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This digestion tincture is by far the most used tincture in my home remedy cabinet. It’s simple to make, but effective against lots of digestive issues. If you’re dealing with bloating, IBS, or just need digestive support, then read on.
Digestive Bitters For Gut Health
In modern diets, sugar or salty tastes are often the stars of the show. We don’t naturally rely on a lot of bitter tastes to flavor our food anymore. If you’ve ever had dandelion leaves or frisee lettuce though, then you’ll know what they taste like. Other common digestive bitters include rosemary, orange peel, and coffee. Bitters aid digestive health in several different ways.
These herbs increase our digestive secretions throughout the digestive tract. It all starts with the tongue. As soon as we taste bitter herbs it gets our saliva going and aids digestion the rest of the way down. They also trigger bile flow from the gallbladder to help the healthy digestion of fats.
Aromatic Herbal Blends
Another class of digestion supporting herbal teas and remedies is aromatics. These are more pungent smelling and have strong volatile oils, like mint, fennel, and black pepper. Like bitters they help with digestion, but in a different way. Their volatile oils signal our smooth muscles to relax and tell our nervous system it’s time to settle down and digest.
Herbal Tincture Ingredients
For this digestive tincture blend I use a mix of peppermint, ginger, and fennel.
Peppermint
Peppermint is delicious in mint chocolate chip ice cream, but it’s also great for soothing the digestive system. People with acid reflux may need to exercise caution though. Mint in medicinal amounts can soften the sphincter in the esophagus and trigger heartburn in those already prone to it. If you find that you get heartburn or reflux from using this tincture, then try it without the mint.
Mint helps with an upset stomach and nausea. This makes it great for pregnancy nausea and motion sickness too! Mint also has anti-viral activity and can help with the flu. It both relaxes and stimulates the nervous system to do its job.
Ginger
Ginger is the next herb in the digestion tincture. It stimulates circulation and is great for cold and flu support. Ginger also helps with nausea, motion sickness, and morning sickness. Fresh ginger is easier on sensitive stomachs than dried ginger. There’s some evidence it has anti-inflammatory properties, especially when it comes to arthritis. However, the jury is still out on that one.
Researchers found that ginger performed better than the placebo when it comes to nausea. It helped with nausea and vomiting after surgery, seasickness, and morning sickness. It can also reduce nausea caused by chemotherapy treatment.
Fennel
Fennel, also known as Foeniculum vulgare is another amazing digestive herb. It’s gentle and soothing for all ages, including little ones. You’ll often find it in gripe water preparations. Fennel helps with spasms, and calms colic, and constipation. It’s also a carminative and helps release trapped gas in the intestines. It should be used with caution during early pregnancy though.
How to Use the Digestion Tincture
I’ve used this digestion tincture in transition during labor when nausea hits. It’s also helpful to curb morning sickness and for stomach bugs to help stop vomiting. I also use it for indigestion, heartburn, and other digestive disturbances. If you find that it worsens your heartburn though, then omit the mint and replace it with more of the other herbs. If you’re having a digestive issue of any kind, this will likely work for it.
Getting to the root cause of the problem is always the best idea though. For example, if you have gut dysfunction and a leaky gut, diet changes can help to heal the gut lining. If your baby is always colicky there could be an oral tie or nervous system disruption causing the tummy troubles. In that case, getting evaluated for tongue or lip ties or a chiropractor adjustment can be helpful.
Pregnancy and Nursing
Fennel tea is generally considered gentle and safe for pregnancy, but the tincture is not. It can have estrogenic effects when used in large amounts. Using fennel while breastfeeding can increase milk production and soothe digestive issues for nursing babies.
Mint is commonly used to help with pregnancy nausea. In later stages of pregnancy, it could potentially worsen existing heartburn. Peppermint in larger amounts may reduce breastmilk flow in nursing mothers.
If you’re pregnant then replace the fennel with chamomile. It’s pregnancy safe and has many of the same digestive actions. Be sure to check with your doctor or midwife first before taking any herbal supplements.
Nursing moms may want to omit the peppermint in this digestion tincture. You can replace it with more ginger and fennel instead.
Babies and Children
I always keep this remedy (and homemade chamomile tincture) on hand, especially with kids. This digestive remedy can be used externally on baby’s tummies for colic and gas. You can also rub some on the head (adult or child) for headaches. And of course, it’s what I pull out for my kids when we’re away from home and they’ve indulged in too much unhealthy food.
How Much Do I Take?
Adults can take up to 1 teaspoon in water or tea. For heartburn, indigestion, or nausea, one dose is usually sufficient. You might find you need a second round though. During pregnancy, I used 1/2 teaspoon in the morning for morning sickness. Then I took a few more doses throughout the day as needed.
Children don’t need as much, about 10-20 drops. For babies, you can rub a few drops on their tummies.
If you’re pregnant, nursing, or have a medical condition, check with your doctor or midwife before using any herbal remedy or supplement.
Digestion Tincture Alcohol Strength
Most homemade tinctures are made with 80-proof alcohol (40%). The herbs used in this extract best with a 50-60% alcohol strength though. That’s a little higher than what you can get with your typical vodka. A simple fix is to use 95-proof alcohol and dilute it with distilled water to get to 60%.
That translates to about 2 parts alcohol to 1 part water. This tincture calls for 3 cups total liquid, but if you need more to cover your herbs, use the 2 to 1 ratio. If you’re using fresh mint and ginger, then use 95-proof alcohol with no water added.
Digestion Tincture
Yield
Equipment
Materials
- ½ cup dried peppermint leaf
- ¼ cup dried ginger root pieces (or 1/2 cup fresh, finely chopped)
- ¼ cup dried fennel (or chamomile)
- 2 cups 95-proof alcohol (like Everclear)
- 1 cup distilled water
Instructions
- Crush the fennel. Put peppermint, ginger, and fennel (or chamomile) in the glass jar.
- Fill the rest of the jar with alcohol and water. If you don't have enough liquid to cover your herbs fully, add a little more alcohol and water in a 2:1 ratio until you do.
- Cap the jar and keep in a cool dark place for at least two weeks, but up to six. Shake occasionally.
- After 2-6 weeks, strain the herbs out with a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth. Compost the herbs.
- Store your tincture in glass dropper bottles in a cool, dark place.
Notes
What have you tried to help with digestive issues? Any herbs you would add to this? Leave a comment and let me know!
Hi Katie, what can I use to substitute the peppermint leaves? My 3y/o is having constipation issues and she’s sensitive with peppermint. Thanks for your reply!.
This is such a great creation!! Is there any possible way to make this any quicker? Or maybe an alternative you know of? I’m 38 weeks and would love to have this during labor to avoid the nausea!!
I screwed up and bought anise seeds instead of fennel. Could I use them instead or ?
Thank you
They should work…
Thank you and congratulations!
So, I left my mix unstrained for a couple months…. In the instructions, it says to let stew for “up to six weeks.” Should I toss it out and start over?
Hi, is there a way to make this without alcohol for morning sickness please?
Wondering if you have ever made a tinture with essential oils?
There isn’t a need to. When you distill a plant, you get the volatile factions (the essential oil). With tinctures, the alcohol removes different fractions. Adding EOs to alcohol would just create an EO diluted in alcohol and not provide any additional benefit. I also avoid EOs internally, so I wouldn’t recommend that…
Thank you! I was trying to find a way to safely use them in something like my water. I already have the oils, so was looking for ways to use them, but of course want to be cautious. I figured diluting the essential oils in alcohol would create a concentration that would incorporate in water when added and be diluted enough to be safe for ingestion. I appreciate your caution! I am taking baby steps to living a healthier lifestyle and often refer to your blog for information! Thank you for the response!
Could you use fresh mint leaves instead of dried, and if so would you use a greater quantity?
Do I have to use fennel? I can’t stand the stuff.
Hello – thanks sharing these awesome recipes. I made 2 tinctures last night and I put them in my old mason jars. I don’t think the containers are airtight, I’d that okay?
Also my mom loves the elderberry syrup, thanks again!
Would it make any difference using amber colored glass jars instead of clear glass jars? I wonder if the amber glass would block out any UV rays, making the tincture more potent and last longer.
YES!! Keep your tinctures in a cool, dark place.
Ok, so we do not all have a really COOL, dark place…some are kind of Nerdy or Vampire-ishy, , but not Cool and Hip like mine!! (lol, sorry XD)
Ok, COOL as in temperature? Just make certain the room is not a real warm. I keep mine in my walk- in pantry.
So I made this a six weeks ago, NOT this exact recipe, but herbs were changed, and I used 190 Proof Grain Alcohol, (Everclear is what I used). It was my understanding that the higher the proof, the better the tincture. Boy does it burn under my tongue!!! Whew! It does the trick, it just tastes so gull-darn horrid! What can I do to change that? Mine is HERBS and the alcohol and nothing else. herbs were ground to a fine powder, gently warmed in a 275 degree Farenheit oven for 15 minutes then placed into room temperature grain alcohol . while still warm. I used no water. I worry that will cause bacteria/mold and not keep it’s shelf life of many years I am told. Placed in dark glass container for six weeks shaking daily. After that, I strained/filtered four times: fine metal mesh strainer, then the cheesecloth, and then use a coffee filter, discard filter and do it again with a fresh clean one. So do that step Twice! Then put in your dark glass bottles. Don’t use plastic!
So any ideas for better taste…besides SUGARS?
Did I do anything wrong in my making of it?
Thank you!
Wanted to say thank you. Have been using this with my family for over a year now. Even those who were skeptical use it as their go-to favourite 🙂
My wife and I have been researching the use of Fennel during pregnancy. We have family that sell Young Living essential oils and recommended using fennel oil. However in our research we’ve found contradicting views on it. Some say it can be harmful and in some cases cause early labor or to lose your baby. Others say you can use it just fine while pregnant to increase milk supply. This article I found the most helpful, they use Gentle Babies as a guide: https://www.thankyourbody.com/essential-oils-pregnancy-nursing/
What is your take? Are seeds and teas safe and not the oil? Young Livings website says the oil should be avoided. My wife is pregnant and losing her milk supply, and we’re looking at our options. Also would like to caution our family if they are recommending something that’s unsafe.
I am much more cautious about EOs because they are so concentrated. You could leave the fennel out though and it should still be pretty effective.
I’m wondering how this is safe for kids and pregnant women with the alcohol in it.
I’d love to make this but cannot stand the taste of fennel. Does is taste strongly of fennel or is there anything I could substitute for it?
Hi just an observation concerning your instructions on tinture making. If u pour alcohol Ito the hot water won’t that evaporate the alcohol leaving u with essentially a tea also if your going half and half with water and using 40% alcohol you end up with a 20% alcohol tinture which is not very strong if I’m right
I am thinking the way you do….I would probably let the water cool before adding alcohol I dont use water but it would save money over time
If you don’t get to taste the alcohol, what’s the purpose of using it? I’ve been searching the web for any and all natural remedies for myself as well as my toddler. These are great ideas but I’m a bit concerned about the alcohol part. Could you elaborate a little more on it, it’s purpose and that it’s not harmful for my toddler to ingest? I noticed a comment above asked about the alcohol as well and you responded that you can’t taste it once the mixture is complete. Just making sure it’s perfectly okay to give to my toddler. Thanks!
The alcohol is sterile, so it lasts a long time. It’s an ideal vehicle for the tincture. However, you can also use apple cider vinegar or glycerin. I describe the process in this post: https://wellnessmama.com/8168/herbal-tinctures/
Hi,
I’m wondering if you’ve ever tried crushing your fennel in a coffee grinder before using. It might add more flavour, or is there a reason not to?
I just made this last night, forgetting I am going out of town in 3 weeks. Is it better to strain the tincture before I go or can I let it continue to marinate without a daily shake for the week that I’m gone? Thanks!
Would spearmint leaves work with this? I have never made a tincture before. My grandfather has awful nausea and horrible stomach troubles after his chemo treatments. He has another treatment scheduled in about two months. I have spearmint on hand from the root beer recipe you have (Mountain Rose Herbs had absolutely no listing for wintergreen which is what the recipe calls for). Would subbing the peppermint with spearmint make this less effective?
By changing to the “wellness” way of eating, I have lost a little over twenty pounds, my husband has lost over thirty-five pounds, and it has cured our youngest son’s severe eczema that was unknowingly caused by a grain sensitivity. Your website was our sole reason for switching, and I am so glad we did. 🙂 Thanks in advance for your answer about the spearmint.
So glad my website has been helpful and congrats on your progress. You could use spearmint instead. 🙂
Would it work to use glycerine instead of vodka? I’ve made echinacea tincure but used glycerine instead of vodka so was wondering if that would also work for this?
Yep