Drinking clove water before bed can provide an array of health benefits that improve your comfort and wellness overnight. Cloves contain powerful compounds that combat inflammation, bacteria, viruses, and free radicals. Taking advantage of these properties while you sleep allows your body to tap into cloves’ natural healing abilities.
This article will explore 12 research-backed ways that sipping clove water at night can boost your overall health.
For centuries, cloves have been used in traditional medicine to treat many different ailments. Modern research has now confirmed that cloves contain anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, antimicrobial and antioxidant compounds.
Consuming clove water before bed provides a concentrated dose of these beneficial agents, so your body can reap the rewards overnight while you sleep.
From easing arthritis and digestion issues to enhancing brain function and oral health, clove water offers multi-pronged benefits that optimize wellness from head to toe.
Keep reading to learn 12 science-backed ways clove water at night can improve your health, comfort and wellness.
1. Relieves Inflammation
Cloves have potent anti-inflammatory properties due to compounds like eugenol, beta-caryophyllene, methyl salicylate and oleanolic acid. These compounds inhibit inflammatory enzymes and cytokines to reduce swelling, joint pain, fever and skin inflammation.
Drinking clove water at night provides a concentrated dose of these anti-inflammatory agents so they can offer relief as you sleep. For those suffering from arthritis, muscle soreness or exercise-induced inflammation, clove water before bed can provide a marked reduction in pain and stiffness for increased comfort and restful sleep.
The anti-inflammatory effects also help with headaches, cramps, wounds, infections and inflammatory bowel diseases.
2. Fights Bacteria
Research shows cloves exhibit broad-spectrum antibacterial abilities against numerous gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria, including drug resistant strains.
Cloves disrupt bacterial cell walls and block enzymes needed for survival. The most potent antibacterial compounds in cloves are eugenol, caryophyllene and tannins.
Sipping clove water before bed allows these antibacterial agents to kill oral bacteria that cause plaque buildup, bad breath and gum infections while you sleep. Clove water also reduces the growth of gut bacteria that cause stomach ulcers and diarrhea.
The antibacterial effects support immune health by destroying invaders before they spread and cause harm. This leads to fewer illnesses and infections.
3. Boosts Immunity
Cloves contain high antioxidants like vitamin C and E, flavonoids, phenolic acids and tannins. These antioxidants neutralize disease-causing free radicals and prevent oxidative stress on cells and tissues.
Drinking clove water before bed boosts antioxidant levels in your body as you sleep, enhancing overall wellness and proper immune functioning. Antioxidants protect against chronic diseases by reducing inflammation and cell mutations. They support healthy aging as well.
The antiviral and antibacterial activities of cloves also strengthen your immune defenses against pathogens. This antioxidant and antimicrobial combination provides potent immune-enhancing benefits overnight.
4. Improves Digestion
Active compounds like eugenol, triterpenoids and caryophyllene in cloves increase the secretion of digestive enzymes, gastric juices, bile and the mucosal lining of the stomach. This optimizes digestion and ensures you properly break down foods from your last meal.
Malabsorption and undigested food can lead to diarrhea, constipation, cramping and bloating. The anti-inflammatory effects of cloves also soothe stomach lining irritation.
Sipping clove water before bed promotes complete digestion so you experience optimal nutrient absorption and reduced gastrointestinal discomfort when you wake up.
5. Regulates Blood Sugar
Animal studies show cloves improve insulin signaling and glucose uptake into cells, reducing blood sugar spikes after meals. This effect is attributed to compounds like gallic acid, coradin and anthocyanins in cloves.
For diabetics, clove water at night helps control glucose levels during the long fast while sleeping, preventing sugar crashes. This leads to uninterrupted sleep and balanced glucose upon waking.
Maintaining stable blood sugar overnight is key for diabetes management. The antioxidant effects of cloves also protect pancreatic cells that produce insulin.
Together, these benefits may make clove water ideal for diabetics.
6. Enhances Brain Function
Neuroprotective compounds in cloves like eugenol, caryophyllene oxide, corcin and gallic acid improve brain function by boosting cognition, memory, learning and focus.
These antioxidants reduce inflammation in the brain and prevent oxidative damage to neurons. Cloves also increase acetylcholine, an important neurotransmitter for memory and concentration.
The stimulating aroma of cloves additionally promotes alertness.
By drinking clove water before bed, these brain enhancing effects continue overnight while you sleep, allowing you to start your day with improved mental clarity and focus.
7. Promotes Oral Health
Research confirms the potent antimicrobial effects of cloves against oral bacteria like Porphyromonas gingivalis and Streptococcus mutans that create plaque and cause cavities, gingivitis and periodontitis.
Compounds in cloves inhibit the adhesion, colonization and growth of these pathogens. Sipping clove water at night provides a simple solution to combat unhealthy oral bacteria without alcohol or harsh chemicals found in mouthwashes.
Eliminating these bacteria reduces dental decay and infections for improved oral and dental health. The antibacterial rinse effect supports fresher breath as well.
8. Alleviates Respiratory Issues
Clove water eases respiratory issues like cough, cold, flu and chest congestion thanks to compounds that thin mucus, relax airways and exhibit antibacterial, antiviral and anti-inflammatory effects.
Eugenol dilates airways for easier breathing. Other volatile compounds reduce phlegm buildup and act as expectorants to clear congestion.
The antimicrobial properties also combat airborne pathogens that infect the sinuses and lungs. Overall, clove water before bed provides multi-pronged respiratory relief so you wake up with clearer airways and improved breathing.
9. Reduces Stomach Ulcers
H. pylori bacteria can cause painful stomach ulcers if allowed to overgrow in the gut. Luckily, cloves have been shown in studies to inhibit H. pylori due to their antimicrobial compounds such as eugenol, caryophyllene, tannins and gallic acid.
These compounds prevent adhesion and reduce the production of the extracellular enzymes that allow H. pylori to damage the stomach lining.
Consuming clove water before bed delivers these antibacterial compounds to your digestive tract to kill off this harmful pathogen, preventing associated ulcers, inflammation and discomfort.
10. Calms Nausea
The carminative effect of cloves relieves nausea, vomiting, stomach distension, gas, pain and diarrhea resulting from indigestion.
Active compounds like eugenol, caryophyllene and cineole relax gastrointestinal tissues and enhance digestion. This allows clove water to settle stomach discomfort and ease symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome when consumed before bed.
The anti-inflammatory properties also soothe stomach lining irritation that can trigger nausea and diarrhea. Through these mechanisms, a cup of clove water at night alleviates an upset stomach.
11. Prevents Heartburn
Heartburn and acid reflux can be exacerbated at night when lying down. Fortunately, cloves boost digestion and reduce acidity in the stomach due to their gastroprotective effects.
Compounds like eugenol, beta-caryophyllene and tannins enhance mucus barriers and reduce the secretion of acidic gastric juices. This prevents the backflow of acid that causes heartburn.
The anti-inflammatory properties protect the stomach lining as well. Together, these benefits of clove water prevent nighttime heartburn episodes, allowing for undisturbed sleep.
12. Stabilizes Blood Pressure
Active compounds in cloves like eugenol, oleanolic acid and caryophyllene exhibit anti-hypertensive effects by enhancing circulation, inhibiting ACE enzymes and easing arterial stiffness.
Through these mechanisms, cloves stabilize blood pressure even during sleep cycles when pressure drops. Keeping blood pressure regulated at night is important for those with hypertension.
For healthy adults, the vasodilating effects of cloves also promote rest by optimizing blood flow to the brain and muscles as you sleep. This enhances tissue oxygenation for an energizing start to your day.
Conclusion
As you can see, drinking clove water before bed provides multiple science-backed ways to boost your health, comfort and wellness overnight. With anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antioxidant and other beneficial properties, cloves offer a simple, natural solution to optimize wellness while you sleep.
It’s an easy ritual to add to your nighttime routine that can have a huge impact. Give clove water a try tonight and experience the benefits for yourself.