Poor sleep can lead to diabetes, obesity and heart problems. Try these herbal teas to sleep better

Benefits of good sleep: During the night, your heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure undergo natural cycles that are essential for your cardiac health (Image: Canva)

"Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise." This timeless wisdom by Sir Benjamin Franklin captures the profound link between a balanced sleep routine and our overall well-being. Without doubt, scientific evidence, too, supports that maintaining a consistent sleep pattern leads to better health outcomes.

Studies show that insufficient sleep increases the risk of obesity, cardiovascular problems, and infections. During the night, your heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure undergo natural cycles that are essential for your cardiac health. Sleep also triggers hormone release that repairs cells and regulates energy metabolism, which may affect your body weight.

Sleep has a deep impact on both our brains and bodies. Dr Michael Twery, a sleep expert at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), explains that sleep affects many aspects of our physiology, such as hormones for growth, stress, appetite, and even the immune system. According to Dr Merrill Mitler, a sleep expert and neuroscientist at NIH, research suggests that poor sleep quality can cause diabetes-like problems, even in otherwise healthy individuals. These findings highlight the importance of finding ways to improve our sleep quality.

If you have trouble sleeping and are looking for natural remedies, you may want to try these soothing herbal teas for a restful night.

Chamomile tea: Chamomile's dried flowers contain terpenoids and flavonoids, compounds that give it many health benefits. Chamomile has various uses, but making herbal tea from it is the most popular one. It is believed that drinking chamomile tea before bedtime helps you achieve a more refreshing sleep. Additionally, it helps treat allergies, ease muscle pain, relieve menstrual issues, and address a wide range of other health concerns.

Lavender tea: Lavender is often recommended as a natural way to cope with insomnia and enhance your sleep quality. A warm cup of lavender tea gives out a gentle aroma and has a relaxing effect on your nervous system. Lavender tea may also help reduce stress, anxiety, depression, and headaches. Its components such as linalool and linalyl acetate work together with the brain to help you relax and fall asleep more easily.

Valerian root tea: Drinking a cup of valerian tea just before calling it a day can help you fall asleep more quickly. Valerian, a plant from Europe and Asia, contains relaxing elements that aid sleep. The ancient Greeks, Romans, and even later generations have used valerian as medicine. During World War II, it was used to reduce stress during air raids. Alongside, valerian has also been tried for stomach problems, seizures, and attention difficulties.

Lemon-ginger tea: Sipping on this soothing herbal tonic, right before bedtime, could help you relax, de-stress, and ease into a peaceful sleep.

Tulsi tea: Devoid of caffeine, Tulsi tea helps you fight stress and promotes restful sleep, thus making it easier to relax and calm down.