When you think of sage, it’s easy to think of the great flavor and aroma it adds to your cooking. It’s a classic in hearty fall foods, after all.
But maybe it comes as a surprise that sage can add more than flavor to your life. In fact, adding sage to your health and beauty regimen can benefit your body in a variety of ways.
Here are 9 examples, just to get you started…
1. Nourishes Your Hair
When it comes to your hair, essential oils have become a popular way to boost hair health. And sage oil falls into this helpful category because it might help balance your scalp oils and strengthen your hair.
In fact, sage oil is generally recognized as safe by the USDA. However, you might want to consult your doctor or dermatologist before using any sort of herbal treatment.1
2. Deals With Dandruff
Now, dandruff can be among the most annoying symptoms of everyday skin issues. But, if a hair product is the source of your issues, adding sage oil might help you soothe and hydrate the skin on your scalp, for fewer flakes. In addition, sage oil can help your skin anywhere on the body, not just your scalp.
3. Keeps Your Hair Beautiful
Does stress have you pulling out your hair? Well — maybe. The thing is, hair loss can be triggered by stress.3 But you see, salvia (sage) plants have been used for the treatment of several ailments, with traditional knowledge suggesting they have benefits for cognitive and neurological conditions like stress.4 In this way, sage oil could potentially help lower contributing factors to hair loss.
4. Fights Against Free Radical Damage
Sage is full of antioxidants and that means it might aid in the fight against free radical damage and could potentially even help diminish the visible signs of aging like wrinkles and fine lines that comes from cell damage.5 And studies have shown that plant-based antioxidants can help when it comes to slowing down the breakdown of collagen fibers that leads to wrinkles.6 Worth a shot, don’t you think?
5. Combats Skin Irritations
If you are having trouble with other skin issues, sage oil may be what you need to turn the tide. Clary sage also has a natural anti-inflammatory called linalyl acetate. This can help you deal with acne and other skin irritations.7 In fact, the results in recent in vitro tests encourage using sage oil as an active natural antimicrobial agent. Because of its antimicrobial properties, clary sage oil may be applied to treat wounds and skin infections.8 So, it’s a good idea to consider adding a bit of sage oil to your natural first aid kit.
6. May Help Manage Fungus
Along with handling infections, sage oil and other essential oils might help manage fungal infections. As a matter of fact, you may see sage oil in products designed to handle dermatophyte — a common fungus that grows on skin, mucous membranes, hair, and nails.9
7. Supports The Mind
The same antioxidant properties that make sage great for your skin might also mean that sage can provide real support to your brain.
One study showed healthy, young people given a dried sage preparation showed an overall memory and mood boost.
It’s believed these results were due to inhibiting a certain enzyme that affected memory function.10
8. Offers Immune Support
These same antioxidants may be able to help your body in other ways. Several studies show sage could help your immune system in ways that range from helping with typical issues like cough and inflammation to helping with digestive issues and even more serious conditions.11
9. Supports Cholesterol Health
One interesting study focusing on sage tea showed that it may help manage high cholesterol. After four weeks of regular consumption, six otherwise healthy volunteers showed a reduction in LDL cholesterol and an improvement in total cholesterol levels.12,13
Some Sage Advice
In the end, the herbal revival means more opportunities than ever for those who are looking to move away from mainstream, synthetic healthcare and beauty products while still taking an active role in their health.
Sage is a great example of both the potential of this and why it’s important to handle carefully. As of right now, the best practice is to modify expectations and keep your doctor in the loop.
Learn More:
What Your Tongue’s Trying To Tell You (and why you should listen!)
How To Make Your Own Natural First Aid Kit
7 Herbal Remedies for Bloating & Gas Relief
Sources
1.https://nccih.nih.gov/health/sage
3.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1868107/
4.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5318325/
5.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17708648
6.https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/08/070830102601.htm
7.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12587692
8.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4360007/
9.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3809930/
10.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12895685
11.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308814605009076
12.http://www.ijcasereportsandimages.com/archive/2013/012-2013-ijcri/002-12-2013-hamidpour/ijcri-00212201322-hamidpour-full-text.php
13.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2769154/