A butterfly pea tea can change colour when you squeeze lemon into it or add hibiscus, making it not only fascinating but also beneficial for your health. This caffeine-free drink can be enjoyed every day without worrying about the stimulation caused by many other types of tea. Let’s explore the benefits, side effects and how to make tea from this precious flower!
What is butterfly pea flower?
Butterfly pea flower is a distinctive blue flower that grows on the butterfly pea plant – one of the ornamental plants with high aesthetic value.
The butterfly pea plant is a climbing vine that often grows along fences. Its stems and branches have fine, soft hairs.
Butterfly pea tea is a vivid blue tea that offers both beauty benefits and therapeutic potential for various conditions. As a result, this tea is very popular.
Active compounds in butterfly pea flowers
Butterfly pea flowers contain various chemical compounds. The two most prominent are anthocyanins – flavonoids. These two compounds are the main factors responsible for the flowers’ natural vivid blue colour.
Moreover, plant-based flavonoids are active compounds used in medicinal preparations. Scientists around the world also recognise flavonoids as among the natural compounds that help slow the ageing process and mutations in the body’s cells, helping to prevent cancer.
What are the benefits of butterfly pea flowers?
Butterfly pea flowers offer many health benefits, such as supporting healthy weight loss, relieving pain, reducing fever, controlling blood sugar and protecting the eyes… In particular, this tea also helps prevent ageing, allowing you to stay healthy and beautiful naturally.
1. Prevents premature ageing
Butterfly pea flowers may help prevent premature ageing by combating free radicals. In addition, the anthocyanin compounds in butterfly pea tea help preserve your youthful appearance by increasing blood flow to the scalp and strengthening hair follicles. Many people use this plant to treat premature greying or early baldness.
The skin shows signs of ageing due to a protein-damaging process called glycation. Butterfly pea tea may inhibit glycation and help keep the skin looking younger.
Butterfly pea tea contains elastin and collagen, important compounds that help maintain a youthful appearance by preventing wrinkles and maintaining skin elasticity. The flavonoids in this tea have also been shown to increase collagen and skin elasticity. One flavonoid in this tea, quercetin, helps strengthen hair and skin cells as well as moisturise the skin.
2. Helps relieve pain and reduce fever
Butterfly pea flowers are an effective natural painkiller and fever reducer. An experiment showed that just 200 – 400mg of butterfly pea tea extract could significantly reduce body temperature for up to 5 hours after consumption. This tea helps reduce fever by causing the blood vessels beneath the skin to dilate, thereby increasing blood flow and lowering body temperature.
3. Maintains eye health
The benefits of butterfly pea flowers may help you maintain healthy eyes. An antioxidant in this tea, proanthocyanidin, increases blood flow to the eye’s capillaries. This helps support the treatment of retinal damage, glaucoma or blurred vision.
4. Butterfly pea flowers help reduce stress
A visually appealing cup of butterfly pea tea will help you relax after a long, stressful and tiring day at work. The antioxidants in this tea have been shown to improve mood and relax the nervous system, helping you sleep better. One study also found that butterfly pea tea had a positive effect on the central nervous system in rats. The study also revealed that butterfly pea tea was effective against depression, stress and anxiety.
5. Helps control blood sugar
The benefits of butterfly pea flowers can help you control blood sugar levels and lower blood glucose. The flowers also inhibit the absorption of excess glucose from food, which may help control blood sugar levels.
According to a study conducted on diabetic rats and published in the Journal of Pharmaceutical Applied Sciences, butterfly pea tea extract could significantly reduce serum glucose levels.
6. Improves cardiovascular health
The antioxidants in butterfly pea tea not only help prevent infections but are also beneficial for heart health. Studies show that this tea is effective in improving high cholesterol levels, a risk factor for heart disease. According to a 2010 study, butterfly pea flower extract contributed to a significant reduction in total serum cholesterol. In addition, these flowers also significantly reduce triglyceride and bad cholesterol (LDL) levels.
7. Provides antioxidants
Butterfly pea tea contains plenty of antioxidants that help boost your overall health. It is the only herbal tea with an antioxidant content equivalent to that of green tea. Free radicals can cause chronic inflammation, reduced immunity and other diseases such as cancer. The antioxidants in butterfly pea tea protect you from the damage caused by these harmful free radicals.
8. The benefits of butterfly pea flowers help with weight loss
Butterfly pea tea could be a novel weight-loss tea for those who care about their health and want to prevent obesity. According to a study published in the International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders (International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders), butterfly pea tea can help you lose weight by preventing and improving fatty liver disease. Fatty liver disease is a serious health condition that can cause weight gain, particularly around the abdomen.
The key compound in butterfly pea tea is the catechin EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate), which helps promote calorie burning by boosting the metabolic process. Studies have shown that this tea contains a higher concentration of EGCG than other types of tea, so it may be an effective weight-loss tea.
In addition, the antioxidants in butterfly pea tea have anti-inflammatory and diuretic properties, which may help detoxify the body and reduce excess water retention. If you want to manage your weight, you can enjoy this tea after meals to detoxify your body and boost your metabolism.
9. Improves brain health
One study concluded that the antioxidants in butterfly pea tea help boost brain power as well as cognitive ability and memory. Acetylcholine is a compound responsible for effective communication between nerve cells. As acetylcholine levels decline with age, you may experience memory loss and other brain-related problems. You can replenish this reduced acetylcholine and boost brain function by drinking butterfly pea tea.
Animal studies have shown that butterfly pea tea extract helps improve memory, treat depression, soothe the nerves and enhance cognitive ability. One study found that using butterfly pea tea extract at a dose of 50 – 100mg/kg of body weight could improve memory in rats over 30 days.
10. The anti-inflammatory benefits of butterfly pea flowers
According to a study published in the International Journal of Pharmaceutical Research, the antioxidant content of butterfly pea tea is high enough to combat inflammation that can cause illness. These antioxidants also help protect you from certain chronic diseases. In addition, butterfly pea flower extract may help reduce pain and swelling effectively. The flavonoids in butterfly pea tea also help boost the immune system so that you can better fight inflammation and infections.
Side effects of butterfly pea tea
Butterfly pea tea is generally safe and good for your health. However, herbal preparations made from the seeds and leaves of the butterfly pea plant may cause nausea and severe diarrhoea. Therefore, if you experience any discomfort after drinking butterfly pea tea, you should see a doctor promptly.
Pregnant and breastfeeding women, as well as those who are menstruating, should also avoid butterfly pea tea because there is currently insufficient evidence confirming the safety of this tea for these groups of women. In addition, if you are taking any medication, you should consult your doctor before drinking it.
Butterfly pea tea not only has an appealing colour but also helps protect your brain and cardiovascular health, while supporting your overall wellbeing. You only need to set aside a little time each morning to brew yourself a nutritious cup of tea that can help prevent ageing!
Articles by Hello Health Group and Hello Bacsi are for reference only and do not replace medical diagnosis or treatment.
Source: hellobacsi.com
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