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Herbal Tea: Lemongrass

Last Updated: Feb. 10, 2010

Lemongrass is a genus of species of grass used as an herb. Native to India, lemongrass is widely grown throughout south and southeast Asia, the middle east, and central America. Lemongrass has a strong aroma resembling lemon.

The aroma of lemongrass very closely resembles that of lemon balm, a species in the mint family, and lemon verbena, another species in a different family. While these two other plants are unrelated to lemongrass, they actually contain many of the same chemical constituents, including citronellol and geraniol.

Lemongrass is a very common ingredient in herbal teas and is also sometimes used in flavored teas. It is also used in cooking, especially in Thai, Vietnamese, and Malaysian cuisine.

Health Benefits:

There is significant evidence pointing to anti-cancer, antiviral, and antifungal activity of the essential oil of lemongrass. However, as with many herbal teas, human studies of the health effects of lemongrass are sparse. It remains uncertain the degree to which these benefits carry through to tea drinkers.

One chemical, citral, found in lemongrass as well as lemon balm and lemon verbena, was found to induce cell death in cancer cells, leading people to consume lemongrass tea as a treatment for cancer. [1] In vitro experiments have found the essential oil of lemongrass was shown to have strong antiviral activity, both against human viruses[2] and plant viruses such as tobacco mosaic virus.[3] In vitro studies have also found significant antifungal activity.[4]

As the active ingredients in lemongrass are shared in common among other lemon-scented herbs, it is likely that the health benefits of lemongrass overlap somewhat with these other herbs.

Examples of this style of tea: (4 including sub-styles - hide)

Page 1 of 1 page with 4 results:

	Tea:	Brand:	Region:	# Ratings:
	BH65: Lemon Grass, Coarse Cut	Upton Tea Imports	Thailand	1
	Lemongrass	Rishi Tea	?????	0
	Lemon Grass	Adagio Teas	?????	0
	Lemongrass	TeaSource	?????	0

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