Popular #Herbs - Rooibos

Rooibos is legume plant in the genus Aspalathus, belonging to the family Fabaceae, native to South Africa's fynbos. The herb has been used as herbal tea to treat irritability, headaches, disturbed sleeping patterns, insomnia, nervous tension, mild depression or hypertension, etc.

Health Benefits 1. Sperm Quality and quantity
In the comparison of compares the modulation of OS by rooibos, Chinese green tea and commercial rooibos and green tea supplements in rat sperm, found that both rooibos extracts could offer a measure of protection against induced oxidative damage by increasing the antioxidant defence mechanisms and thereby improving the sperm quality and function, according to "The Effects of Rooibos (Aspalathus linearis), Green Tea (Camellia sinensis) and Commercial Rooibos and Green Tea Supplements on Epididymal Sperm in Oxidative Stress-induced Rats" by Awoniyi DO, Aboua YG, Marnewick J, Brooks N.(1)

2. Anti diabetes
In the assessment of the efficacy of rooibos tea as a natural source of a wide scale of antioxidants on the prevention and treatment of oxidative stress in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats, found that rooibos tea as a commonly used beverage can be recommended as an excellent adjuvant support for the prevention and therapy of diabetic vascular complications, particularly for protecting ocular membrane systems against their peroxidation by reactive oxygen species, according to "Rooibos tea (Aspalathus linearis) partially prevents oxidative stress in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats" by Ulicná O, Vancová O, Bozek P, Cársky J, Sebeková K, Boor P, Nakano M, Greksák M.(2)

3. Cardiac protection
In the observation of the main polyphenolic compounds in both fermented/traditional and unfermented/"green" rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) and its cardioprotective effects against ischaemia/reperfusion injury, found that the rooibos extracts did not cause significant change in the levels of the pro-survival PKB/Akt (threonine 308 and serinet 473). The GSH/GSSG ratio in the hearts of the green tea supplemented group was significantly (p<0.05) lower when compared to RF (37.78±28.63), RU (33.20±4.13) and C (45.50±14.96). The results clearly demonstrate the cardio-protective properties of aqueous rooibos extracts via the inhibition of apoptosis which can possibly be related to the flavonol content of this unique South African herbal tea, according to "Rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) offers cardiac protection against ischaemia/reperfusion in the isolated perfused rat heart" by Pantsi WG, Marnewick JL, Esterhuyse AJ, Rautenbach F, van Rooyen J.(3)

4. Cardiovascular disease
In the analyzing the effect of rooibos on biochemical and oxidative stress parameters in adults at risk for cardiovascular disease, found that Confirming its popular use, consumption of fermented, traditional rooibos significantly improved the lipid profile as well as redox status, both relevant to heart disease, in adults at risk for developing cardiovascular disease, according to "Effects of rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) on oxidative stress and biochemical parameters in adults at risk for cardiovascular disease" by Marnewick JL, Rautenbach F, Venter I, Neethling H, Blackhurst DM, Wolmarans P, Macharia M.(4)

5. Antioxidants
In the investigation of the anti-oxidative effect of RTE on oils and fats in autoxidation or thermal oxidation, found that RTE has a very strong anti-oxidative effect on emulsifying oils owing to the water-soluble polyphenols such as rutin and quercetin contained in RTE, according to "Anti-oxidative effects of rooibos tea extract on autoxidation and thermal oxidation of lipids" by Fukasawa R, Kanda A, Hara S.(5)

6. Anti-inflammatory effects
In the study of the anti-inflammatory effects of Rooibos tea on rat colitis model, found that after dextran sodium sulfate (DSS) administration, the serum superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels were significantly higher in the Rooibos group compared to the controls (P < 0.05). As a result, a decreased hemoglobin level, observed in the control group, was prevented in the Rooibos group after the DSS challenge, according to "Studies of anti-inflammatory effects of Rooibos tea in rats" by Baba H, Ohtsuka Y, Haruna H, Lee T, Nagata S, Maeda M, Yamashiro Y, Shimizu T.(6)

7. Anti-wrinkle
In the comparison of Herbal anti-wrinkle cosmetics formulated from ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba), a mixture of tea and rooibos (Camellia sinensis and Aspalathus linearis) and soybean (Glycine soja) found that The ginkgo preparation increased skin moisturization (27.88%) and smoothness (4.32%) and reduced roughness (0.4%) and wrinkles (4.63%), whereas the formula containing tea and rooibos showed the best efficacy on wrinkle reduction (9.9%). In comparison to the tea and rooibos formula, gingko significantly improved skin moisturization (P = 0.05), according to "Clinical efficacy comparison of anti-wrinkle cosmetics containing herbal flavonoids" by Chuarienthong P, Lourith N, Leelapornpisid P.(7)

8. Anti Tumors
In the comparison of the effect of prepared from methanolic extracts of processed and unprocessed rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) and honeybush (Cyclopia intermedia), green (Camellia sinensis) teas in a two-stage mouse skin carcinogenesis assay, found that 2-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA), on ICR mouse skin initiated with 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA) suppressed skin tumorigenesis significantly (P<0.001) with the green tea E/A fraction exhibiting a 100% inhibition, unprocessed honeybush 90%, processed honeybush 84.2%, processed rooibos 75% and unprocessed rooibos 60%, according to "Inhibition of tumour promotion in mouse skin by extracts of rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) and honeybush (Cyclopia intermedia), unique South African herbal teas" by Marnewick J, Joubert E, Joseph S, Swanevelder S, Swart P, Gelderblom W.(8)

9. Anti cancers
In the investigation of the chemoprotective properties of unfermented and fermented rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) and honeybush (Cyclopia intermedia) herbal teas, and green and black teas (Camellia sinensis), found that Unfermented rooibos and honeybush significantly (P<0.05) to marginally (P<0.1) reduced the total number of foci (>10microm), respectively, while all the teas reduced the relative amount of the larger foci. Fermentation seems to reduce the protective effect of the herbal teas. Differences in the major polyphenolic components and certain FB1/polyphenolic/tissue interactions may explain the varying effects of the different teas on the oxidative parameters, hepatotoxic effects and cancer promotion in rat liver, according to "Chemoprotective properties of rooibos (Aspalathus linearis), honeybush (Cyclopia intermedia) herbal and green and black (Camellia sinensis) teas against cancer promotion induced by fumonisin B1 in rat liver" by Marnewick JL, van der Westhuizen FH, Joubert E, Swanevelder S, Swart P, Gelderblom WC.(9)

10. Immune function
In the evaluation of the effects of Aspalathus linearis (Rooibos tea) and Camellia sinensis (Black tea) on biomarkers of specific immune pathways, found that Rooibos and Black tea addition to unstimulated whole blood cultures induced higher Interleukin-6, Interleukin-10, and Interferon gamma secretion. Addition of Rooibos tea to stimulated whole blood cultures induced higher Interleukin-6, lower Interleukin-10, and had no effect on Interferon gamma secretion. Black tea addition to stimulated whole blood cultures inhibited Interleukin-6, Interleukin-10, and Interferon gamma production, according to "The in vitro effects of Rooibos and Black tea on immune pathways" by Hendricks R, Pool EJ.(10)

11. Antibody production
In the examination of he effects of Rooibos tea extract on antigen-specific antibody production and cytokine generation in vitro and in vivo, found that Rooibos tea extract may facilitate the antigen-specific antibody production through selective augmentation of IL-2 generation both in vitro and in vivo. Collectively, Rooibos tea intake may be of value in prophylaxis of the diseases involving a severe defect in Th1 immune response such as cancer, allergy, AIDS, and other infections, according to "Effects of rooibos tea extract on antigen-specific antibody production and cytokine generation in vitro and in vivo" by Kunishiro K, Tai A, Yamamoto I.(11)

12. Central nervous system (CNS)
In the investigation of the protective effects of Rooibos tea (RT), Aspalathus linearis, against damage to the central nervous system (CNS) found that no significant increase of TBARS was observed in RT-administered aged rats. When MR images of the brains of 24-month-old rats with and without RT as well as 5-week-old rats were taken, a decrease of the signal intensity was observed in the cerebral cortex, hippocampus and cerebellum in MR images of aged rats without RT, whereas little change of the signal intensity was observed in MR images of the same regions of 24-month-old rats treated with RT, whose images were similar to those of young rats, according to "The suppression of age-related accumulation of lipid peroxides in rat brain by administration of Rooibos tea (Aspalathus linearis)" by Inanami O, Asanuma T, Inukai N, Jin T, Shimokawa S, Kasai N, Nakano M, Sato F, Kuwabara M.(12)

13. Etc.

Side Effects
1. Overdoses may cause chest pain, chest tightness, shortness of breath, swollen chest, etc.
2. Rooibos tea may cause allergic effect, including skin irritation
3. Do not use the herb in children or if you are pregnant without approval from the related field specialist.
4. Prolonged period of using the herb may cause iron deficiency due to the presence of chemical compound tannin
5. Etc.

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Sources
(1) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22228422
(2) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15910170
(3) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21982437
(4) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20833235
(5) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19430189
(6) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19419525
(7) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20412217
(8) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15914270
(9) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19041360
(10) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20391028
(11) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11758901
(12) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7501264