Herbal Tea: Rooibos

Last Updated: Jul. 16, 2010

Rooibos tea is a type of herbal tea made from the Aspalathus linearis plant, a legume native to South Africa. It is often called South African red tea or just red tea, owing to the red color of both the dry leaf and brewed tea. It is also called redbush tea and sometimes just bush tea, although it is distinct from honeybush, a similar tea from the same region made out of a different plant. The tea is made of both stems and leaves, and the dry leaves and stems have a fine texture.

Rooibos has a distinctive flavor; it is less bitter than most tea. Like most herbal teas, it contains no caffeine.

Rooibos is traditionally allowed to oxidize, turning it red, much like how black tea is allowed to turn black. More recently, however, people have begun to manufacture green rooibos, which is produced similarly to green tea. Rooibos is frequently used in herbal tea blends, which we list under flavored rooibos. Rooibos is also frequently mixed with black, green, or other teas; such blends are listed under miscellaneous blends.

Cultivation, Climate Change, and Poverty:

Rooibos grows only in a small region of the West Cape province of South Africa. Efforts to cultivate it outside this area have proved unsuccessful, as it is dependent on the region's unique climate, soils, and other components of the ecosystem. Rooibos production is being threatened by climate change, and many farmers of rooibos live and operate in extreme poverty, complicating measures to adapt to the changing climate.[1]

Medicinal Uses & Health Benefits of Rooibos:

Rooibos is frequently promoted as having antioxidant activity comparable to that of tea; a study validated this for both green and red rooibos.[2] The antioxidants in rooibos have been shown in mice to protect against radiation damage, by neutralizing the free radicals formed by exposure to radiation.[3] In addition, rooibos is widely used in traditional medicine for respiratory ailments such as asthma. A study on rats found significant dose-dependent bronchodilatory effect, providing a sound basis for its use in treating respiratory conditions.[4] Another study on rats found that rooibos provided significant protection against liver damage, in concentrations equivalent to that typically used when humans drink rooibos tea.[5]

Topical use of Rooibos in Skin Care Products:

Topical application of rooibos (such as its use in creams, cosmetics, and sunscreen) also shows some promise of health benefits. One study found that rooibos, honeybush and green tea, all had tumor-preventing properties in mouse skin, suggesting that these teas hold promise for preventing skin cancer.[6] More recent work has uncovered likely mechanisms by which topical use of rooibos and honeybush reduce tumour promotion, inflammation, and oxidative stress.[7]

Listings of this style of tea: (44 including sub-styles - hide sub-styles)

Page 1 2 3 of 3 pages with 44 results:

	Tea:	Brand:	Region:	# Ratings:
	Red Tea (Rooibos)	Stash Tea	?????	0
	Roobibos Natural Organic	Dilmah	?????	0
	Rooibos Organic Green	Dilmah	?????	0
	African Rooibos	Twinings	South Africa	1
	Organic Rooibos Tea	Equal Exchange	South Africa	0
	Organic Wild Rooibos Pyramid Tea	Equal Exchange	South Africa	2
	BA20: South African Rooibos (Red Bush) Superior	Upton Tea Imports	South Africa	1
	Rooibos - Red Mellow Bush™	Numi Organic Tea	South Africa	0
	Green Rooibos - Sweet African Red	Numi Organic Tea	South Africa	0
	Green Rooibos (Green Bush)	Rishi Tea	South Africa	1
	Rooibos (Red Bush)	Rishi Tea	South Africa	0
	Rooibos	Adagio Teas	South Africa	1
	BA02: South African Green Rooibos (Red Bush) Superior	Upton Tea Imports	South Africa	1
	Red Rooibos	Drink The Leaf	South Africa	0
	Rooibos Herbal Tea	Bellevue Tea	South Africa	0
	South African Rooibos Organic Tea	Teavana	South Africa	0
	Double Red Rooibos Tea	Republic of Tea	South Africa	0
	Fashionable Red Green	The Tea Set	South Africa	0
	Sweet Sunny Rooibos	The Tea Set	South Africa	0
	Organic Rooibos	Harney and Sons	South Africa	0

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