Ingredients :: Rooibos Tea (Aspalathus Linearis)

Rooibos Tea Leaves

Jams have now featured twice on my blog within the last one month; the latest being the Raspberry & Rooibos Tea Jam. One thing both jam recipes did have in common was the mix of the usual jam ingredients with the unusual. As with my first jam recipe of Strawberry & Roselle Jam, whereby I later touched upon the benefits of the Roselle, I am now highlighting the benefits of the Rooibos tea from the Raspberry & Rooibos tea jam I made recently.

Rooibos tea, otherwise known as Redbush tea, is local South Africa - which was precisely where a dear friend sourced the one used for my jam making from. 

Originally frowned upon as "the poor man's tea", the world has now wisened up to the numerous and proven health benefits of the Rooibos tea, with the lack of caffeine increasing the benefits considerably. 

Cancer: 

Experiments conducted on laboratory rats have shown inhibitions in the growth of oesophageal cancer as well as significant reduction of pre-cancerous lesions

Cardiovascular Health:

Tests conducted on humans showed an increase in anti-oxidant levels in subjects' blood who consumed about 400ml/day; which inhibited the angiotensin converting enzyme associated with cardiovascular diseases

Cholesterol:

It's been proven to reduce the level of "bad cholesterol" while increasing the levels of "good cholesterol"

Mental Well-being:

The high mineral content and lack of caffeine helps to reduce anxiety and sleeplessness

Weight Loss:

It reduces the number and size of fat cells as well as lowering the serum cholesterol (fat in the blood)

Intestinal Inflammation:

The antioxidants soothes gut intestinal inflammation such as Colitis (Inflamed Colon)

In addition to the mentioned benefits, researches have also shown promising and exciting results so far in relation to diabetes - although this is more relatable to the Green Rooibos Tea which is unfermented. 

Sources

Komatsu K, Katro K, Mitsuda Y et al. Inhibitory effects of Rooibos Tea, Asphalathus Linearis, on X- ray induced C3H1OT1/2 cell transformation. Cancer Lett. 1994;77:33-8

Bramati L, Aquilano F, Pietta P. Unfermented Rooibos tea: quantitative characterization of flavonoids. J. Agric. Food Chemistry 2003;51:7472-4

Joubet E, Winterton P, Britz T J et al. Anti-oxidant and pro-oxidant activities of aqueous extracts and crude poly phenolic fraction of Rooibos (Aspathalus Linearis. J. Agric. Food Chemistry 2005;53:10260-7

Apple & Avocado Slaw

Apple & Avocado Slaw

Ever since I came across a recipe on a fellow Google Plusser's (+Shinae Choi Robinson) blog a couple of months ago I haven't stopped waxing lyrical about it. I even made it for Christmas dinner. I have made it several times since then and along the line, I have also made some variations here and there.Which brings me to today's recipe. You see I figured incorporating avocado into the original recipe would make an interesting texture combination. Verdict = It works!!!

Post Valentine Shake - Blueberry Banana Mix Smoothie Milkshake

All the chocolates and vino from the Valentine's day indulgence are probably still coursing through your veins, hence I thought it'd be a good idea to upload a post about one of my many smoothie shake recipes. I have already posted a few of my plain smoothie recipes which went down a treat with alot of my readers - Thank you so much for your warm feedbacks!!!

Smoothie Run | One Week Diary - Endless Possibilities

This has been highly requested off the back of my instagram, google+ and twitter postings. I was however a little bit reluctant just because I don't consider myself to be a "health buff "and I love my food too much to treat it like a medication (apologies folks but this is just my opinion). In other words, my palate is just to adventurous to be pigeon-holed. Therefore, my relationship with food just revolves around being sensible and enjoying everything.