Hops Flower 100 g, 50 g, 25 g

Hops Flower – 100 g ($17.99), 50 g ($11.99), 25 g ($7.99)

Benefits:
Hops has been used to treat anxiety and insomnia for more than a thousand years. A pillow filled with hops has been used to encourage sleep. According to herbal folklore, elderly women who worked as hops pickers experienced a return of their menstrual cycles and other youthful attributes. This led to the use of hops as a hormonal balancer and general restorative during and after menopause. Folk medicine has used it for stimulating the appetite and increasing the secretion of stomach juices. It also has been used for nerve pain, tension headaches, and intestinal inflammation, and externally for ulcers and skin abrasions. Homeopathic remedies exist for treating nervousness and insomnia. The German Commission E has approved its use for mood disturbances such as restlessness and anxiety and sleep issues.

Indigestion. Hops contain bitter substances that activate a reflex reaction in the central nervous system. This reflex stimulates the stomach to secrete digestive juices, relieving the feeling of fullness by helping the stomach digest food. The reaction also stimulates the flow of bile. This may help with nervous stomach, colitis, and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), and also may be a preventative treatment for those prone to ulcers in the GI tract.

Insomnia. Hops, like the beers that are made from it, is a well-known sleep aid. Aging hops for up to two years allows two of the herb’s chemical compounds, humulone and lupulone, to create a substance that is chemically similar to chlordiazepoxide (Librium) and diazepam (Valium). In one study, combining hops with another herb, valerian, improved sleep and quality of life in individuals who had mild insomnia. In another study, when these herbs were combined with other herbs such as motherwort and balm leaf, sleep quality was improved in a group of alcohol-dependent patients. They also experienced reduced sleepiness the next day and fewer bad dreams, and sleep-walked less frequently.

Menopausal symptoms. Many studies have been conducted using hops for menopausal symptoms, but the results are conflicting. Much of the problem lies in the lack of standardization of the hops. One group of investigators standardized hops to 8-prenylnaringenin (8-PN). Two doses were administered to two different groups of postmenopausal women—100 micrograms or 250 micrograms of 8-PN. The dose amount had no effect on the results; both groups had reduced menopausal-related discomforts and complaints, especially fewer hot flashes.

Recommended Use
Hops is available in capsules, powders, and tinctures, and also is taken as a tea. Many commercial formulas combine hops with valerian for their synergistic effect in inducing sleep. For most people 0.5 gram is considered the daily dose.

Hops contains the most potent of all the plant estrogens, prenylnaringenin. For this reason, children of either sex who have not reached puberty should not be given hops. Pregnant women, women with estrogen-sensitive disorders, especially estrogen-dependent breast cancer, and men who have gynecomastia (enlargement of the breasts) or erectile dysfunction (ED) also should avoid this herb. This phytoestrogen can be detected in beer, but the levels in beer are low and should not pose any cause for concern, although the phytoestrogens in hops can cause fat to be deposited into the classic “beer-belly” pattern. Dieters seeking to reduce the waistline should avoid both beer and medicinal application of hops.

The excessive use of hops may cause side effects such as dizziness, cognitive changes, and mild jaundice if used in conjunction with central nervous system depressants, antipsychotics, or alcohol. When used during menses, hops can produce nervousness, dermatitis, and respiratory allergies. Chronic consumption of hops may increase the potency of anesthetics used in surgery. It is wise to avoid using hops for at least two weeks before any type of surgery requiring general anesthesia, and to inform your doctor that you have been using hops before undergoing an operation. Hops should not be taken if you suffer from depression.

You should not take hops during the day if you will be driving or operating heavy machinery, or if you are depressed, as this herb may aggravate that condition. Do not take hops with medications for insomnia or anxiety except under a physician’s supervision.

Botanical Name: Humulus lupulus
English: Common Hops, Willow wolf
Unani: Hashish-ut-Dinaar
Also, known as: Houblon, Hopfen, Luppolo, Lupulo
Habitat: Asia, Europe and North America
Origin: Poland
Harvested: Cultivated
Parts Used: Flowers

General Information:
Humulus lupulus is a dioecious, perennial, herbaceous climbing plant that sends up new shoots in early spring and dies back to a cold-hardy rhizome in autumn. Flexible stems of this climber twist around anything nearby which allows the plant to grow anywhere from 15-30 feet. Heart-shaped dark green-colored leaves arranged oppositely, are covered in rough hairs. with 3-5 lobes. Flowers have female and male flowers grow on different plants. The Hop is one of the few crop plant species in which male and female flowers are borne on different plants. The fruit of the female plant is called strobiles and resembles small pine cones which are cone-shaped structures that hang from the plant, which can be harvested in late summer. The staminate flowers do not have petals, while the petals of the pistillate flower completely cover the fruit. The cones found on female plants are called strobila. Flowers emit a pine like fragrance and are attractive to butterflies.

In ancient Rome and Greece, the young shoots of the plant were eaten as a vegetable in salads. Hops are cultivated commercially for the harvest of female fruits which are used by breweries to preserve and flavor beer. Lupulus in Latin, meaning for small wolf and once called willow-wolf as it would be found climbing over willow trees.

How to use:
We make these suggestions to help you get the best benefit from the herbs that you’re choosing to improve your health. Also we make these ideas and recommendations so that consuming them easier and better fit into your lifestyle by adding them to the food that you already eat.
For the full health benefit, it is best to consume (or use the whole herb in poultices) the whole herb. All of the compounds in the herb act best together, as nature intends. Extracts draw out the most prominent beneficial compounds and may concentrate them. What is not extracted can be helpful in ways that we do not yet understand.

Cut Pieces or Powdered Herb:
There are different ways to use cut pieces or powdered herb.
Food Preparation: You can add powdered or pieces of herb (if the pieces you buy are bigger than you like, a coffee or herb grinder will quickly reduce) to any yogurt, smoothie, apple or other sauces, spreads, salads or other foods more familiar to you that don’t use heat. Heat can be damaging to the beneficial compounds in the herb. Other options like oatmeal, scrambled eggs, pasta sauce, soup, cookies and anything else that fits your lifestyle, but minimizing (by adding near the end of cooking) the heat is helpful.
Also, for children, you can mix powdered herb with honey or glycerin to make paste. The thicker the paste, the more potent and herbal in taste. The sweet taste of honey and glycerin will help medicine go down. The resulting liquid is called an electuary.
For seeds in general, but especially small seeds, it’s best to grind these to break the protective hulls a short time before consumption. This makes all the benefits available, rather than some remaining locked inside the hulls that are unbroken by insufficient chewing.
To make adding herbs even easier, you could add a week’s worth of your chosen herb(s) to an amount of, for example, yogurt that you would eat in a week. Mix thoroughly and eat this each day of the week. SO you make once /week and just eat each other day.
Hot Infusion: The basic method for dried herbs and flower is, take 2-3 tablespoons of dried herb in a cup or teapot. Pour hot water over it and cover it with lid for 10-30 minutes. The heat from making tea can degrade some of the beneficial compounds in the herb. This method minimizes this effect. For the full health benefit, it is recommended to consume what is left over after making tea.
Decoctions: Decoctions are suitable for roots, barks, large seeds & berries, and other dense material. The simple way to make decoction is, in a saucepan, add 1 tablespoon of dried herbs to 1 cup of water, Bring the water to boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30-60 minutes with the pot covered. Squeeze out as much as liquid as possible. Best practice is to drink the liquid and also consume the solid material that remains. Herb pieces can also be used.
Powdered Herb:
There are different ways to use powdered herb.
Capsules: HerbsCrafters makes capsules guaranteed to be filled with the pure herb with no filler or any other products. You can also use powdered herb to make your own capsules at home. These capsules are best taken with liquid to aid in digestion and absorption and to ensure it doesn’t stick in your throat.
Poultice: Poultice can be made with an herbal powder and liquid (mostly water) to form a paste which is then applied to the skin. This method is very helpful for skin conditions.
Herbal shot: Powdered herb can be mixed with water, fruit juice or other liquid to make herbal shot.

Tips:
You can sweeten your herbal decoctions with bit of honey, natural fruit juice, stevia leaves powder or licorice root powder.

Precautions:
You should consult with a qualified healthcare practitioner before using any herbal products, particularly if you are pregnant, nursing, or on any medications.
All information on this website is for educational purpose ONLY.
This information has not been evaluated by Health Canada.
This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.