Fighting addiction is no laughing matter. Having a severe dependency on one thing can destroy both lives and relationships. If your goal is to get out of a slump, or to help out a friend in need – it’s important to know that there are ways to improve the reliability of your decision to quit.

With alcohol in particular, people often develop addictive habits over long periods of time. It starts with a few drinks here and there, and eventually scales to more serious proportions when control is lost. As a result, people often face liver failure and a number of other conditions that are hard to fix.

Well thankfully, if you’re trying to quit, there are some foods that can improve your ability to do so. How many of them do you have in your kitchen?

Here are 5 Herbal Remedies That You Can Use to Reduce Cravings for Alcohol:

1. Milk Thistle

This herb is often used in treating cirrhosis of the liver – a condition that for a long time has been associated with an overconsumption of alcohol. At the same time, researchers and users alike are finding that it can help reduce cravings for the drug.

2. St. John’s Wort

Did you know that this herb already has a strong place in the treatment of depression? Well, turns out it’s also used to eliminate cravings for alcohol. St. John’s Wort has been found effective in cutting down on people’s urges to drink.

Tip: Some people find it useful to crush the flowers and soak them in hot water for 15-20 minutes. It’s important to crush them well, because this helps in the release of a pigment called hyperforin, which is responsible for the reduced cravings linked to the herb.

3. Chamomile

This one may come as less of a surprise. Chamomile has long been called a strong relaxant for its sedative properties. Minus these effects, chamomile (just like the first two items in this list) works to reduce the cravings of people recovering from drug addiction. It helps relax some of the restless symptoms associated with alcohol withdrawal.

Tip: Use the dried leaves to make a warm tea that fights to keep your stress levels in check.

4. Dandelion Root

Like the others in this list, dandelion also helps reduce cravings for alcohol, which can also help fight against the symptoms of withdrawal. At the same time, it does have benefits of its own!

Dandelion root can help increase your body’s excretion of bile, something that is lowered when you drink too much alcohol. This gives dandelion its own advantages over other herbs.

5. Goldenseal

While reducing cravings for alcohol, goldenseal can also desensitize your mouth with its bitter taste. This can work to kill your urges to drink even more heavily. At the same time, this herb can kill off the bacteria in your intestines that contribute to your alcohol cravings.

While none of these herbs are an “instant” fix for alcohol addiction, they can ultimately make it easier to quit once you make that decision yourself. It will take a lot of hard work and determination, but it’s never too late to drop a bad habit out of your life for good.