Lemon Balm For Calm

With Both Culinary And Therapeutic Uses, Including For Anxiety And Restlessness, This Is One Handy Herb

- Kerry Boyne

Legend has it that an English farmer named John Hussey drank lemon balm tea with honey every day for breakfast for the last 50-plus years of his life — and he died in 1748 aged 116 years, it’s claimed. But how much could the tea have contributed to his longevity?

Well, the benefits balm tea may have bestowed on Mr Hussey include acting as a sleep aid, soothing gastrointestinal disorders, calming tension, restlessness and irritability, and stimulating appetite. What’s more, if he suffered from cold sores (herpes), a cream made from the herb might have reduced both the area of infection and the healing time.