Chamomile

The Essentials

Chamomile is an apple-scented evening tea with mild GABA-binding activity from apigenin. Randomised trials support it for generalized anxiety and for sleep onset in older adults.

For most adults, an ordinary cup is gentle enough for daily use. Children need a weaker preparation and adult guidance.

Drink it thirty to sixty minutes before bed, once the lights are low and the day is winding down.

Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) is one of the world's most familiar calming herbs. Its flowers smell faintly of apples and contain apigenin, a plant compound that works on some of the same calming pathways as anti-anxiety medicines, though much more gently. For most people, the simple evening cup is where chamomile fits best.