Health Benefits of Some Common Herbal Teas

People think of different things when they hear the word tea: some picture a sweet, milky cup of black tea, others a sweet, minty cup, others a pure green tea and others still an herbal mixture. In reality, only drinks made from the Camellia sinensis
plant are considered tea. This includes the first three in the list above, i.e. black tea and green tea, as well as white tea, oolong tea, post-fermented tea (like pu’er) and yellow tea. It does not include teas made from any other plants.
These herbal ‘teas’ are actually called tisanes and you might have noticed their absence on this site. Since they are not really teas, I have chosen to leave them out. I do occasionally get some questions about the possible benefits of various tisanes, so I have decided to address some of the more common herbal drinks and their supposed benefits:
Chamomile Tea is used to soothe an upset stomach and help relieve gas, bloating and other gastrointestinal issues. It also helps with anxiety and insomnia. Further, drinking chamomile tea when you have a cold may help relieve some of the symptoms and speed up the healing process.
Ginger Tea is used to cure or relieve just about any ailment you can think of: nausea, gastrointestinal problems, menstrual cramps, inflammation, and respiratory illnesses. It also improves blood circulation.
Hibiscus Tea cures high blood pressure. Since it is widely available and very inexpensive, it might be worth trying out to see if it really does help. If so, you could save a lot on blood pressure medication. If you live in the correct climate, you might even be able to grow your own.
St. John’s Wort Tea is an old remedy for depression and can help with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). People who suffer from serious cases of depression should seek additional help.
Women have been drinking Raspberry Leaf Tea for centuries to help with pregnancy and fertility problems. The tea can both increase fertility and ease morning sickness and apparently even reduce the pain associated with labor.
Nettle Leaf Tea helps to relieve or prevent high blood pressure, arthritis, rheumatism, inflammation, and a cough or the common cold.
Peppermint Tea helps with an upset stomach and any other gastrointestinal problems, as well as nausea. People who get heartburn or indigestion should avoid drinking peppermint tea, though.
Milk Thistle Tea is especially useful for people who put undue pressure on their liver, i.e. alcoholics, drug addicts or anyone on painkillers. It functions as a liver cleanser helping to regenerate the liver, which allows it to work at an increased capacity.
As is always the case with herbal remedies, more research is needed, but all of the claims listed above do have studies to support them. Luckily, none of these teas are overly expensive and they don’t cause any harm, so there’s really nothing to stop you from giving them a try and seeing how you feel.

View the original article here