When it comes to gut health, much has been said about the best foods to eat (kimchi! Chia seeds!), but rarely what to drink.
Starting your day with a fermented, probiotic drink like kefir or a polyphenols-packed green tea is great (and, of course, lots of water), but your digestive system doesn’t go to sleep when you do. The evening is actually a pivotal time for your intestinal health, when your gut microbiome gets to work resetting and repairing. What we do in the hour before bedtime directly influences the quality of this nocturnal, internal work.
There’s a simple, three-ingredient herbal tea recommended by experts that could help to improve digestion, gas, bloating, and your overall gut health.
Why the evening is a crucial time for your gut
“Our brain likes repetition and routine, stability and consistency,” Naturopath Lydie Palmieri says. “A ritual drink at the end of the day becomes a signal to your brain: it’s time to switch off, and it’s time to rest.”
The parasympathetic nervous system is the part of your autonomic nervous system that controls involuntary bodily functions. As the Cleveland Clinic notes, it’s also known as the “rest and digest” system: where your body conserves energy and slows heart rate, triggers immune system activity when your body is at rest, and crucially, stimulates digestion. When it’s calm, the intestine relaxes, and your body is ready to receive and reset.
Dr. Martine Cotinat, author of the Guide to Gut Health, flags an important nuance, though. A drink taken at the same time as a late meal can increase the volume of contents in the stomach and encourage nocturnal gastro-oesophageal reflux, the “most aggressive,” she points out. Hydrating too late in the evening means you’re more likely to wake up in the night to use the toilet, disrupting your sleep, and concurrently, causing constipation. (When it comes to something like our water drinking habits, though, more is better—just frontload it.)
So what’s the right move? Consider a gut-friendly, regular evening drink just after dinner—but not just before you go to bed—in small quantities and lukewarm temperatures. “Both cold and very hot temperatures slow down digestion,” says Dr. Cotinat.
A gut-friendly evening drink: verbena, orange blossom, and fennel
Naturopath Lydie Palmieri describes this three-ingredient drink as “soothing the mind and the belly.” Here’s what goes into it, and why:
Lemon verbena
This is dual-action: it’s soothing, reduces stress, improves sleep quality, encourages digestion, and relieves bloating. As a supplement, lemon verbena is used regularly by athletes to reduce post-workout muscle soreness and ease muscle and joint discomfort. Steep a tablespoon of either fresh or dried leaves (or even a tea bag) in boiled water.
Orange blossom
Similar to lemon verbena, orange blossom is calming, antispasmodic (relaxing the muscles in the walls of your internal organs), and anti-nausea. It also promotes slower digestion. Thankfully, too, it’s naturally caffeine-free—perfect to sip in the evening. Stir a quarter of a teaspoon into your cup.
Fennel
This is the carminative plant par excellence, ideal for persistent bloating and feelings of heaviness. Steep a tablespoon of lightly crushed fennel seeds in boiling water.
Let the drink cool down, and sip slowly.
Dr. Cotinat advises some other plants proven to have a positive effect on the gut microbiota: marshmallow root (and its protective mucilage), turmeric (with its anti-inflammatory and microbiota-modulating benefits), and ginger (which also has anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and antiemetic effects). Licorice, with its anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties, can also be beneficial, as well as peppermint, but it’s better to consume peppermint in the daytime. Happy sipping!
