Brigitte Mars - Healing Herbal Teas: A Complete Guide to Making Delicious, Healthful Beverages

A Complete Guide to Making Delicious, Healthful Beverages

BRIGITTE MARS, A.H.G.

The information contained in this book is based upon the research and personal and professional experiences of the author. It is not intended as a substitute for consulting with your physician or other healthcare provider. Any attempt to diagnose and treat an illness should be done under the direction of a healthcare professional.

The publisher does not advocate the use of any particular healthcare protocol but believes the information in this book should be available to the public. The publisher and author are not responsible for any adverse effects or consequences resulting from the use of the suggestions, preparations, or procedures discussed in this book. Should the reader have any questions concerning the appropriateness of any procedures or preparation mentioned, the author and the publisher strongly suggest consulting a professional healthcare advisor.

Basic Health Publications, Inc.

28812 Top of the World Drive

Laguna Beach, CA 92651

949-715-7327

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Mars, Brigitte.

Healing herbal teas: a complete guide to delicious, healthful beverages / Brigitte Mars.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN-13: 978-1-59120-574-6

ISBN-10: 1-59120-110-1

1. Herbal teasTherapeutic use. I. Title.

M666.H33M367 2005

15.321dc22

2005012318

Copyright 2006 by Brigitte Mars

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written consent of the copyright owner.

Editor: Nancy Ringer

Copyeditor: Tara Durkin

Typesetting and book design: Gary A. Rosenberg

Cover design: Mike Stromberg

Printed in the United States of America

10987654321

Dedicated to all those who share tea for friendship, health, and enjoyment.

Acknowledgments

My heartfelt thanks goes out to my publisher, Norman Goldfind, who has always believed in and supported my work to bring the message of good health to the people. Nancy Ringer, editor extraordinaire, you have so many amazing skills for which I am always grateful. Many thanks to Carol and Gary Rosenberg for their editing, typesetting, and design skills. Thanks always to Rosita Arvigo, Beth Baugh, Matthew Becker, Jane Bothwell, Chanchal Cabrerra, Diana DiLuca, Cascade Anderson Geller, Rosemary Gladstar, Mindy Green, John Hay, Christopher Hobbs, David Hoffman, Sara Katz, Laura Lamun, Pamela Montgomery, Debra St. Claire, Mo Siegel, Herbal Ed Smith, Win Smith, Lesley and Michael Tierra, Roy Upton, and the late greats William LeSassier, Terrence McKenna, and Alfred Vogel. Most of all, I would like to thank my beloved husband, Tom Pfeiffer, for all his help, and for the countless cups of tea we have shared over the past three decades. Thanks to my daughters, Sunflower Sparkle Mars and Rainbeau Harmony Mars, for allowing me to heal and nourish them with herbs since their beginnings. In fond memory of Grandmre Simard, who always made teatime one of the pleasant rituals of my childhood.

Take some more tea, the March Hare said to Alice, very earnestly.

Ive had nothing yet, Alice replied in an offending tone, so I cant take more.

You mean you cant take less, said the Hatter: its very easy to take more than nothing.

Alices Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

Introduction

I t is through plants that we receive the solar energy that fuels the life process. Indeed, we enjoy a symbiotic relationship with the plant kingdom. Plants give off oxygen, a substance upon which we depend. In turn, the animal kingdom gives off carbon dioxide, upon which plants thrive. We also depend upon plants, which are able to transmute the elements of sunshine and earth into nourishing compounds, for sustenance. But sustenance is not all that humans require. Our bodies also require fluids, and our minds and spirits need uplifting. For these, we turn to tea, the marriage of plants and water.

By some definitions, the word tea pertains to the shrub Camellia sinensis, from which green and black tea are made. However, teas brewed from a wondrous variety of herbs were consumed long before green and black teas became popular, and have been enjoyed by millions of people for thousands of years. These herbal brews are rich in vitamins, minerals, and other nourishing, health-giving compounds. In an age when people are becoming ever more aware of the importance of taking responsibility for their own health, rather than relying on the bureaucratized medical system, herbal tea is an essential ally in the prevention and treatment of illness as well as the nourishment and support of the body, mind, and spirit. But it is up to us to educate ourselves on how to use herbs safely and effectively.

Healing Herbal Teas offers instruction, advice, and encouragement for brewing tea from forty-five common, readily available, wonderfully potent herbs. This book also discusses methods of using herbal teas that you may not have yet exploredfrom herb baths to steam inhalations to mouth-washesso that you can learn to use herbs to nourish, soothe, and build immunity from the inside and the outside. By turning first to botanicals for medicine and sustenance, we are encouraging a greener world. And which would you rather have in your neighborhood: another chemical company or a field of rosemary?

The art of herbalism is at a point where we have the ability to bring together the wisdom of many cultures. We can make the most of new technologies that help our lives and also tap into the ancient healing power of plants. Still to come, but with every advocate of botanical medicine a step closer, is the best of healthcare: when we put our hearts and heads together and do what is best for people and the planet.

In todays complex world, the simple pleasures of tea bring us closer to nature and give us an opportunity to nurture ourselves. Theres healing power, solar energy, and a wealth of nutrients in the leaves, flowers, roots, and seeds of the herbs explored in this book. Make friends with these herbs. Let them become a daily part of your life. Enjoy your herbal allies!

Many blessings!

The Fine Art of Tea

N othing warms the body and soul like holding a fragrant, steaming cup of herbal tea, inhaling its subtle scents as you slowly sip. Tea is among the most ancient, basic, and simple methods of healing and nourishing body, mind, and spirit. As science has proven time and again, plants are endowed with important nutrients and potent healing compounds. Some of those elements come from the raw earth; for example, a plant grown in calcium- or iron-rich soil draws those elements into its own body. When you brew plants in water, the resulting beverageherbal teais imbued with those constituents, carrying them into the body, where they are quickly absorbed. Even better, teas are easy to prepare, inexpensive, and delicious!