Hot August Nights - Remedies to Help You Beat the Summer Heat
I don't know how hot the weather is where you live, but here in St. George, Utah, it's really hot. Most days in July and August are over 100°F degrees. That's why the early pioneers who settled this area called St. George "purgatory" and Leeds (where I live) "north purgatory." Thank goodness for air conditioning.
When I have to work outside in this heat, I can get tired pretty fast, but fortunately, I've learned a great way to help "beat the heat" using Nature's Sunshine's Thai-Go. You see, Thai-Go is loaded with sour, antioxidant-rich fruits and berries that not only reduce free radical damager, they actually reduce thirst and help you feel cool.
In traditional herbalism, sour-tasting berries are considered cooling. Berries mature from early to late summer, right during the time when their cooling properties are most needed.
It's also interesting that many of the highly promoted antioxidant fruits, like mangosteen (one of the main ingredients in Thai-Go) and açaí (which is in the new Thai-Go) are tropical fruits. Another ingredient in Thai-Go, lycium (also known as goji berry or wolfberry) is used in Chinese medicine for conditions of excess heat.
Also, consider lemons. Think how cooling and refreshing a little lemonade can be on a hot summer day. Lemon is also a refrigerant, so it helps to reduce body heat.
Thai-Go Lemon-Aid is the Anti-Heat Aid
A couple of years ago a friend of mine was having to work installing heating and air conditioning units. So, he was crawling around in attics in the middle of summer when the temperature is over 100°F. This means that the temperature in the attics could be over 120°F. It was exhausting.
So, I had him make lemonade with freshly squeezed lemon juice and maple syrup. But, we took it to the next level by adding Thai-Go to make Thai-Go Lemon-Aid. He put this in a thermos bottle and drank it while working in the heat. It made a huge difference and I've used it ever since for helping to cool down the body when it's hot.
It's easy to make Thai-Go Lemonade-Aid, just juice four lemons, and add an equal amount of maple syrup and Thai-Go to the lemon juice. So, if you have 1/4 cup of lemon juice, add 1/4 cup of Thai-Go and 1/4 cup of real maple syrup. (You can adjust the tartness by adding more or less maple syrup.) You then add this mixture to water to taste.
If You Want to Stay Cool, Skip the Ice
Oh, and I highly recommend you don't add add ice or drink ice water. I learned from a friend a few years ago that ice water will actually make the heat feel worse! There was a group of about 6 or 7 of us working outside and everybody took a break and drank ice water except for my friend and me. He said, "Watch, they'll all start getting cranky after drinking the ice water," and they did.
So, if you really want to cool down drink room temperature water. The reason for this is simple. Your body perspires to keep cool in the heat. Cold water pulls blood away from the skin into the stomach to warm it up. That reduces perspiration and makes you feel hotter.
And, along the same lines, spicy foods and warm drinks will actually help cool you down faster. That's because they will increase blood flow to the skin and promote perspiration. Notice that highly spicy foods tend to come from tropical or hot areas like India, Thailand, Mexico and the Middle East. Spices also help you stay cool by dispersing excess heat from the interior of the body to the surface.
Cooling Allergies with Thai-Go
Earlier this year I used my Thai-Go Lemon-Aid for a different purpose. I used it to keep me from having allergic reactions when I was working in the garden. I suffer allergic reactions to the dust in my garden, which is frustrating because I love working in the garden.
I've tried Hista-Block and it helps, but it contains immature orange peel, which has synephrine, an epinephrine-like substance that dries the sinuses. The air is really dry where I live and drying out the sinuses causes problems for me. So, I needed to find another option and it turns out my Thai-Go Lemon-Aid did the trick.
Vitamin C is a natural anti-histamine (which means that it helps the body break down histamine) containing bioflavonoids (especially quercitin) to stabilize mast cells. So, I figured the lemon would do me good. Since allergic reactions are an inflammatory cascade and Thai-Go inhibits inflammation, I thought it might help, too. Xanthones, found in mangosteen, also have an anti-allergenic action.
So, I'd mix up the Thai-Go Lemon-Aid and drink several quarts of it on days I was working in the garden. In fact, I drank so much of it that I went through a whole bottle of Thai-Go in a week. However, it was well worth it because I had almost no allergic reactions.
So, if the summer heat is getting to you, try a little Thai-Go Lemon-Aid. Just make sure you drink it room temperature or just slightly cool (not cold). Oh, and adding a sprig of peppermint or spearmint leaf (something aromatic to encourage perspiration) will make it even more cooling.