What about tea?

[restored4ever]

Hi Everyone,

I'm brand new to the raw way of life (posted my hello in the "Who Are You?" section last week) and feel really excited about this new adventure in health. Obviously, since it's so new, I don't have any real complaints. I've always loved lots of veggies and fruits and haven't eaten much meat for several years now, so this feels like a natural progression.

I do, however, wonder about the issue of tea. I understand that caffeine is out of the question (I can't tolerate it anyway), but what about the non-caffeine herbal teas? Is it a problem because it's usually brewed in high heat? I just haven't found any information on this and would love some advice/input. I had heard for years that some teas are good, health-wise. Is that just the tea industry talking? Crazy as it sounds, I think tea may be the one thing I'll miss most, if I can't have it anymore.

[Colorawdo girl]

I love tea and have it when I want.

[restored4ever]

That's SO wonderful to hear...thank you, Colorawdo girl!

[rawstrength]

I also am utterly in love with tea. There are some types of herbal tea that you can make with cool water . . . yerba mate, nettle leaf, and holy basil come to mind. These teas are technically raw because the herbs are sundried and then brewed in cool water.
Other teas can be brewed as sun teas, or with warm water. Thes also might be considered raw if you keep the water temp below 115 degrees.
And there are some excellent herbs that need to be boiled (or decocted as it's called in herbalism) to extract the potent healing medicine. These tend to be tougher, woodier herbs such as roots, mushrooms and tree bark.
www.mountainroseherbs.com is a great site for buying herbal teas. They also sell some superfoods such as goji berries and spirulina at very reasonable prices.
Herbal tea can be so healing. And in these trying times (swine flu . . anyone?) we need all the plant medicine that we can get. I highly recommend medicinal mushroom tea for your immune system . . . it tastes great, too.

[restored4ever]

Some great information, rawstrength. Speaking of plant medicine, are you familiar with Osha Root? It is practically unrivaled in its antibacterial and antiviral benefits! We discovered it when my daughter had a brown recluse spider bite. The site was already huge and necrotizing when I consulted my Chinese practitioner and the herb store. By chewing the Osha Root and using it as a poultice, the bite healed in only 8 days! Also, since then, we use the tea as a cold/flu protector, and drops of the tea directly in the eye cured a bad case of pink eye in less than 24 hours. Fantastic stuff!

Anyway, that's one tea I won't give up ultimately--its benefits are just too great. Thanks for the other tea tips. It's comforting to know I will still have tea in my life...

[rawstrength]

Tea is a great comfort, especially in cold weather. But who knows, you may want to give it up as you progress with raw . . . one never knows where their raw journey will take them.

I've never heard of Osha root. It sounds wonderful. I'll have to try it next time I am putting in an order with mountain rose herbs.

[Colorawdo girl]

You are welcome. The book you can write later on about being successfully raw can be entitled..."Successfully Raw-My Way a unique journey with raw and living foods.

Your way IS the way ,sweet. Have a ball.

[restored4ever]

rawstrength--just a word of warning regarding the Osha Root and its tea. The root is incredibly strong and, for some, almost unbearable taste-wise. The tea is also strong and not the best tasting in the world. This is not a simple sit-back-and-be-soothed tea. But the benefits are SO worth it!