Give your stomach the perfect cleanse with these herbal concoctions

Give your stomach the perfect cleanse with these herbal concoctions

Joyeeta.Chakravorty@timesgroup.com

29.11.2020

The festive season is about savouring the choicest culinary delights, which even the most calorie-conscious lot would have found difficult to resist. After weeks of munching on those goodies, though, it is time to get back to eating healthy and making sure your stomach is back on track with the perfect cleanse. Experts list a few concoctions to aid in digestion and improve your gut health.

SPICED TEA

Ingredients

1 inch piece stick of cinnamon

½ teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon saunf or fennel seeds a few leaves of parsley

Method

In 500 ml of water, add cinnamon, cumin, fennel and a few leaves of parsley and bring to boil. Reduce to half and consume warm.

“Cinnamon helps reduce inflammation in all parts of the body, including the stomach. It also helps counter the effects of excess sugar intake. Cumin and fennel are both helpful in reducing excess acid and gas, and easing stomach cramps. Parsley is exceptionally useful in reducing water retention”

— Shikha Mahajan

GINGER MINT TEASPICED TEA

Ingredients

1 inch piece of fresh ginger

3-4 peppermint leaves

¼ lemon

Method

Bring about 500 ml water to boil. Add ginger and 3-4 peppermint leaves. Reduce to half, then add a few drops of lemon juice and consume warm.

“The ginger in this tea helps reduce gastritis and inflammation. The peppermint reduces acid and excess digestive heat. In combination, peppermint and lemon reduce bloating and water retention in the stomach, while peppermint and ginger help ease constipation and detoxification”

— Shikha Mahajan, holistic nutritionist

DETOX WATER/ TEA

Ingredients

1 litre of water

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon coriander powder

1 teaspoon freshly chopped ginger

Method

Combine all the ingredients in 1 litre of water and boil for 3-4 minutes. Filter the solution and store in a bottle. Drink this concoction through the day.

“This concoction helps to remove toxins from the colon and digestive tracts. In Ayurveda, we call the toxins formed from overeating and indigestion as ama and this helps clean the digestive tract and aid digestion.”

— Dr Partap Chauhan, Ayurvedacharya

KEEP IT LIGHT WHILE ON DETOX

“Since you are going for a detox and looking at cleaning or removing toxins from your digestive tract, have light food items. You could have fruit for breakfast and a proper meal at lunchtime. For dinner, have vegetable soup or moong dal khichdi. Also, try to indulge in some physical activity like a walk, run, stretching or yoga. Avoid cold drinks and junk food. Dairy products are not a good idea when you are on detox.”

— Dr Partap Chauhan