Rooibos Tea Health Benefits
How to improve your health by drinking Rooibos tea?
How many things do you know about Rooibos tea? You’ve probably heard about its powers and benefits. Read next about detailed information about Rooibos tea and its benefits.
Name Rooibos is African for “red bush”, while the scientific name of this plant is “Aspalathus linearis”. Rooibos is a natural herb that grows in a relatively restricted area in southern Africa, the Cedarberg Mountains. The leaves of this plant are processed to obtain tea known as red tea. There is no link between red and green tea which comes from the Camellia Sinensis.
Commonly referred to as “red tea”, the plant is far from being red, it is actually green. Red color appears only when the leaves are oxidized, after completion of the fermentation process that is subject plant.
Rooibos tea or red tea contains no caffeine, which makes it suitable for children. No need to add sugar because his taste is naturally sweet.
Rooibos tea antioxidants
The most important Rooibos tea health benefits are coming from his antioxidants, which are the following: aspalathin and nothofagin. Rooibos plant is unique on the planet because its content of Aspalathin, while nothofagin component can be found in other plants.
Aspalathin contains phenolic acids and flavonoids from which we are listing below the following: isoquercitrin, rutin, quercetin, iso-vitexin, vitexin, chrysoeriol, orientin, iso-orientin, luteolin. Even if all these scientific names will not say anything to you, we can still say that they are all beneficial.
More about antioxidants http://usehealthguide.com/antioxidants-health-benefits
Mineral content of Rooibos tea
Besides the rich content of antioxidants, Rooibos tea also contains many minerals that help the body in maintaining a healthy nervous system and metabolic processes. The minerals are also beneficial for the health of bones, teeth and skin. Copper, iron, magnesium, calcium, zinc and potassium are some of the minerals in Rooibos tea.
Roooibos Tea is ideal for people who have kidney stones, as it contains oxalic acid.
Compared with black and green tea, Rooibos contains fewer tannins. But Rooibos tea allows iron and other minerals to be absorbed very easily without affecting digestion.
Rooibos tea is used in Africa to help with various health problems such as insomnia, nervous tension, irritability and headaches. Its anti-spasmodic agents are helpful in eliminating colic or stomach cramps in children.
Allergic diseases like eczema or asthma can also be treated by drinking Rooibos tea.
Rooibos tea is useful when used for external use. For example it can be applied to minor wounds or irritated skin.
The antioxidants in red tea are naturally anti-fungal and anti-bacterial, which makes it suitable for such use.
Rooibos tea is a good alternative to anti-inflammatory medication such as NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory), which are known to be harmful when used for long term. This mainly affects the intestinal tract by promoting inflammation. Red tea has no such adverse effects, which makes it a good alternative to NSAIDs.
Green Rooibos Tea
Rooibos tea standard preparation means that the Rooibos leaves are harvested and then are left oxidize, this way obtaining its distinctive taste and the red color after which is known as red tea. The Green Rooibos tea is made also from Rooibos leaves but the natural oxidation and fermentation process is stopped immediately after harvesting. So, instead of following the traditional method of fermenting the tea for a long time, the Green Rooibos is steamed to prevent the oxidation. Only after stopping the oxidation, the leaves are rolled and dried.
Green Rooibos is a more aromatic tea, with delicate notes. Several studies discovered that this tea contains more valuable nutrients than regular Rooibos (e.g. minerals, antioxidants or flavovonoids). These results made people to give a special attention to Green Rooibos tea especially because of his enhanced health benefits, coming from the high content of fluoride, zinc, magnesium, iron, calcium and vitamin C. It is also known for its anti-viral properties.
Rooibos tea is a caffeine free drink which promoted a better health among its consumers. It is capable to promote a healthier skin because of its high content of alpha-hydroxyl acid. Researchers found that the Green Rooibos has a double amount of antioxidants than regular Rooibos, making the tea sellers to claim that is two times healthier.
Here are some of the general health benefits of Red Rooibos:
– Stops the skin aging protecting it from free radicals.
– Stabilize the blood sugar levels in diabetics
– Lowers the blood pressure and the cholesterol levels
– Improves the immune system function
July 24 2013 03:36 pm | Miscellaneous
