Patriot Health Digest
Honeybush tea is from South Africa and is a herbal tea which is made from a honeybush plant’s leaves. It grows on the South African Eastern Cape and is closely connected to rooibos tea (also known as the red bush tea) which comes from the South African Western Cape. The honeybush flowers give off a honey smell, which gives the plant its name.
What Is it?
Honeybush is a shrub that has woody stems that gives trifoliate (three-part) leaves along with yellow flowers. Settlers in South Africa were interested in the medicinal uses of this tea for hundreds of years, although the honeybush probably came from the indigenous Khoisan people.
Fermented stems and leaves of the honeybush shrub are used during the brewing of honeybush tea.
Tea drinkers report that the taste of honeybush is lightly roasted, floral and a lot like honey. Although it is often said to compare to rooibos tea, honeybush is usually fuller bodied and sweeter. Some say that the taste is “not so medicinal” as rooibos tea. The taste of honeybush brewed at home will depend on your method and in particular tea leaves that you purchase.
Does It Have Caffeine?
Honeybush tea is a herbal tea, not a normal “tea” in the classical use of the term. That means Honeybush is not made from a Camellia sinensis plant, such as green tea or black tea is. It is instead brewed only using parts of the honeybush plant, which does not have any caffeine. Therefore honeybush tea is totally caffeine-free.
Health Benefits Of Honeybush Tea
There are many reported health benefits of honeybush tea. The top one being that the herbal drink is said to calm coughs. Honeybush had an expectorant that might help you to clear your throat when you’re sick to relieve your coughing.
Other potential honeybush tea uses include:
- Lower blood sugar
- Diabetes improvement
- Relief from menopausal symptoms
Unfortunately, human studies are not there yet to support these direct claims. But scientists are investigating the health uses of honeybush with animal and in vitro research.
Author: Scott Dowdy
