo.

Fennel

Fennel isn't just a great pairing with other root vegetables. We use fennel in both Rebalance Organic Hormone Tea and Enhance Organic Immunity Tea as fennel may help to calm anxiety. A Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology study found that fennel helped to reduce feelings of anxiety in menopausal women with anxiety disorders, although the authors say more research is needed as the study was small.

Ashwagandha

Ashwagandha has been widely used in Ayurvedic medicine for centuries. More recently, this root has started to appear in teas due to its recognition as a treatment for anxiety and stress. A review of 5 human trials published in The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine found evidence to support that ashwagandha has significant anti-anxiety properties. We are yet to use ashwagandha in our high-performance tea but it is high on our list of ingredients to try. You can get ashwagandha in powder form to brew as tea or add it to smoothies and other tonics.

Green Tea

As detailed in our blog post Catechins Anyone?, tea is rich in catechins and antioxidants such as epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) that may help people feel calmer and even improve memory.

Green tea, specifically, is a good source of L-theanine, an amino acid that has been found to reduce anxiety. For example, one Biological and Pharmaceutical Bulletin study found that students who drank green tea experienced consistently lower levels of stress than students in a control group. Interestingly, the study used a form of green tea that had only 1 milligram of caffeine. Most green teas contain approximately 45 milligrams of caffeine per serving. All of our high-performance teas are caffeine-free.

For more reasons to pour yourself a cup, don't miss our recent post: Your Health & Tea.

Kerri Imrie has a Diploma in Business Management and is the founder of Tea Now.

Kerri is passionate about holistic health. Her goal is to empower people to take control of their health and show that the quality of our lives is directly linked to how we treat our bodies and minds. You can follow her @teanow.au

Kerri is not a qualified health practitioner. Always consult a health professional before deciding if a health product is right for you.