Digestion tonic
This tonic smells so wonderful, like fresh juicy oranges. If you don’t like the taste of plain apple cider vinegar, defiantly an acquired taste, this may be “your cup of tea”. Apple cider vinegar is a excellent way of kick starting digestion by lowering the pH of the stomach.
Star anise helps with gas and bloating and can spark appetite. Ginger has manganese and zinc. It helps with nausea, gas, soothes the intestinal tract, is anti-inflammatory, and stimulates digestion. In folk medicine, fennel seed was used for digestive upset including bloating and gas. It helps with colitis, colic, and is anti-inflammatory. Coriander can help ease constipation and soothe IBS. It also is recommended by the German Commission E for digestive complaints, loss of appetite, bloating, flatulence, and cramping. Cumin seed is great for reducing high blood sugar and is rich in vitamins A and C. Caraway helps with constipation, heartburn, GERD, and indigestion.
Digestion Tonic
Ingredients 1 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar 2 cups water 1 teaspoon cumin seed 1 teaspoon fennel seed 1 teaspoon caraway seed 1 coriander seed 1 star anise pod 3 large strips of orange peel 2 strips of lime or lemon peel 1 1/2 inch chunk of fresh ginger, sliced optional: 1 teaspoon raw honey
Put all the ingredients in a quart jar. Screw a lid on and shake. Place in the refrigerator for one week, shaking it gently every day. After a week it is ready to use. Drink two tablespoons 10-20 minutes before your meal to stimulate digestion. If it is too strong dilute in 4-6 oz of water. Store in the refrigerator and use within two weeks.
Note: Japanese star anise is a look alike that is poisonous. Too make sure that you have real star anise it should have eight seed holding pods or carpals to make an eight pointed star. Japanese star anise has ten or more carpels instead of eight make it easy to spot.
Sources:
Healing Spices by, Bharat B. Aggarwal, PHD and Debora Yost
Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon
Therapeutic foods for digestion, provided by the Nutritional Therapy Association
