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Hibiscus Flower Tea
Product Description
Hibiscus, also known as rosemallow, is a flowering plant belonging to the same family as cocoa and cotton. The flowers are popular as an herbal tea, especially in Caribbean and Latin American countries. They are often combined with other herbs or fruit juices and they impart a cheery red color and tart flavor.
Hibiscus tea has a tart, cranberry-like flavor, and sugar is often added to sweeten the beverage. The tea contains vitamin C and minerals and is used traditionally as a mild medicine.
Hibiscus tea contains 15-30% organic acids, including citric acid, maleic acid, and tartaric acid. It also contains acidic polysaccharides and flavonoid glycosides, such as cyanidin and delphinidin, that give it its characteristic deep red color.
Health Study on Hibiscus
Diane McKay with The Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts has led a human clinical trial to test whether drinking hibiscus tea affects blood pressure. She tested 65 volunteers, aged 30 to 70 years, who were pre- or mildly hypertensive. Blood pressure readings of 120/80 or greater are considered a risk factor for heart disease, stroke, and kidney disease. For 6 weeks, about half the group was randomly selected to drink 3 cups of hibiscus tea daily. The others drank a placebo beverage containing artificial hibiscus flavoring and color. All participants were advised to follow their usual diet and maintain their normal level of activity. Before the start of the study, blood pressure was measured twice—1 week apart—and at weekly intervals thereafter. The findings show that the volunteers who drank hibiscus tea had a 7.2-point drop in their systolic blood pressure (the top number), and those who drank the placebo beverage had a 1.3-point drop. In a subgroup analysis of 30 volunteers who had the highest systolic blood pressure readings (129 or above) overall at the start of the study, those assigned to drink hibiscus tea showed the greatest response to hibiscus tea drinking. Their systolic blood pressure went down by 13.2 points, diastolic blood pressure went down by 6.4 points, and mean arterial pressure went down by 8.7 points. The 2010 study was published in the Journal of Nutrition.
Hibiscus tea has a tart, cranberry-like flavor, and sugar is often added to sweeten the beverage. The tea contains vitamin C and minerals and is used traditionally as a mild medicine.
Hibiscus tea contains 15-30% organic acids, including citric acid, maleic acid, and tartaric acid. It also contains acidic polysaccharides and flavonoid glycosides, such as cyanidin and delphinidin, that give it its characteristic deep red color.
Health Study on Hibiscus
Diane McKay with The Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts has led a human clinical trial to test whether drinking hibiscus tea affects blood pressure. She tested 65 volunteers, aged 30 to 70 years, who were pre- or mildly hypertensive. Blood pressure readings of 120/80 or greater are considered a risk factor for heart disease, stroke, and kidney disease. For 6 weeks, about half the group was randomly selected to drink 3 cups of hibiscus tea daily. The others drank a placebo beverage containing artificial hibiscus flavoring and color. All participants were advised to follow their usual diet and maintain their normal level of activity. Before the start of the study, blood pressure was measured twice—1 week apart—and at weekly intervals thereafter. The findings show that the volunteers who drank hibiscus tea had a 7.2-point drop in their systolic blood pressure (the top number), and those who drank the placebo beverage had a 1.3-point drop. In a subgroup analysis of 30 volunteers who had the highest systolic blood pressure readings (129 or above) overall at the start of the study, those assigned to drink hibiscus tea showed the greatest response to hibiscus tea drinking. Their systolic blood pressure went down by 13.2 points, diastolic blood pressure went down by 6.4 points, and mean arterial pressure went down by 8.7 points. The 2010 study was published in the Journal of Nutrition.
