Lemongrass is a familiar ingredient whose benefits extend beyond cooking. It is known to promote numerous health and cosmetic benefits to a person. It is widely used to impart a delicious taste to your curries. In addition to it, lemongrass also possesses several remarkable therapeutic properties.
The healing oil made of lemongrass helps soothes joint pain. An aromatic herbal tea made from this super ingredient stimulates the mental well-being of a person. Let us learn more about the benefits that you can get by incorporating lemongrass into your diet.
About Lemongrass
Lemongrass is a therapeutic herb that is grown majorly in South India and Sri Lanka. It is a grassy and tropical plant that is used in the preparation of herbal medicine. The stalks of the plant are used in Thai cooking and as a bug repellant. This plant has got long leaves. It has the inflammation-fighting components that contain isoorientin, swertiajaponin, and chlorogenic acid.
Lemongrass is also a folk remedy that promotes sleep, lessens pain, as well as enhance immunity in a person. Lemongrass oil is the extract of the stalks and leaves of the lemongrass plant. It has got a citrusy and powerful scent.
Due to potential health benefits, this oil is also added in the preparation of personal care products. When used in aromatherapy, it lessens stress, uplift the mood, and freshens the air. Due to its refreshing and citrus accent, it is also added in the preparation of lemongrass tea.
Attributes Of Lemongrass
Lemongrass has got valuable cleansing, antifungal, antioxidant, antifungal, astringent, and anti-inflammatory properties. The leaves of lemongrass are equally healthy. The distillation of lemongrass produces lemongrass essential oil. More than just being inexpensive, the oil is also blessed with a myriad of miraculous plant-based compounds.
The oil has got a citrus accent that possesses bountiful hair and skin fortifying benefits. Due to its benefits, the oil is added to the preparation of beautifying soaps, face washes, lotions, aromatherapy oils, and hair conditioners.
Health, Skin and Hair Benefits of Lemongrass
Lemongrass amazingly benefits your overall health including skin and hair. It reduces excess cholesterol levels and gives relief from bloating. It is widely used to treat hair related issues and to get relief from skin problems. Let’s explore some of the benefits of Lemongrass –
1. Refreshing Drink that Treats Digestive Issues
Have you tasted Lemongrass tea? It is very popular drink in many parts of the world. It is effective in the cure of bloating, indigestion, and constipation.
Lemongrass tea has the citrus smell and taste of lemon. It is sweeter and milder in taste. Add it to cold water to make a delightfully refreshing drink. This delicious beverage boosts digestion and relieves the scorching heat of the summer season. So if you are suffering from digestive issues then do give this drink a try and find the benefits yourself.
Lemongrass tea is a natural and effective remedy to cure a wide range of stomach issues easily. Here are the instructions to prepare this digestive drink.
- To prepare the drink, you need to add some stalks of fresh or dried leaves of lemongrass to two cups of boiling water.
- Now steep it for many minutes.
- Strain the drink.
- If you want you can add some sugar in it for flavor, but it is optional.
- Relish its flavor.
Drink this beverage two to three times a day. Make sure you don’t exceed this limit as its overconsumption in the body can irritate the body. You can also consume lemongrass in various other ways such as adding it to stir-fries and soups.
2. Fights Infection
Lemongrass shows remarkable anti-inflammatory, anti-fungal, and antioxidant properties that boost the immunity system and fights off infection-causing elements in the body. Lemongrass powerfully prevents the development of specific types of yeast and bacteria in the body. It helps treat chronic intestinal infections, pneumonia, skin infections, and blood infections.
The potent antifungal and antibacterial action of the ingredient helps cope with cold, fever, flu, and cough. Here is a simple immune-boosting drink that you should try. Boil a few fresh leaves of lemongrass with half tsp turmeric powder, a few basil leaves, cardamom powder, and a few cloves.
This warm concoction breaks down deposits of mucus and phlegm due to nasal congestion. It is a widely used Ayurvedic remedy to cure a cold. Lemongrass oil is a potent deterrent against four major kinds of fungi i.e., ringworm, jock itch, and athlete’s foot.
Its fungal and anti-bacterial properties help cure flu, cough, a common cold, and congestion that may be caused due to the presence of pollutants in the air. Regular use of lemongrass helps expel mucus.
3. Aromatherapy
This is another important use of lemongrass. The pleasant citrusy taste of lemongrass makes it a proven and safe remedy to release the build-up of toxins in the body. It is effective at relieving swelling and body pain. The sweet citrus smell of this ingredient gives calmness and peace to the mind. It relaxes and rejuvenates the different cells of the body.
To get its benefits in aromatherapy, you can consume it in oral form, apply topically on the skin, or inhale the steam of lemongrass-infused water. Nowadays you can get various beauty and cosmetic products enriched with lemongrass essential oil. These include shampoos, deodorants, face wash, soaps, and other types of cosmetics.
4. Normalizes Menstrual Flow
Lemongrass is also helpful in girls and women who suffer from irregular menstruation. Consuming lemongrass tea, or adding it to your curries stimulate the functioning of the uterus in the body. This results in the proper flow of menstrual blood during menstruation. The application of lemongrass oil topically benefits in reducing pain associated with menstruation.
5. Detoxifies Body
Lemongrass is a potent detoxifying agent. Lemongrass tea works as a detox beverage. This beverage is a good way to clear all the accumulated toxins in the body. It has a good level of antioxidants that deeply cleanses your body especially the liver and kidneys. It reduces edema and provides relief from the retention of fluid in the body. Drinking a few cups of this herbal drink daily helps complement a balanced diet.
6. Stimulates Metabolism
If you want to shed excess weight from the body, then sip a warm lemongrass beverage a few times a day. This drink works by breaking fat deposition in the body. This healthy drink boosts the metabolism and speeds up the digestion in the body.
The result is that it burns more calories in the body. Lemongrass tea is an ideal inclusion in your weight-reduction plan. It contains beneficial polyphenols and caffeine that increases energy consumption and stimulates the breakdown of oxidation of fatty acids in the body.
7. Regulates High Blood Pressure
High systolic blood pressure is the cause of several types of critical illnesses in the body. It can lead to stroke, diabetes, and heart attack in the body. Lemongrass is touted to be nature’s formula to tame high systolic blood pressure. It has high amounts of potassium that stimulates urine production in the body.
It promotes the proper flow of blood flow in the body. This, in turn, leads to a reduction in blood pressure levels in the body. Better blood movement also assists in liver purification. Lemongrass tea limits the absorption of cholesterol in the gut, which helps in keeping your heart healthy.
8. For Healthy Skin
Lemongrass is an abundant source of Vitamin C and Vitamin A. It has notable amounts of exceptional constituents, namely geranial, and citral. These compounds show remarkable emollient and anti-inflammatory characteristics. These vitamins are potent antioxidants that promote healthy skin and hair.
Drinking lemongrass beverage enhances blood circulation in the body. Lemongrass has got amazing antifungal and antibacterial properties that clears your skin reduces oiliness and treats eruptions in the skin. It is also effective in the treatment of pimples, eczema, and acne. It calms irritated skin.
If you have acne-prone skin, then you should wash your face every day with lemongrass-infused cleanser. This natural cleanser is very easy to prepare. All you need is to add a few drops of lemongrass oil in two cups of luke-warm water. This solution will clear all germs, dirt, dark spots, and pimples from the face. It will give you naturally blemish-free and radiant skin.
Nowadays you can get a wide range of body lotions and moisturizing creams that contains lemongrass essence. It offers smooth, moist, and soft skin that helps get rid of the redness, and roughness on the dry skin.
9. Healthy Tonic For Women
Lemongrass is renowned for properties that promote health in a woman. It is an excellent tonic that has a soothing impact on the body. It reduces blood sugar levels and gives relief from hot flashes.
Due to its calming action, it lessens menstrual pain and body ache in women. This healthy drink is beneficial for both pre and post issues linked to menstruation. Lemongrass tea is also beneficial in menopause. It helps effectively deal with signs such as mood swings, and hot flushes.
10. Potent Solution For Dandruff
Lemongrass is a treasure trove of antimicrobial and antiseptic compounds that can powerfully combat a host of discomforting conditions such as dandruff, warts, fungal infections, and boils. The high reserves of antibacterial elements, make lemongrass a magical natural remedy to cure an inflamed, flaky, and scratchy scalp.
To get rid of dandruff, all you need to do is to apply a thick layer of lemongrass-infused shampoo on your hair. Let it stay for some time. The powerful anti-bacterial compounds act as a shield from infection. It will remove any type of infection on the scalp and hair and improve the shine and texture of hair.
11. Stimulates Hair Growth
Lemongrass is unquestionably an effective elixir to foster hair growth. The lemongrass enriched oil is aromatic and infused with hair-vitalizing components that include neral, and citronellol. These compounds help arrest hair fall. To get a head full of healthy hair, you should do a lemongrass hair wash.
Follow it up by conditioning with some drops of lemongrass essential oil. It will stimulate your hair follicles, nourish hair, enhance texture and thickness to make your tresses strong, voluminous, and lustrous.
12. Improves Gut Health
Inflammation in the intestine can cause a lot of discomforts. It is the root cause of several health conditions, that includes cardiac ailment, pain, etc. In addition to inflammation, lemongrass can treat several types of digestive issues such as heart disease, digestion, congestion, diabetes, etc. in the body. Sipping hot lemongrass tea lowers bloating, improves digestion, stomach cramping, and prevents constipation.
13. Helpful in Rheumatoid Arthritis
Lemongrass is a powerful anti-inflammatory agent. Mix lemongrass oil with a few drops of nutmeg oil and sesame oil. Massage this oil on the affected region to get relief from inflammation and the pain linked to it.
14. Relieves Anxiety
Another benefit of lemongrass essential oil is that it is a popular tool that helps get relief from anxiety, depression, and stress. Use it in the form of aromatherapy or as a tea to lower anxiety and headache. Rub a little amount of diluted essential oil into the temples. It will give you relief from headaches. This powerful herb also elevates mood, improves sleep, stimulate serotonin, and kick off depression in the body.
The presence of eugenol in lemongrass gives a similar effect to aspirin. It is effective in lowering migraine, and headaches. Eugenol helps release the serotonin hormone that reduces sleep, mood, cognitive functions, and appetite in the body.
15. Boost Oral Health
Chewing lemongrass stalks enhances oral health. It keeps your mouth clean. This is because the extract of this herb effectively inhibits the growth of bacteria that can form cavities in your mouth.
16. Boost RBC Levels
Based on a study, regular consumption of lemongrass tea for a month can improve hemoglobin concentration in the body. It does it by increasing the volume of red blood cells in the body.
17. Helps Get Rid Of Gastric Ulcers
Lemongrass is a folk remedy for curing various digestive issues that range from gastric ulcers to stomach aches. The addition of lemongrass essential oil in your curries helps prevent gastric ulcers that lead to stomach pain in the body. This is also a common ingredient used in the preparation of herbal supplements and teas for nausea.
18. Reduces cholesterol
High levels of cholesterol enhance the chances of stroke and heart attack. Lemongrass helps keep your heart in the best condition. It works by stabilizing the cholesterol levels in the body. It has been used as a traditional treatment of heart disease and high cholesterol. On consuming it daily for fourteen days, it can significantly reduce cholesterol levels in the body.
19. Beneficial in Diabetes
Lemongrass aids in regulating blood lipids and blood sugar. Studies have shown that taking 125 mg to 500 mg lemongrass continuously for 42 days will help lower blood glucose levels in the body. It is effective in modifying lipid parameters while improving HDL levels of cholesterol in the body. This makes it beneficial in the treatment of Type 2 diabetes.
Recipe To Prepare Lemongrass Tea
Now that we have seen the benefits of Lemongrass tea, now let us see the procedure to prepare this healthy drink. You will get lemongrass stalks easily at any grocery store. To get the best benefits from lemongrass, go for only reputed brands.
After you purchase the stalks at any herbalist, take the below steps to brew the tea:
- cut the lemongrass stalks into pieces of one of two inches
- boil some water in a vessel
- add these stalks into boiling water and allow it to steep for a minimum of 5 minutes
- now strain the liquid into a cup. Your lemongrass tea is ready.
You can even refrigerate it and drink it cool. Start by drinking one cup of tea daily. After a few days, you can increase the dose. It is recommended to talk to the doctor about the right dosage to treat the health condition.
Procedure To Use Lemongrass In Aromatherapy
In addition to lemongrass tea, you can also use lemongrass in the form of aromatherapy. Add twelve drops of lemongrass essential oil to a tsp of carrier oil like sweet almond oil, jojoba oil, or coconut oil. Now either add this oil to your warm bathing water, to your handkerchief and smell it, or add it into hot water and inhale the steam.
Before you put it into your shower water, it is always suggested to do a patch test to find whether it suits your skin. Follow the below steps to do a patch test.
- Take a few drops of lemongrass oil and add it to a cup of water.
- Apply this solution to your forearm.
- Cover the region using a bandage, and wait for 24 hours. If you notice any irritation or discomfort in the form of redness, or blisters, etc. then you should avoid topical application of lemongrass essential oil.
Side Effects of Lemongrass
If you are a pregnant or breastfeeding woman, you should avoid consuming lemongrass in any form. This is because it contains specific compounds that may react with your pregnancy medicines.
Also, lemongrass tea has the ability to reduce blood sugar levels in the body. So, people who are on blood sugar reducing medicines should always get the approval of their doctor before they consume it.
Conclusion
You may not be aware of the versatility of lemongrass but this time-tested health-promoting and cosmetic ingredient can improve skin texture, encourage hair growth, and promote overall health and wellness. Use it in the form of creams, shampoos, lotions, herbal tea, flavouring agent, and healing oil to reap its miraculous benefits.
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