From The March 2001 Issue of Natural Foods Merchandiser

Rediscovering The Red Tea

Vishal Khanna

The newest herbal tea to hit the market is also one of the oldest. Indigenous to the lush and rolling mountains of the CederBergen area of Cape Province, South Africa, and consumed by its inhabitants for thousands of years, rooibos tea was introduced to the Afrikkaner community by the botanist Carl Humberg in 1772. Today, more than 200 years later, manufacturers and retailers across the world are rediscovering this "red tea," and public interest in rooibos is slowly and steadily rising.

Rooibos has long been a cultural mainstay for South Africans, and locals have consistently praised the tea's sweet and refreshing taste. But recent scientific discoveries have ignited worldwide interest in rooibos, and organic and health advocates are focusing attention on what many consider the next "miracle tea."

The first official discovery of rooibos' healing powers was purely accidental. In 1968, South African Annique Theron inadvertently added rooibos tea to her allergic baby's milk bottle, and the child slept for three hours straight, the first time in 14 months. Theron, with the help of a journalist friend, began a study of 18 babies with various food allergies. The children reacted positively to drinking the tea, and rooibos was shown to be extremely helpful in soothing children with stomach cramping and colic.

Charlene Marais from the University of the Free State in South Africa conducted extensive research on the healing benefits of rooibos in the wake of scientific proof of Theron's anti-spasmodic theory in 1974. Marais discovered and isolated compounds such as ascorbic acid, quercetin and luteolin in the tea. Ascorbic acid has antioxidant qualities, which means it eliminates free radicals, and research indicates it also supports the immune system, along with helping prevent strokes, cancer and heart attacks. Rutin, another compound found in rooibos, reinforces and stabilizes blood vessels. Several carboxylic acids isolated in the tea have the potential to inhibit damage to the liver.