Lemon Garlic Ginger Immunity Tea

With the fall season on its way and back-to-school imminently approaching, I know it's time to gear up and prepare for the season (OH hello school germs!). As a holistic nurse, and mom of 3, I am all about supporting our bodies as best as we can naturally, and boosting the immune system before the season kicks in is ideal!

Simple things we can do now to make sure we are keeping our immune system performing at its best? Staying well hydrated, a well-balanced diet, regular exercise, good quality sleep, and making sure to get some Vitamin D through sunshine, are all basics to support a good foundation for our immune systems before the weather turns.

It's always handy to have a few homemade remedies for when someone in the house is not feeling good. Homemade chicken soup is a must in my house, but there is just something about sipping on some warm tea cozy on your couch under a blanket when you feel under the weather. After seeing recalls on some brand name teas for pesticides, and the plethora of social media homemade immunity remedies last season, I decided to give it a whirl and try my own homemade immunity tea, using lemon, garlic and ginger! I always cook with garlic, and love adding lemon to my water and cooked meals, but I don't particularly use ginger. After tweaking some recipes that I had come across, I found one that was savory yet not too strong tasting! Garlic and ginger both have so many benefits including antimicrobial and antiviral properties that help the immune system! When you start to feel that tickle in your throat or sniffles coming on it’s easy enough to make!

What are the benefits? 

Lemon is a rich source of vitamin C, which is essential for a strong immune system, helping the body to fight off infections. It also hydrates and flushes out toxins, and is overall great for our skin health too!

Garlic has been used for centuries as a medicinal agent and is well-known for its powerful anti-inflammatory properties. Studies have shown that garlic can reduce inflammatory markers, has antimicrobial and antiviral properties, has been used to help aid in cardiovascular disease, can help lower blood sugar, and even has anticancer benefits.

Ginger similarly like garlic, has many health benefits and has also been used for centuries, noted in Ayurvedic and Chinese medical literature. Ginger not only aids in digestion and helps to soothe nausea, but has also been shown to help reduce oxidative stress and suppress pro-inflammatory cytokines as an anti-inflammatory agent. It also is known for its immune-boosting powers as both an antimicrobial and anticancer agent.

Ok so, here is a simple way to combine all of the benefits of these into one easy immune boosting tea:

Lemon Garlic Ginger Immunity Tea

• 3 cups filtered water

• 2 garlic cloves

• 1 knob ginger

• 1 Lemon

• Pinch salt

• Raw Honey (optional)

1. Peel, slice thin, and smash both your garlic and ginger on a cutting board.

2. Bring your filtered water to a boil on a stove top. Add a pinch salt.

3. Add the garlic and ginger into the boiling water and turn down the heat, let it simmer for about 10 minutes.

4. Shut the heat off to let the mixture steep for 25-30 min (you can do this part longer if you like a stronger flavor).

5. Use a strainer to strain out garlic and ginger from the tea (this is my preference).

6. Squeeze in the juice of one lemon (adjust to your taste preference) 🍋

7. Add 🍯 raw honey (if you like, once the tea cools down though!)

Voila! This is super easy and I found this ratio to not be too overpowering! I tried it out last season when I noticed I started to feel run-down and sipping on this definitely perked me up knowing I was supporting my immune system.

QUICK TIP: You can also pop this into an ice cube tray and freeze it for future use when you or someone in the house is not feeling well!

Have you tried any other immunity teas before? Let me know what you think of this tea in the comments below!