Harvest From an Herb Garden - Herbs Grown As an Aid to Slimming

There are a tremendous number of herbal potions and supplements available in any health food shop but not really very many herbs that you can grow and harvest from herb garden because it is not always possible to replicate the growing conditions required, but there are some that you could try.

Parsley is a diuretic. Make sure you take healthy, dark green parsley leaves and liquidise into a juice; because drinking parsley juice will decrease your food cravings as well as helping you to maintain a healthy blood sugar level. I have provided growing instructions for parsley and many other herbs in previous herb information articles.

Fennel is also a diuretic but it will also reduce hunger and increase your energy. If you were to grind fennel seeds into a paste and mix that with nettle juice you will be able to make up a tea which is a powerful natural slimming aid.

If you are able to grow peppers, these will increase your metabolism which will make you feel more energetic as well as increasing the absorption rate of your food; and what about chickweed, usually considered a nuisance in the garden because it is such a prolific self-seeder and seems to be able to spring up anywhere. When it is dried it is used in many proprietary weight loss products, try it yourself as a tea.

The first thing to realise though is that people are all different. The weight problem of one person will be different to that of another person, even one of the same age. Some people will be suffering imaginary weight problems and must have psychiatric treatment to solve them. There are people that have glandular imbalance and require medical treatment. Mainly however the problem for both men and women is lifestyle.

Would it not be wonderful if there was a safe and effective way to jump-start a weight-loss program that guaranteed results within two to three weeks - and did not involve starvation diets or rigorous exercise? What a pity that is a complete impossibility. Let us please be realistic about it. There is nothing in this world that would work without some effort and change in lifestyle by yourself. Please consider these simple ideas:

1, Park further away from the supermarket door so that you can have that extra walk, and do not shop when you are hungry - there are too many goodies on display to tempt you.
2, Do not buy ready meals or prepared foods. They are full of sugar, salt and all sorts of color and artificial flavor so have very high calories.
3. Try new foods instead of sticking to a boring diet. As they say; variety is the spice of life, so keep your food interesting. But in small quantities.
4. Try to never become over-hungry, so you can eat slowly and chew everything properly so that you will not overeat.
5. Avoid breakfast cereals that have a high sugar content - that unfortunately means most of them! Look for stuff that is high in fibre, with little or no salt and sugar. You can always add a sprinkle of raisons or sultanas to brighten up your bowl.
6, Stop adding sugar to your cups of tea and coffee. Was that a gasp of horror I heard? Please believe me once you have educated your palette to recognise the true taste of these drinks you will wonder how you ever stood the taste of sugar - in fact a sweetened cup will really taste horrible to you.

However I am supposed to be talking herbs, not preaching life style and I am sure you do not want a lecture on all the health risks that being very overweight can cause. There is no doubt that by using certain herbal concoctions with a conscious improvement in eating habits and exercise you will experience sustainable results in weight loss and control.

One of the dangers of many weight loss supplements on sale in the so called "health" food shops is that they can increase your heart rate. All you want is something that will increase your metabolism without increasing your heart rate. Make a salad containing dandelion leaves. As well as being a diuretic which in itself is advantageous to weight loss, it will also increase your metabolism; helping your food digest more easily and making you feel more vigorous.

Weight loss is a very popular health benefit of drinking Green Tea on a regular basis.
Green Tea will boost the body's metabolism, which burns calories quickly. It is also known to assist in oxidizing fat within the body. It has many other health giving benefits as well, so a win win herb. Unfortunately unless you already have a green tree plant in your herb garden, you will have to rely on buying supplies for some while, as a plant needs a couple of years to mature before you can use it. I shall have to devote a separate article to growing and using green tea.

Please do not use any herbal supplement without investigating its contents, as many ingredients can be dangerous in certain situations, especially to people taking prescription drugs.

Thanks To : Cereal Dispenser