Herbal Tea Preparation and Uses
Traditional Medicinals® offers Herbal Dietary Supplements, Natural Health Products, OTC Medicines and Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products for the global market.
Why is tea a good delivery system?
What conditions are herbal teas helpful for?
Why is a long steeping time important?
Why is tea a good delivery system?
Herbal preparations must be absorbed efficiently by the body. Sufficient evidence exists demonstrating that Traditional Herbal Medicine (THM) in a liquid form (fluid extracts, tea decoctions or infusions, syrups, tinctures) are more readily absorbed into the system than if they are dried for use in a solid-dosage form (capsules and tablets).
A tea infusion allows the natural interactions between the various components in the herbs to occur. Water is an inexpensive, pure and readily available extraction solvent, is non-toxic and has a wide range of solvent actions. Most of the major compound groups occurring in plants are either soluble in boiling water or will release into the water in time, due to the interactions occurring during the water extraction process.
A tea also allows you to experience the "true taste of herbs". Taste is considered to be a vital component of herbal formulas, a component mostly absent in solid dosage form products with the exception of lozenges or pastilles. Certain tastes trigger specific physiological responses. For example, bitter tastes stimulate the taste buds, causing a secretion of saliva and gastric juices, stimulating digestion. If you cannot taste the bitter element, the digestive stimulation will not occur.
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What conditions are herbal teas helpful for?
The extraction of herbs with hot water (making tea) is an ancient tradition. Teas have a long history of use in many systems of Traditional Herbal Medicine worldwide. Historically, teas have been one of the most commonly used delivery systems for natural health products.
Not every health condition requires the use of pharmaceutical drugs for relief. Many of our teas are suitable for self care of common, non-serious conditions such as
• Occasional constipation
• Occasional indigestion
• Mental and physical fatigue
• Nervousness and sleeplessness, and
• Minor seasonal conditions
• Women's health
Teas are made from one or more herbs and are generally prepared by the consumer using the infusion method (by pouring boiling water over the herbs and steeping in a covered cup, usually for at least 10 minutes), which is the most convenient method of preparation. There are two basic types of tea bags, the glued pillow bag and the stapled flow-through, double-pouch filter bag. Using the double-pouch bag results in a more efficient extraction of the herb's beneficial components because it allows greater "surface area" access for the boiled water to reach.
For a tea to maintain its quality and remain reliable until the expiration date, it is essential that each tea bag is sealed in an "overwrap" that provides an oxygen and moisture barrier. Exposure to air, light and humidity has a measurable negative impact on the quality of cut herbs. Herbal teas that are not tightly sealed will rapidly lose their strength during storage.
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Why is a long steeping time important?
In comparison to beverage teas, which generally require only a 3-5 minute steep for taste considerations, our recommendation of a 10-15 minute steep may seem long. However, steeping times for Traditional Herbal Medicines (THMs) in tea infusion form are generally set at anywhere between 10 and 30 minutes depending on the herbs in the formula. Some teas are best decocted (simmered) for 30 minutes or longer. A longer steeping time allows for more of the components in the herbs to dissolve into the tea water.
We tend to think that water is the extraction solvent when we prepare a cup of tea - pour boiling water over the herbs, let them brew a few minutes and then strain and drink. But there's more depth to this water story! While the initial solvent is the boiling water, as soon as the plant's cell walls begin to break down and compounds enter the water, the water changes.
It isn't just water anymore. Depending upon what compounds are first released, the water can become a mild acid or a mild base solution, which in turn affects the release of other compounds. The longer you let the herbs steep, the more components you will have in your teacup.
Each new compound that is released changes the solvent's composition until full saturation occurs or until the reaction is stopped by removing the herbs from the solvent. This enables some compounds that are not entirely water-soluble to still be released into the water. This is why a sufficient steeping period is necessary to produce a complete, balanced extraction.
For instance, flavonoids are a group of plant chemicals that are only slightly soluble in water. But testing shows that there are therapeutic levels of flavonoids in a properly brewed cup of tea prepared from flavonoid-containing herbs.
Another example is caffeine in black and green teas. The central nervous system stimulant effect of caffeine is strongest when the tea is steeped only 2-5 minutes, because caffeine dissolves quickly into hot water. Longer steeping times of 10-20 minutes will increase the yield of catechin polyphenols, which decreases the stimulant effect, because the catechins bind the caffeine.
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