Herbal Tea

Most of you have heard of the word "Herb" or "Herbal tea". Herbs once were extremely popular in Japan, and even now they are still popular among some people. Herbs which includes flowers, leaves, and tree bark are used for improving the taste of food, or to make medicines and tea. Herbal tea is made with single or multiple dried herbs. Just like the way Chinese medicine is made, they can be extracted in the boiling water. One of the most well know herbal tea in the world is chamomile tea. Chamomile is the same family of chrysanthemum, and originated in Europe. Chamomile started to be used as a medicine by ancient Romans, and it is still used as folk medicine in Europe. Chamomile was introduced to Japan by the Dutch at the end of Edo period, when it became known as "Kamitsure". Chamomile was probably the first herbal tea introduced from Europe. Lavender, lemonberm, lemonbabena, and mint are also the popular herbs and ingredients for making herbal tea. There are many different kinds of mint, and there is one kind grown in Japan called Hakka. Hakka has been used since the Edo era as a medicine, mainly for strengthen stomach and lifting the spirit up. Please refer to the page on "Healthy tea" for more information. There are various published books written about herbs. If you are interested, please go to the bookstore, and read them to know more about them. You can also find books introducing how to plant herbs. Maybe you can plant some herbs in your garden. Usually there is no side effects on taking herbs or herbal tea. However, please be careful! Some herbs should not be taken in quantity.

(Junpei Yokoi)