When summer arrives, many shopping malls and pharmacies prepare some free herbal tea for people to drink. Herbal tea is cooling and heat-relieving, generally consumed during hot summer days, and is mostly suitable for "heatstroke" symptoms. So, what Chinese medicines can be used as herbal tea? What kind of herbal tea is good to drink in the summer?
Herbal tea is simple to make
The herbs used to make herbal tea often have effects such as aromatic damp-resolving, heat-clearing and detoxifying, promoting urination to drain dampness, expelling pathogenic factors from the exterior, and generating fluids and replenishing qi. They can be used as single herbs or in combinations, with the number of herbal tea types reaching tens of thousands. Among them, herbs for aromatic damp-resolving and opening the orifices to revive the spirit include Agastache rugosa, Eupatorium fortunei, and Acorus tatarinowii. Those for clearing heat, purging fire, cooling blood, and detoxifying include Lonicera japonica, Isatis indigotica, Lophatherum gracile, Prunella vulgaris, Rehmannia glutinosa, Scrophularia ningpoensis, Taraxacum mongolicum, Isatis root, Smilax glabra, Houttuynia cordata, Phragmites australis, mung bean, Forsythia suspensa, and lotus plumule. Herbs for promoting urination to drain dampness include Talcum, watermelon rind, Plantago depressa, Desmodium styracifolium, Dioscorea septemloba, Artemisia scoparia, and Tetrapanax papyriferus. Herbs for expelling pathogenic factors from the exterior include Schizonepeta tenuifolia, Pueraria flower, Mentha haplocalyx, Mulberry leaf, Chrysanthemum morifolium, Chrysanthemum indicum, and Vitex trifolia. Herbs for generating fluids and replenishing qi include Ginseng, American Ginseng, Ginseng leaf, Ophiopogon japonicus, and Goji berry.
The method for making herbal tea is also simple; it can be either steeped or boiled. If using the steeping method, first gently rinse the herbs with clear water, then add an appropriate amount of boiling water, cover, and steep for about 10 minutes. For better therapeutic effects, it is best to use the boiling method. Bring the prepared herbs to a boil for about 5 minutes, then filter to serve. The herb dregs can be steeped (or boiled) again, but with less water than the first time.
Due to factors such as region, customs, temperature differences, and individual variations, the same herbal tea formula cannot be suitable for everyone. Different groups of people should prepare herbal tea with different formulas according to their constitutions. For some specific groups, such as those with weak spleen and stomach, obesity, or high blood lipids, relevant Chinese herbs can be added. For the elderly, weak, infants, pregnant women, women during menstruation, those with a deficient-cold constitution, or those with poor spleen and stomach function, herbal tea should not be taken for long periods.
Recommended 6 Summer Heat-Relieving Herbal Teas
Summer has arrived, and the herbal tea we can buy on the market generally has a high sugar content, and its heat-relieving and health-care functions are greatly diminished. In fact, we can easily make several herbal teas to relieve the heat during our downtime. Below are six recommended summer heat-relieving herbal teas.
1. Watermelon Peel Herbal Tea
Method: Wash and chop the watermelon peel, remove the dregs to get the juice, then add a small amount of sugar and mix well.
Effects: This herbal tea has the effect of relieving summer heat and promoting urination, and is especially suitable for people with a heat constitution and edema patients to drink in moderation. However, it is contraindicated for those with a cold constitution and a cold stomach.
2. Mint Herbal Tea
Method: 6 grams each of mint leaves and licorice root, add 1000 ml of water, boil for 5 minutes, then add sugar and mix well.
Effects: This herbal tea can refresh the mind, whet the appetite, and provide a cooling effect. It is suitable for those with poor appetite in the summer and mental workers, but it is contraindicated for those who are usually afraid of heat and have spontaneous sweating.
3. Fresh Lotus Root Herbal Tea
Method: 75 grams of fresh lotus root, wash and slice, add water and simmer over low heat. When the water in the pot is reduced to 2/3, add an appropriate amount of sugar, and it can be served after cooling.
Effects: This herbal tea has the effect of clearing heat, resolving stasis, nourishing the stomach, and nourishing yin. It is suitable for people with excess heat constitution and stomach discomfort in the summer. Because lotus root is cool in nature, postpartum women should not eat it too early. Avoid using ironware when cooking lotus root to prevent it from turning black.
4. Peach Leaf Summer-Relieving Tea
Method: Place 50 grams of peach leaves in a cup, add 500 ml of water and boil down to a small bowl's worth. Let it cool and then drink.
Effects: This tea can clear heat, detoxify, reduce inflammation, and relieve itching, and is suitable for people with skin diseases.
5. Lotus Leaf and Luffa Tea
Method: Weigh 15 grams each of fresh lotus leaf, ginkgo leaf, dolichos flower, luffa peel, and bamboo leaf, wash them, put them in a pot, add water to decoct into a medicinal juice, filter out the sediment, then add an appropriate amount of sugar and 20 grams of tremella, add boiling water to steep, and it can be served after cooling.
Effects: This tea can clear heat and relieve summer heat.
6. Summer-Relieving Plum Decoction
Method: Take 4 plums, an appropriate amount of sugar, add 1000 ml of water, boil for 20 minutes, and it can be served after cooling.
Effects: This tea can generate fluids and whet the appetite.