Contributed by Beth Gordon

Are you someone passionate about all things health?  Or are you just learning that there are other options to health and wellness that are outside of the box from what you knew three years ago?  There are amazing and practical lifestyle steps we can take to support our bodies as we head into the holidays.  Managing stress, prioritizing sleep and limiting sugar while eating nutrient dense foods are a great start for us as we head into the holidays.  

Along with practical lifestyle changes, we also have incredible tools like the right minerals, supplements, and essential oils.   Essential oils got my attention about 10 years ago when we had a nearly miraculous story with my kids and a long time respiratory challenge.  An essential oil blend not only helped but completely resolved our issue, so we knew we had stumbled onto something truly special.  

Fast forward to the present. Essential oils have garnered lots of attention and even been called “trendy” and “a new thing”.  I always think it’s helpful to get our facts straight these days so let’s look at a few when it comes to these oils!

Essential oils are mentioned in Scripture over 600 times!  With hundreds of references in Scripture and numerous historical documents, we know that these were well known historically to impact health on many levels.   Just think…God put essential oils in plants, flowers, bark and roots on the third day of creation.  He knew the lavender plant was designed to help support sleep, sinuses, skin and feelings of overwhelm, and then He repeated that intention with hundreds and thousands of other plants and trees.  The heart of the Father is written throughout creation with many tools He marvelously designed to specifically work with our bodies!  

From a scientific perspective, essential oils are chemical compounds that plants produce. These compounds provide the plant with its distinctive scent and aid in its protection. They occur in various plant parts such as leaves, flowers, bark, stems, roots, resin, and seeds. An essential oil comprises hundreds of these chemical compounds, and different concentrations of them confer distinctive qualities and healing properties to each essential oil. Due to their ability to be used topically and aromatically, essential oils exhibit incredible versatility in addressing a wide range of challenges. The science of how they impact the brain through the olfactory system is beyond fascinating but a discussion for another day!  I would encourage you to do dig into that research if you can!

Though there are truly endless ways to use essential oils, here are some of my favorite ways to use essential oils in my home.  

• Boosting immunity
• Supporting digestion and settling tummies
• Increasing mental focus and diminishing brain fog
• Helping support sleep and calming anxious thoughts 
• Soothing irritated skin 
• Relieving neck or shoulder tension

 I hope that this encourages you to take a second look at essential oils as a wonderful part of your health tool kit – the uses are endless!  While we are so grateful to have nourishing foods, herbal teas, high quality supplements, herbal tinctures and homeopathies in our home, essential oils have truly become our easiest and most effective tool that we reach for with our family.

I am grateful to be a part of the season where we continue to re-discover and newly discover incredible health tools.  

Recipe : Thyme, Ginger & Honey Instant Pot Cough Syrup 

Ingredients:

• One bunch thyme
• Thumb sized bit of turmeric – scrubbed and  roughly chopped
• 2” size chunk of fresh ginger – scrubbed and roughly chopped
• 4 large cloves garlic – peeled and roughly chopped
• ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon
• 1 cup manuka honey (raw honey can be substituted)
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt
• **5 drops Copaiba Essential Oil – be sure to only use oils labeled for supplement use

**Optional – Copaiba Vitality Essential Oil  We’ve found Copaiba to be one of the most soothing and supportive oils for respiratory issues and throat in our family.  It’s calming to the nervous system and helps balance the body and calm the lungs!

Directions:

Put the thyme and freshly chopped turmeric, ginger, and garlic into the instant pot with 2 cups water.  Put the instant pot (IP) on simmer until the liquid is reduced by half.  

Let the herbs remain in the warm water while it cools.  

Strain the turmeric, garlic and thyme out of the IP.

Add the honey, lemon, and sea salt and gently mix until totally combined.  

 Usage & Storage: 

Add this really healthy homemade respiratory cough syrup to some mason jars and keep in the fridge to use when needed!  It should stay good for up to 2 months. You can take this straight from a spoon OR add a teaspoon to warm water and drink as a tea for an immune boost whenever needed.  If adding Copaiba essential oil, be sure to add after it has cooled.

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Beth is a wife, mom to 3, and holistic health coach.  Her journey with Lyme disease abruptly launched her into the alternative health world over 20 years ago and she is grateful for the difficult but victorious road over dis-ease in her life.  She now helps practitioners implement essential oils into their practice as a health tool to offer their patients.  She is passionate about every family being able to make the best decisions for themselves and their children and you can find her @thekandidkitchen on IG or her website at www.thekandidkitchen.com