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WELLNESSWEEK
By Crystal Raypole for Healthline
A hot drink can warm you up on a cold day, and tea, in particular, can help soothe a number of ailments. You might drink tea with honey and lemon when you have a sore throat, green tea for its antioxidant benefits, or black tea for a burst of energy. Herbs such as chamomileand peppermint might even help relieve menstrual cramps, muscle cramps, and indigestion.
While caffeinated teas can have stimulating benefits, many herbal teas have the opposite effect. Chamomile tea is widely used to promote relaxation, drowsiness, and restful sleep. If you struggled to get to sleep in childhood (or beyond), perhaps your parent or grandparent recommended a chamomile blend to help you drift off.
Trouble falling asleep isn’t uncommon, especially during times of increased stress. Bedtime teas blend specific herbs to help you defeat insomnia naturally, so they make a great option if you prefer to avoid medicinal sleep aids.
If you’ve graduated from sleepytime tea and need something with a little more relaxation potential, try the seven teas listed below to fall asleep faster and sleep soundly.
How we chose the best teas for sleeping
We considered plenty of relaxing bedtime blends to create our final list of recommendations. Here’s how we decided which teas to include:
- Ingredients. You can’t make a good bedtime tea without the right components. We only selected teas without caffeine, of course, but we also looked for blends featuring ingredients sure to summon the Sandman.
- Variety. You can pick up a box of chamomile tea at any grocery store, so we looked for teas with a little more to offer beyond this tried-and-true, but perhaps a little tired, herb.
- Customer reviews and testing. We sampled a few of the blends to give you the most accurate insight on taste and impact. For the others, we read through customer reviews to get a good idea of taste, effect, and tea quality.
- Quality. Speaking of quality, we stuck to well-known brands with established websites and plenty of positive customer feedback. We also checked whether brands were upfront about their ingredients and provided information about tea sourcing and processing.
- Ease of purchase. You’ll find a few of these brands on Amazon or in local brick-and-mortar stores, but you can also buy them directly from the brand’s website.
Pricing guide
Tea prices can vary widely, especially when it comes to loose tea. Buying in bulk is generally cheaper, but you may want to taste test with a smaller sample pack first.
We included teas at a variety of price points to help every shopper find the right blend.
- $ = under $10
- $$ = $10–$16
- $$$ = over $16
Best Organic Tea to Help You Sleep
The Tea Spot Light’s Out
- Price: $$
- Key ingredients: Hibiscus, peppermint, licorice, lavender, chamomile, and valerian root
- Type: Bagged or loose
Another blend of valerian root and chamomile, this organic tea also features the bright tang of hibiscus, licorice for sweetness, and lavender for a dose of calm.
Hibiscus, an antioxidant-rich plant, offers plenty of its own health benefits. So, choosing a bedtime tea with hibiscus could improve more than just the quality of your sleep.
In general, reviewers praise this tea. People say it has plenty of flavor and a wonderful fragrance. If you don’t care for licorice, don’t worry — a few reviewers note the taste is barely noticeable. People tend to notice the hibiscus more than anything else, but most reviewers enjoy the taste.
As for effectiveness, reviewers say this tea really does seem to put the lights out. People say they love the tea for winding down and relaxing before bedtime, and a few even say it made sleeping pills unnecessary.