Thursday, September 15, 2011

A “blooming” healthy cup of tea.

Egyptian Red is a tea made from the calyces of the hibiscus Sabdariffa flower. I was recently introduced to “Egyptian Red Tea,” and found it a very pleasant and refreshing drink. I took an instant liking to it, and I’m sure you will too. As you will see, this tea is said to have many health benefits. A word of warning, don’t add milk to it - it will curdle. The tea is available at health food stores. - Werner
* * * * * * *
Egyptian Red is made from a premium grade Hibiscus Sabdariffa, grown in Upper Egypt.  Caffeine-free, rich in Vitamins and with potent antioxidant properties, Hibiscus Tea is reputed to have been the preferred drink of the Pharaohs. Hibiscus tea has been around for centuries and is considered an almost all-purpose medicinal remedy. Its reputed health benefits include helping reduce pain and relieving symptoms of over 15 disorders such as:

Arthritis, bladder infections, blood pressure, constipation, poor blood circulation, fatigue and fluid retention to name a few. This herbal drink can be consumed hot or cold.

Known for its extremely high content of antioxidants (mainly flavonoids), the tea assists our body in neutralizing negative effects of free radicals, this way slowing down aging processes, protecting us against cancer and improving our general health. Egyptian Red is rich in enzymes which slow down chemical processes in our body linked to breaking complex sugars and carbohydrate absorption.
 
Egyptian Red is known as one of the richest sources of Vitamin C, which plays a role for strengthening our immune system. Regular consumption of Egyptian Red is linked to lower chances of suffering from constipation and having bladder infections. Finally, Egyptian Red has numerous positive effects on our cardio-vascular system. It supports the function of the heart and helps strengthen blood vessels. Health benefits of Egyptian Red include lowering blood pressure and lowering high levels of cholesterol in the blood.
 
Hibiscus Tea - Cool down your blood pressure.
The Hibiscus Tea Benefits are as follows:
•    Worried about your blood pressure? Don’t be. This tea is a great way to lower your blood pressure. Studies have proven that hibiscus tea lowers the systolic reading, the top level of your blood pressure reading.

•    This tea helps lower your levels of bad cholesterol.

•    If you wish to benefit from higher quantities of carotenoids and antioxidants such as vitamin C, then we suggest choosing a dried hibiscus flower from this range of colours: red, pink, orange and yellow to make your tea.

•   The antioxidants are important because they help you fight cell damaging. And as it contains vitamin C, it boosts your immune system.

•   It may reduce the risk of stroke and heart attack. It is still being studied if drinking hibiscus tea can have a long term effect that can be sustained over time, but at least you should consider that hibiscus tea may be the beginning to an improved life.

•   As it is an herbal tea, it contains no caffeine. And again, this is always a good way for you to reduce high blood pressure.

•   This tea is a mild diuretic, helping the kidney function, and may reduce liver disorder.

•   Sometimes going on a diet may be quite a boring thing, isn’t it? You feel restricted. However, why not view this as a chance to try new flavours? Hibiscus tea is also one of the weight loss teas. So if you are looking for different ways to lose body fat, go ahead and add it to your list.

•   It has powerful enzyme inhibitors, which means that by reducing enzyme activity, your body will be unable to break up fats and sugars. If it can’t absorb them, your body will dispose of them, helping you on the way to body fat loss. And remember that natural enzyme inhibitors tend to be safer than lab-produced ones in some weight loss products.

•   The reduction of sugar absorption also helps to cleanse your body and riding it of excess fluids and sensation of bloating. This may make it ideal for women in menopause or those of you who are unfortunately more susceptible to weight issues.

•   It may be used as a great natural way to cool off in the summer. Those Pharaohs had the right idea.
 
To read more about this tea, click here and on the other link. http://www.therighttea.com/hibiscus-tea.html

SBS Food Safari about Egypt; Karkady tea (Red Egyptian tea) is mentioned in it. Click here.
* * * * * * *
Click on this text to enlarge for easier reading.

* * * * * * * *
My thought for today: - Werner
There is no trouble so great or grave that cannot be much diminished by a nice cup of tea.  ~Bernard-Paul Heroux




10 comments:

Carol Venner said...

I see what you have written about Egyptian Red tea on your blog, I'm glad you like it as I do. I love its rich red colour. Good on you for telling others about it & its many health benefits. I first tried this tea when I was travelling in Egypt 5 years ago. It is known as ' karkady' tea throughout Egypt. It is served in the restaurants and hotels as a hot tea or a refreshing cold drink. In Cairo there are many Perfume Palaces where tourists are taken and shown Egypt’s many wonderful perfume essences and beautiful perfume bottles & decanters - tourists are at these places for half an hour or more as they try to sell you perfumes but when you first arrive you are given complimentary drinks of hot or cold karkady or Turkish coffee. There are also many papyrus places for tourists where you are shown how papyrus is made & their collection of magnificently painted papyrus which of course they try to sell you.

A complimentary drink of hot or cold karkady or Turkish coffee is always offered when you first arrive at a papyrus palace. The karkady is like a national drink in Egypt. It is also nice as a cold drink on its own or with apple juice or orange juice & a little honey if you have a sweet tooth. I find it very refreshing. Another way of preparing Egyptian Red (or karkady) is to simply soak it in water for 24 hours at the ratio of 1 teaspoon to 1 cup of water - de-fluoridated water of course. Eg: soak 4 teaspoons of Egyptian Red in 4 cups of water for 24hrs, keep it in the refrigerator at all times till you drink it all. Strain it to drink. Heat up if you want a hot drink, after it has soaked for the 24 hrs. I find that soaking it in cold water for 24hrs, first before drinking it cold or heating it (after having first strained it before heating) gives it a less sharp/ bitter taste. Also when you infuse it to make a hot drink, if you want a 2nd cup of karkady use the same teaspoonful of calyces from the 1st cup of karkady. The calyces will retain sufficient richness of flavour & colour for a 2nd cup.

If you Google “HOW TO MAKE KARKADY TEA,” you will find many different ways. The Egyptians traditionally boil the calyces in water for 3 minutes before straining & drinking it. I just love its beautiful colour so much I have made jelly & a sweet sauce out of it.

Ed in Edge Hill said...

Funny you should be promoting some of the "alternative" teas - most of which contain, among other things, very high levels of fluoride. Much higher levels than the trace being added to our water.

Why are you now promoting the ingestion of fluoride?

Werner said...

To Ed in Edge Hill, I’m not promoting this tea; I’m just telling people about it and I never said that they must drink it; it is their choice to do so. As for fluoride, if this tea has any then it would be the calcium fluoride and not the silicofluoride poison from China.

Sarah said...

This is why we need to stop water fluoridation! Nobody can say that fluoride in the water is safe for the WHOLE community. Medication should be given on individual assessment not a cookie cutter one size fits all. People in the community already getting plenty of fluoride from other sources now risk the health hazards from over consuming it.

The teas Werner has been highlighting are nutritious and enjoyable, ED from Edgehill please provide references to the amounts and also the type of fluoride found in these teas.

Rita Smith said...

Ed in Edge Hill, “Egyptian Red Tea” (Hibiscus tea) and other herbal “alternative” teas do NOT come from the Camellia Sinensis plant – the plant that black, green and white teas come from. The Camellia Sinensis plant accumulates more fluoride from pollution and some agricultural chemicals than other edible plants, so with the exception of white tea (which is made from the young buds of this plant before they are able to accumulate much fluoride) teas from this plant contain significant amounts of fluoride. Nerada tea, I’m told, contains 4 mg of fluoride per cup. So, if you make a cup of tea with fluoridated town water you will certainly get a double dose.

Egyptian Red Tea comes from a variety of Hibiscus which is grown in Upper Egypt. Whether this plant contains fluoride would depend on its growing conditions. If it is irrigated with water from rivers, lakes or underground water, it possibly contains calcium fluoride – far less toxic than the industrial waste from China which is put into our water in Queensland – but toxic all the same if too much is consumed. But unless growers use agricultural chemicals that contain fluoride, it is highly unlikely that tea made from this plant has anywhere near as much fluoride as black and green teas do.

Sandra H. said...

Werner, I found this posting, like all your other postings very interesting and informative. Don’t be discouraged by people like “Ed in Edge Hill” who don’t know what they are talking about. The other comments might perhaps elucidate him/her.

Colin Bishop said...

Ed's comments were fair enough, had he been fully up to date with the facts - which he wasn't!

All plants will contain trace elements of minerals from the dirt in which it is grown, far, far less than the .7ppm "optimal dose" that is put in our water and what is put in our water is silicofluoride and any dose of that is poison to our bodies.

Any tea bushes/plants will absorb minerals at the level that the soil contains. Excess of any type of fluoride is not good. Have a look at this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=0MLIfghWc38

Blooming Teas said...

It's been really great going through your blog post, very well informed and described. Great to read and know more about such kind of stuff.

iamcrystal said...

Yeah, I might try this Egyptian Red Tea. Thank you for sharing! Also, I heard about this: http://products.mercola.com/hibiscus-tea/ Any thoughts?

Gina C. said...

@crystal I have heard about hibiscus at http://www.hibiscusteasite.com and i think its a very good drink. I have tried it once and the taste is great as well.