Healing with Holy Basil
Holy basil is a powerful healer but don’t go mistaking it with your regular garden basil or the herb found in your favorite thai dishes. Holy basil is actually from a completely different family; you may also have heard it referred to as tulsi (its Ayurvedic name). The other surprising fact about holy basil is that it’s an adaptogen. When it comes to adaptogens, we are all familiar with reishi and ashwagandha but holy basil tends to fly under the radar — although it’s no less healing.
Holy Basil can do all manner of botanical wonders from controlling blood sugar, minimizing stress, to improving respiratory health, and is definitely worth a starring role in your herb rotation.
Holy Basil’s Healing Powers
1. Controls Your Blood SugarBlood sugar is a big topic in wellness at the moment as we are all starting to realize the power of stabilizing our levels to control not just our appetite but also spikes in our mood. Holy basil has been clinically proven to help lower blood sugar and is especially useful for those that are insulin resistant, diabetic, or suffering from high blood pressure or cholesterol.2. Heals Hormonal ImbalancesAs we mentioned, holy basil is an adaptogen. However, if you’re understandably still a little confused as to what that exactly means for your health, let us help. Adaptogens are heralded for their ability to lower stress holistically — meaning that if you have a chemical, physical, emotional, or environmental stress trigger, holy basil will adapt to bring you back into mental and physical balance. So, if your hormones are out of kilter and creating a stress response in your body, this powerful plant ally will help even you out.3. Acts as an Antibacterial, Antiviral, and Anti-InflammatoryWhen properties are extracted from holy basil’s leaves, they can be turned into tinctures, salves, and oral health healers that can help kill bad bacteria and speed up wound healing. Some suggestions for incorporating holy basil include post-surgery care — as it can speed up your wound’s healing time and also increase its breaking strength. This also makes it excellent for postpartum care and is the reason it’s featured in our Womb Protector™ pelvic steaming herb blend and Womb Protector™ Ritual Bundle.4. Helps Reduce Fevers and Respiratory IssuesIn traditional Ayurvedic medicine, holy basil has also been used to treat common colds, stomach bugs, and respiratory issues. One of the reasons being that it has an analgesic effect that can act as a pain reliever and help alleviate stress caused by fever.5. Minimizes Damage from RadiationEarly clinical studies are even showing that holy basil can have radio protective effects, meaning it may minimize the damage from radiation exposure be they from cancer treatment or environmental influences.Although not as sweet as householder’s basil, holy basil is still very palatable and is commonly found in many medicinal and herbal teas. If you’re after a stronger dose, you’ll be able to find holy basil in most health food stores as a tincture or capsule. Finally, if you’re looking for a more ritual-based practice or are specifically targeting women’s health and wellbeing issues, check out the Womb Protector™ pelvic steaming herb blend!
