Immune boosting tea for winter wellness

This immune boosting tea is the best way to stay healthy during the cold winter months and be ready to fight off colds.

Cold winter months are not only hot cocoa, hot cider, warm socs, and the smell of bonfires. It also means that people are more prone to catching a disease.

In particular, the cold, dry air, and lack of sunlight negatively affect our ability to fight off respiratory infections like cold or flu.

It’s the right time to boost our immune system. 

One of my favorite herbal teas for this purpose is this immune boosting herbal tea with elderberry, echinacea and other herbs that help to boost our immune system.

The taste is great, it’s easy to make, and has some amazing health benefits! In this blog post I will give you a recipe for making your own batch of elderberry echinacea tea at home. 

Why immunity is important to boost

immunity is simply the ability of our body to fight off disease. Immunity-boosting herbs such as elderberry or echinacea are great for this purpose, because they can help us defend ourselves against catching a cold or getting stomach flu. 

Of course, there are other contributors that can help us to stay healthy and prepared. Like enough exercise, sunlight, well balanced diet, enough sleep, etc. 

These lemon ginger turmeric shots are really powerful immunity boosters.

herbs to boost immune system

Benefits of elderberry for immunity

What we know is, that elderberries are full of antioxidants that include vitamins, phenolic acid, and flavonoids that may help prevent chronic diseases and reduce inflammation

Some people found elderberry tea to be soothing if you have a sore throat. Elderberries can relieve sinus congestion which is what causes the annoying stuffiness that accompanies a cold.

Additionally, elderberries effectively boost the immune system, making them a great addition to your daily routine to help prevent colds and flu. With its rich antioxidant content, elderberry tea is a great way to incorporate the health benefits of elderberries into your diet. Tea lovers will also appreciate the benefits of elderberry tea as it is known to have a pleasant taste and can be enjoyed hot or cold. 

Benefits of echinacea for immunity

Echinacea as well as blackberries are very well known as an immunity booster, and can also help fight off infections during cold and flu season.

This herb has been used by native Americans for years, and is now popular in western medicine too. it’s very effective at boosting immunity, as explained in this study from the University of Maryland Medical Center (5)

Echinacea comes into many different forms, one being liquid tinctures that one can easily apply under the tongue as a mouthwash or drink to boost immunity. Or can make a powerful tea that you can drink regularly to keep immunity at an optimal level.

Together with elderberries, echinacea make a great immune boosting combo.

Rosehips

Rosehips are important players in the prevention of cold and flu. They are packed with vitamin A, C and E and with antioxidants that help to protect and strengthen the immune system.

Rosehips contain polyphenols and galactolipids that are important anti-inflammatory compounds

Using elderberries and rose hips have a great advantage as they have similar properties and ripen at the same time. I used their power in this tincture 

Ginger

Ginger has a very long history of use in traditional as well as alternative medicine. Its main compound gingerol is responsible for much of ginger’s benefits such as aiding in digestion or fighting the flu and common cold

I enjoy ginger in this fire cider or this sweet curry too.

Turmeric

The main active ingredient in turmeric is curcumin, which is credited for most of the medicinal benefits such as anti-inflammatory properties that can help to boost immunity.

Cinnamon

Cinnamon gives tasty hint to your tea and is also an effective antiviral and antifungal warming spice often used to fight fever and cold. 

Immune boosting tea recipe

Before i share with you my go-to natural immune boosting tea recipe, let’s look at the best way to extract immune boosting properties from elderberries

While making ordinary herbal tea requires dried herb and hot water, elderberries won’t release their medicinal properties that easily.  If you want to get the immunity-boosting benefits of elderberries, you need to gently simmer the berries to make a decoction. The same applies to dried roots of echinacea, ginger and turmeric. Simply pour enough water over the ingredients to cover them. When the tea just starts to boil, turn the heat down to low and simmer for 20 minutes.

The following recipe is the one I usually use, and I’ve been very happy with the results. 

Immune boosting tea ingredients

To make the immune boosting tea blend mix the following herbs:

• Elderberry 
• Echinacea
• Rosehips
• Ginger
• Turmeric
• Cinnamon

First step

Combine all herbs above together in a saucepan. 

Second step

Add 5 cups of water and slowly heat the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to a minimum and let it steep for 20 minutes or longer to extract all medicinal properties

Third step

Strain the herbal material and drink pure warm tea slowly, enjoying every sip.

Fourth step

add honey or sweetener if desired and enjoy!