Holy Basil – Top 3 Herbal Health Benefits, Teas & Natural Uses?

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Holy Basil is a plant that is found naturally in India and is considered to be a sacred plant in the Hindu religion. While it is considered sacred, it is also used for medicinal purposes for a variety of illnesses ranging from the common cold to more severe illnesses such as malaria.

While it is not believed to actually cure these diseases, it is used to help aid other medical treatments and can be used in place of a lack of medical care. Before modern medicine, Holy Basil was used as the only treatment for some of these diseases. It is also believed to help relieve everyday stresses in your life, or to help you be able to control those stresses and not allow them to get out of control.

Medicine is made from the stem, leaves, and seeds of Holy basil. It can also be turned into a paste or ointment to be used on the skin to help treat infections, snake bites, and even ring worm. In addition to medicinal purposes, Holy Basil can be used in cooking, and is commonly referred to as hot basil. The leaves are best used in stir fry dishes or to add some heat to soups, stews, and broths that lack a kick.

Currently, Holy Basil is being used in research studies in hopes that the oil from the seed can slow the progression of cancer cells in both humans and animals. Since it is still in the testing phase, researches are unsure of how the results will pan out and if it will actually be able to do what they hope it will.

They believe that the oil from the seeds can actually be used as an antioxidant, which would help to not only slow the progression of cancer cells, but could also improve the quality of life in the patients taking it.

Uses & Benefits of Holy Basil

There are many medicinal uses for Holy Basil. Research has indicated that it can be used to treat inflammation and help to keep it under control. Certain chemicals in Holy Basil are thought to help with diabetes by lowering blood sugar levels and working to keep it at a safe level.

While there are many uses for Holy Basil in the medical field, there are three areas that have shown either success or extreme promise when Holy Basil is introduced. Those areas are anxiety, diabetes, and stress.

It has also shown promise in the areas of the common cold, flu, headaches, Bronchitis, Malaria, certain types of snake bites, and ringworms when used as a topical ointment. More research is still needed in those areas to a see if Holy Basil can truly improve the quality of life.

Anxiety

There are millions of people who struggle with anxiety and depression on a daily basis. The majority of those people are on some kind of prescription medication to help control and prevent anxiety attacks from happening. However, research has indicated that Holy Basil can actually be used to help treat and control anxiety attacks.

It is not known the level of severity it can treat or if it can replace prescriptions. Until further research is completed, it is best to simply add the Holy Basil to your normal prescriptions. Experts recommend taking 1,000mg of Holy Basil extract a day and you can break that up in to two 500mg doses a day if you prefer. They suggest taking it for up to 60 days at a time but the amount of time that you take it will also depend on the level of severity of your anxiety or depression.

Diabetes

The use of Holy Basil in regards to diabetes can be found in people who have Type 2 diabetes. No research has been completed with people who have Type 1 diabetes so it is highly recommended that they do not consume Holy Basil extract.

The extract from the leaves of the Holy Basil are believed to help lower blood sugar and minimize blood sugar spikes. Research has also indicated that the leaves can help to keep blood sugar levels in a normal range when combined with other prescription diabetes medications. As always, you should consult with your doctor to make sure that the Holy Basil will not interact negatively with your other prescriptions.

Stress

This is something that everyone deals with on a regular basis in one form or another. Some people experience bouts of extreme stress, while others may only have mild stress. The level of our stress depends on the situation that we find ourselves in and the way we react to said situation.

Research suggests that taking around 1,200mg of Holy Basil extract every day for 6 weeks can help to reduce stress and the problems that stress brings with it. If you have experienced stress on a regular basis, then you know that it doesn’t come alone. Most of the time it will also bring forgetfulness, sleep problems, and exhaustion with it.

The Holy Basil extract is believed to combat those problems and help to alleviate all of those symptoms that occur when stress enters your life. For this, you will want to find Holy Basil extract that contains all natural ingredients as adding in other chemicals can actually have the opposite affect than what you were hoping to achieve.

Side Effects of Holy Basil

Before you begin taking Holy Basil extract, there are some side effects and drug interactions that you need to make yourself aware of. If you are pregnant, nursing, or plan to become pregnant in a short amount of time, you should avoid taking Holy Basil.

There has been no research done on women who are pregnant or nursing, so the effects that it may have on an unborn baby are unclear. To prevent any problems with pregnancy or while nursing, women should wait until that period in their lives are over.

Overall for generally healthy people, Holy Basil extract is safe to use for a short period of time. As with any other supplements that you may use, you want to make sure that you are not exceeding the amount of time suggested for taking the extract.

Research has indicated that the maximum amount of time someone should be taking Holy Basil extract by mouth is six weeks. Any longer than that and you run the risk of doing harm to your body. If you believe that you need to take it for longer than suggested, you need to consult with your medical doctor and find out if you are healthy enough to continue taking it.

Before you begin taking any type of supplement, it is always very important to be checked out by your medical doctor. This person knows your entire health history, and will be able to give you a better indication on how Holy Basil extract will affect your body.

This is also a good time to check and make sure that you do not have any underlying medical conditions, as adding a supplement or other drugs could cause that condition to surface. Talk with your doctor before beginning a supplement and find out if you are at risk of any negative side effects from a supplement.

This is also a great time to review your medications with your doctor in case there is a specific medication or type of medication you’re on that Holy Basil extract will negatively interact with. If you are on medications that will negatively interact, you do not need to consume Holy basil in any form.

People who will be having surgery also need to stay away from Holy Basil at least 2 weeks before surgery. This will give your body time to expel the extract out of your body. Given Holy Basil extract can cause your body to slow the process of clotting your blood, people who are going into surgery need to consider that it could cause you to bleed out or begin bleeding internally.

If you are taking Holy Basil extract and need to have any type of surgery, make sure your doctor or surgeon knows you take it and to schedule your surgery for at least two weeks out to help you clean out your system.

The blood clotting medications that are negatively affected by Holy Basil oil are aspirin, Lovenox, Plavix, Ticlid, and a few others. If you are unsure if you take these medications, talk with your doctor to make sure as you do not want to mistake them for something else and then pay for it later.

The drug Pentobarbital will interact with Holy Basil as well and can naturally cause the users to experience drowsiness. When Holy Basil extract is factored into the equation, it can cause episodes of extreme drowsiness which can lead to impaired judgement or motor skills.

While more research is being conducted on this drug, it is probably best to either stay away from Holy Basil extract while taking Pentobarbital, or make sure that you are not going to be driving or preforming other activities while taking both.

Holy Basil Summary

If you are considering adding Holy Basil extract to your routine supplement or medication list, make sure to talk it over with your medical doctor first. You need to be able to make an informed decision on whether or not this is a supplement that you need to be taking.

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