Herb of the Day: Cloves

Any fan of pumpkin pie spice knows the unique, bitter/ sweet flavor of cloves. Nothing else tastes quite like it. It's found in some of our favorite fall and winter holiday recipes and drinks. As we're heading into fall, we thought we'd take a look at the herbal uses of cloves.

There's a good reason why this culinary herb is so prevalent in cold-weather recipes. It's traditionally known as a warming herb in Chinese medicine. Herbalists know cloves have properties that are beneficial to common ailments this time of year. The amount of cloves used in most recipes is unlikely to confer significant medicinal benefits, though some may be present. Herbalists traditionally use cloves in capsules, teas, infusions, rinses, or topically.

Traditional Herbal Uses of Cloves:

• Altitude Sickness
• Bad breath
• Circulation
• Digestion
• Headache
• Inflammation
• Infection
• Parasites
• Stress
• Tooth pain
• Warming
• More

The Plant

Cloves actually come from a flower. People are often surprised to learn this and usually think it is a root. In fact, cloves come from an evergreen bush. This bush grows in tropical climates. Various parts of Syzygium aromaticum are used in herbal remedies. Most commonly used are the flowering buds, which produce the cloves we know. After harvesting the flowers, they're dried and made ready for use. Cooks and herbalists use cloves ground or whole, depending on the desired use and flavor.

TriLight Health and Clove

We use Cloves in Worm Out, Scout Out, Lympha Rub, Peace Treaty, and Flew Away.

Lympha Rub is our all-time best seller. This is a blend unlike anything else we sell- and unique in the holistic health market overall. It is a versatile blend of essential oils that can be used topically or internally. We've properly diluted them to create a blend that can be used by children through adults. Customers love it for immune support, sore muscle/joint support, and much more. We include it in our Cold & Flu Day Kit and our Ear Ache Relief Kit. 

Lynne says, "Terrific! I've been using this for 20 years or so!" *

Peace Treaty is especially popular this time of year. Customers love it all year, and especially at back-to-school season. It's one of our traditional Cherokee medicine remedies passed down to us by Medicine Bear. We combine cloves with other herbs traditionally used to support focus, calm, and stress relief. It can be taken straight or mixed with a little bit of warm water for a nice, soothing tea.

"Amazing for stressful times." - Anna *

Worm Out is our parasite cleanse formula and also a Medicine Bear formula. It's been used worldwide for over 35 years to support digestion. We combine it with garlic and probiotics in our Parasite Cleanse Wellness Kit for a complete program. Unlike some other herbal parasite cleanse options, Worm Out is gentle and does not cause damage to the digestive system that takes months- or more- to repair.  

Jen says- "This tastes great and after one dose, you'll notice a massive difference." * 

Scout Out is another formula from Medicine Bear. It contains herbs traditionally known to have antibacterial and immune-supporting properties. It's been called an "antibiotic tonic" and is a favorite during cold and flu season.

"This is our all-time favorite remedy. My kids like the taste and I recommend it to others frequently." Wen *

Flew Away is our number-one flu-support formula. Customers love it because it tastes great, so they don't have to force themselves to choke something gross down when they already don't feel well. It's found alongside Lungs Plus, Triple Echinacea, and Goldenseal in our Cold & Flu Nighttime Kit.

Shilpi says- "It's fast and effective!"*

*individual results may vary.