One of the reasons we enjoy sipping a cup of herbal tea is the pleasure of experiencing a warm and flavorful beverage, just alone or while having breakfast or taking a snack.
For several years, we have witnessed an explosion in the commercial interest for herbal teas. We have seen the numbers of species increase driven in part by consumer demand, looking for new and natural flavors. With packed teas are more common in supermarkets and ethnic stores, but perhaps it is online where we have seen explosive growth in the offer of herbal teas, packed finished products, or loose teas.
I was part of a team that made a contribution to introduce the South African herbal teas of Rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) and Honeybush (Cyclopia sp.) in the US and international marketplace. I was involved in studying chemistry and setting up trade, quality standards to facilitate their commercialization.
Tea is an infusion made from the young leaves of the shrub Camellia sinensis. After steeping our dried botanical product (e.g., leaves, seeds, rhizomes) of choice in hot water, we obtained our
Infusion, which is an extraction process facilitated by hot water, that process extracts the flavor, minerals, and non-nutritional secondary metabolites such as caffeine, and polyphenols (a.k.a, the ubiquitous antioxidants). Herbal tea is, technically, a herbal infusion, though the term herbal tea has become popular. Even coffee is a particular way of making an infusion, calling it coffee tea does not sound nice.
Apart from the sensory experience of holding a warm cup of key, with a pleasant aroma and color, herbal teas come with a plethora of healthful benefits.
Hydration is perhaps one of the most important contributions of herbal teas to our health, a pleasant way of having our daily water quota. A luscious herbal tea will help add flavor variety to mask the taste of tap water. It has been recommended that adults take around 10 cups of water per day (~2.5 liters), then herbal teas are ideal means to add water to our diets.
Infusions, in general, provide modest ways to add minerals to our diets. For example, lemongrass leaves (Cymbopogon citratus), give potassium to our diets. Depending on the amount used, it can provide similar levels compared with sport drinks.
As plants hate sodium, consuming herbal teas, fruits, and vegetables guarantees a sodium-free diet.
Green tea contains high levels of fluor, thus having a modest contribution to the mineralization of our teeth, with this element vital for keeping them healthy and cavity-free.
A word of caution on mineral and herbal teas, the leaves of the multipurpose tree, Moringa oleifera, are very high in calcium. You can get the greatest benefits while eating enough quantity of leaves as a food portion. As moringa has become popular as a herbal tea, the amounts of leaves used as herbal tea (2-3 grams), and the fact that not all calcium will end up in the infused water, the amount of calcium to the diet will be much lower.
Herbal teas are in most cases made from aromatic plants. Aromatic plants contain both volatile and non-volatile components that give the plant and infusion their characteristic aroma and taste when blended in our mouth and noses make the sensory experience of flavor. The volatile components are essential oils, volatile oily substances that provide the aroma that characterizes each of these plants. Essential oils are complex mixtures of components, which profile is dominated by one to three components while containing tens or even hundreds of minor and trace components.
An example is peppermint (Mentha piperita), the essential oil profile is characterized by the presence of menthol and menthone, which provides the characteristic “minty” flavor. These components are responsible for a remarkable property of this infusion, that is the process that helps indigestion. Menthol and menthone induce the release of bile by the gallbladder, which helps to digest fats. In addition, they act as muscle relaxants thus allowing our guts, more time for food to be digested. This is an example of a very popular infusion with digestive properties. In reality, help in the process of digestion is a general property of many essential oils components, such as citral (that is a mixture of two isomers, neral, and geranial), which gives herbs such as lemongrass and lemon verbena, the characteristic sharp, lemon aroma. Citral also acts as a choleretic and smooth muscle relaxant. An example of such an herb is lemon verbena (Aloysia citrodora) a South American medicinal plant, growing worldwide.
The herbal tea made from ginger (Zingiber officinalis) rhizomes, botanically a stem, not a root, is an example of a plant having both volatile and non-volatile components, that give the plant the characteristic flavor, and medicinal properties. Ginger also contains essential oils, with citral as one of the main components. Ginger also contains the non-volatile components, that are responsible in major part for the spicy flavor. The main volatile components of ginger are gingerols, phenols, that give ginger its spiciness. Together with the essential oils, these components are responsible for the amazing biological properties of ginger, which include antiseptic, powerful antibacterials, making ginger the ideal infusion to take while having a sore throat. Because of the essential oils, and the antioxidant nature of the gingerols, they also act as a choleretic, muscle relaxant, and liver protectors, all processes providing valuable help to digest foods.
Hibiscus (Hibiscus sabdariffa) is a shrub that grows in tropical and subtropical areas. The swollen calyces, the actual fruit of the plant, provide herbal teas with a dark red color, and organic acid with a sour flavor. The color is produced by anthocyanins, another example of non-volatile antioxidant polyphenols. Hibiscus teas have been shown to decrease levels of bad cholesterol, with some reports also claiming blood pressure reduction properties.
Most herbal teas are caffeine-free, as the caffeine is restricted to certain families of botanical products. Green tea and yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis) are examples. Caffeine is a stimulant of the nervous system. As such, increases blood pressure. The South American plants including yerba mate and guaraná (Paullinia cupana) have become very popular in the US, as they provide ingredients for “energy” herbal teas, ice teas, and other beverages.
In regards to antioxidants, green tea is the golden standard for antioxidants. The young leaves contain very high levels (30% or more) of flavones, powerful antioxidants, with cholesterol-lowering properties, and now with a growing body of evidence pointing to the fact that the antioxidants in tea, act as neuroprotectants, thus reducing the decline of cognitive abilities in older people. Rooibos tea with its pleasant red color is also a significant source of antioxidants. In commerce there is the trend to exaggerate the number of antioxidants in rooibos, according to my research, rooibos contains only a fourth of the antioxidant capacity found in green tea.
If you are interested in some health benefits, beyond having a pleasant beverage, look no further, herbal teas are there for you!