I’ve added a new herbal tea to the list of my current tea selection. It is made with dried raspberry leaves. Not to be confused with the common “raspberry flavored” tea usually found at the grocery store.
It is the dried leaves of these red raspberry that makes healthy tea. Great for women’s health. Photo by Juhanson via Wikipedia.
My raspberry leaves were loose leaves. I use a French Press to brew the tea. This tea has a surprisingly pleasant taste, reminds me of light black tea. It never gets bitter. It may become one tea I will enjoy drinking often.
To add a little twist to the raspberry leaves, I blended some dried hibiscus flowers to it. The hibiscus gives it a little fruity tang and a hue of reddish color. Not to mention some extra Vitamin C.
Raspberry leaves tea is rich in minerals (especially calcium) and Vitamins B1, B2, B3, C and E. Great way to help keep bones and teeth strong. It would also be good to drink during the cold/winter season to stay healthy.
Herbalist usually recommend raspberry leaf tea for pregnant women. As it helps with toning the uterus in preparation for childbirth. It is also a good tea for relieving menstrual cramps. I think this would make a great tea for overall women’s health.
Directions for brewing raspberry leaves tea:
1 cup of boiling water, 1-2 teaspoon of dried raspberry leaves.
Steep for 15 minutes. Filter and drink at least 3 cups per day for health benefits.
Other benefits of raspberry leaves include treating sore throats, canker sores and stomach upset. You can also brew raspberry leaves to make your own herbal mouthwash. It would help sooth your teeth and gum.
Organic Raspberry Leaf tea supports the female system* by aiding healthy menstruation as well as toning the uterus in preparation for childbirth.* For millennia European and Native American women have safely used raspberry leaf for irregular menstruation, menstrual cramps and during pregnancy.* Today naturopaths and nurse-midwives often recommend raspberry leaf tea for these traditional uses. How does it taste? Raspberry leaf has a robust, full-bodied flavor reminiscent of fine black tea, making it an excellent choice for a caffeine-free breakfast or afternoon tea. - Tea Company
If you would like to try them, it can be found online or at many health food stores. They usually sell raspberry leaves in tea bags as well as in bulk.
Note: When drinking herbal tea, such as this one, it can interfere with the absorption of non-prescription drugs and vitamins. Be sure to drink it 2 hours before or after other medications or supplements.
5:08 pm on January 8th, 2010
I wonder if you can just pick your own leaf from the backyard, dry it, and brew it? Thanks, I will start saving some wild raspberry leaves for next fall. So many greenery out there we can turn into tea ourself instead of buying store brand:))
I have another tea, well kind of a tea, to share with you. It’s papaya leaf tea. I tried it from my garden after hearing my mother in law describing its multi-medicinal effects from the people she knew who had used it in Laos. I was having acid reflux at the time, which was usually brought about through physical exercise. So we brew the leaf one evening and I drank about half a cup; I had cut the leaf (in Laos the leaf is folded into the pot instead of cutting it) and it was too strong, very, very, very bitter:((( About five minutes after the tea was drank, I felt this white pastey-crust of some sort on my tongue. Whatever the chemical in the papaya was (papain for one), it was biting into tongue and GI tract; cleaning up the ‘gunk,’ kind of like drano. My acid reflux has not bother me ever since.
It really works, for me at least…but very bitter though.
8:44 pm on January 9th, 2010
Hi PaNoy,
You are in luck to have raspberry bushes growing in your area. Herbalist would call that “wild crafting” where you harvest herbs from the wild. Herbalist also recommend the best time to harvest is before they bear fruit. Good luck!
Thanks for sharing your experience with Papaya leaf. I’ve heard about it’s benefit too, but have never tried it. What you described is interesting, a bit scary. They sell papaya extract to help with digestion. So this is along the same line. Have you tried licorice extract? That is suppose to be very good for ulcers too.
6:32 pm on November 15th, 2010
RRL tea is very good iced and a bit sweetened. It makes you feel like you’re doing something to promote healthy labor at the end of pregnancy.
That papaya leaf stuff sounds like drano!
10:44 pm on November 21st, 2010
Hi Clare,
Thanks for the tip.
Papaya leaf tea does sound scary. But I guess it’s worked for some people.