When you are new to learning herbs, you may feel intimidated. How do you remember what herb does what? My advice is to start small. Learn the herbs that you have readily available in your kitchen. Here are some easy stomach remedies you can make with things you probably already have in your kitchen!
This “Remedies from the Kitchen” is going to be an on-going series. My goal is to help you with the confidence to use herbs in your everyday life!
If you’re new to herbalism, I suggest learning more about herbs that you have readily available to you, in your very own kitchen. You don’t need to invest in lots of herbs and concoctions that you might not fully understand, or continue to use. Focus first on using herbal remedies from your kitchen to heal yourself!
Traditional vs. allopathic medicine
Many of these tried-and-true home remedies are old home remedies that our grandmas used to use. That’s because prior to the early 1900’s, herbal medicine was the norm. Then John D. Rockefeller decided to monopolize his hold on the world by promoting petroleum-based medicine as the “new western medicine”. He demonized herbal remedies by calling them “unscientific quackery”. He used media as propaganda to try to eliminate traditional herbal medicine.
Rockefeller pledged countless sums of money to the development of petroleum-based medicine in almost all the medical schools. He teamed up with Andrew Carnegie to fund medical schools all over, that were required to only teach his “new and improved” petroleum medicine. Some doctors were even jailed for using traditional herbal medicine.
This new allopathic medicine morphed into a “pill for an ill” mindset for the new American medicine. This unnatural medicine is harmful and can cause more harm than good. Herbal medicine is always best to actually heal your body, instead of just masking the symptoms with a pill.
Okay, after that little history lesson – let’s get to those herbal stomach remedies to make in your kitchen!
Stomach remedies from the kitchen
Whether it’s from gas, indigestion, a stomach bug, or nausea, we all experience stomach problems at one time or another. And if you have chronic stomach problems, such as GERD or IBS, you have likely gone to the doctor to try to relieve your symptoms. But what if you can just use something in your kitchen to heal yourself? Here are my favorite stomach remedies to use from the kitchen.
Heartburn
Heartburn may make you want to reach for the Tums. But did you know that this popular antacid can actually cause more harm to your stomach? And antacids have other harmful side effects as well. Here are natural herbal remedies from the kitchen to help with heartburn.
- Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) – restores the pH of your stomach to normal levels, so there is a proper amount of stomach acid to digest your food and prevent heartburn. Try taking a small shot of ACV daily to improve stomach acid levels. This is the best way to heal and prevent heartburn, as well as what is causing it.
- Baking soda – neutralizes stomach acid for short-term relief. Take 1/2 teaspoon in 4 ounces of water, repeating every 2 hours as needed. This is more for short-term relief than for long-term healing.
Nausea
Nausea and vomiting can be caused by various different things. But no matter what the cause, when we have nausea we just want it to go away. Here are some kitchen stomach remedies to help relieve nausea and vomiting.
- Ginger – wonderful for treating nausea. Ginger tea, ginger ale, or ginger candy can help immensely. It’s a very safe remedy for this, and is even recommended for pregnant women.
- Nutmeg – another warming spice that helps with nausea. Put some in a tea or warm milk to settle your stomach after an overly-filling meal.
Diarrhea
Diarrhea is a serious condition that can lead to dehydration. Not to mention it interfering with your everyday life! Here are some ways to treat diarrhea from your kitchen, instead of the medicine cabinet!
- Cloves – help reduce the amount of gas, as well as relaxing the lining of the GI tract. This helps reduce the cramping, pressure, and discomfort associated with diarrhea.
- Yogurt – a wonderful probiotic, yogurt helps restore good gut bacteria, which can help to treat diarrhea. Try to avoid yogurt with high sugar content.
Gas
Excess gas can lead to stomach pain and discomfort. It also makes people want to avoid you! Treating gas at home from the kitchen is easy to do with these stomach remedies.
- Fennel – often used for excess gas, fennel is a very safe herbal kitchen stomach remedy. It’s safe for pregnant women, and is even often used in babies as a weak fennel tea for gas and colic. Chewing on fennel seeds or drinking fennel can help aid digestion and reduce gas.
- Coriander – this aromatic spice has an uncanny ability to reduce gas, bloating, and other stomach problems. It’s one of the best herbal stomach remedies that should be used by anyone that suffers from stomach pain and discomfort.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
IBS is a condition that plagues 10-15% of the worldwide population. It causes abdominal pain, excess gas, bloating, cramping, and frequent bathroom trips. It’s the most common disorder diagnosed by gastroenterologists. But some of the symptoms can be controlled and lessened with these herbal stomach remedies from the kitchen.
- Anise – the sweet licorice taste of anise is from the volatile oil known as anethol. Anethol aids in the digestion of rich foods and settles the stomach. It also stimulates gastric juices, which tend to be sluggish in people with IBS. This helps with both the symptoms and the cause of IBS.
- Peppermint – this soothing tea that many people have in their kitchen has numerous benefits for the stomach. It is especially helpful for IBS, since it relaxes the smooth muscles of the colon. This helps relieve pain during bowel movements. Peppermint also controls gas and bloating.
Other stomach remedies for chronic digestive problems
If you have chronic stomach problems, you may want to consider taking herbal bitters on a regular basis. However, herbal bitters don’t agree with everyone. So if you are seeing a doctor for your stomach problems, you may want to ask if herbal bitters would help or harm your particular issue.
Are you going to try these easy herbal remedies from your kitchen?
I sincerely hope that next time you have stomach issues, you’ll turn to your kitchen instead of the medicine cabinet. Have you tried any of these stomach remedies from the kitchen? Which ones do you like best? Let us know in the comments!
