A Cuppa Health

By Lisa Poisso

Drink up! A cup of tea is the savvy mum’s answer to chilling out your nerves while buffing up your health. Studies showing tea’s health benefits continue to pile up, demonstrating that tea can combat heart disease, lower cholesterol and reduce your risk of several types of cancer. All types of tea provide these healthy benefits, with green tea pulling ahead of more highly processed black, red and white tea. Caffeine-free versions will give you all the benefits without the drawbacks of caffeine.

Sharing the shelves with black, green, red and white teas are herbal teas. Herbal teas aren’t truly teas at all but are made with herbs, flowers, roots, spices or other parts of some plants. Chamomile tea is famously soothing and even sleep-inducing, while Saint John’s Wort has made headlines in the treatment of depression. Red raspberry and cinnamon are known for easing menstrual cramps. Dandelion has been used to relieve premenstrual bloating. The bitter Uva Ursi herb has diuretic and urinary antiseptic effects.

Herbal teas are popular among pregnant and nursing mothers, who use them to prepare for and even begin labor (under medical supervision, of course) and build milk supplies. Strawberry leaf, lemon grass leaf, nettle leaf, alfalfa, fennel seed, rosehips, and lemon verbena are all generally considered gentle and safe. Avoid any type of cohosh, pennyroyal or mugwort, and steer clear of Ma Huang and ephedra as well.

Most supermarkets now stock a tantalizing array of green, black, red and flavored teas. Standardised preparations of herbal teas from established manufacturers are the safest way to enjoy herbal teas and may be found at health food stores and your local supermarket.

Don’t like to drink tea? Green tea and white tea are popping up in skin care products, fighting damage and aging with antioxidants and even having been shown to combat skin cancer. You’ll enjoy tea’s soothing qualities in perfumes, lotions and aromatherapy products.

Enjoy your cuppa!