Mate tea (Mate): benefits and harms, reviews

Benefits and harms of Mate tea - the topic is interesting to everyone who loves delicious and unusual tea drinks. Curious to know what properties Latin American tea has and how it should be drunk.

The history of the origin of Mate tea

This unusual golden-green drink has a Latin American origin - the raw materials for it are the leaves and shoots of the Paraguayan holly. It is no longer possible to find out the origin story of Mate for sure - this drink is shrouded in too many legends. However, the researchers agree on one thing - for the first time in Europe, Mate tea appeared in the 16th century, and it was brought from South America.

In the 19th century, Paraguayan holly began to be widely cultivated in Paraguay, Uruguay, Brazil and Argentina. Tea has gained unheard-of popularity both at home and in countries around the world; true connoisseurs have developed a whole drinking ceremony that maximizes the taste of the drink.

The chemical composition and calorie content of Mate tea

Despite the fact that Latin American tea attracts attention for its unusual taste alone, the main value lies in its beneficial properties. And they are due to the presence of the following components in the tea:

• vitamins C, E, A, B, PP;
• bioflavonoids rutin and quercetin;
• beta-amyrin;
• organic acids - resin, isobutyric, isovaleric and isocaproic;
• trace elements magnesium, sodium, iron, potassium and manganese;
• tannins;
• antioxidants;
• alkaloids.

The calorie content of Latin American tea per 100 g is only 2 calories. This is very small, so drinking a healthy drink does not, under any circumstances, contribute to weight gain.

Why is Mate tea useful?

The drink has a number of beneficial properties for the body. In particular, tea:

• improves bowel function and helps to establish a proper metabolism;
• plays the role of a good diuretic;
• has a mild analgesic effect, since it relieves muscle spasms;
• reduces appetite and drowns out the feeling of hunger;
• has a beneficial effect on the state of blood vessels and heart;
• has a good effect on the nervous system, invigorates and helps to fight stress and disorders.

For women

The benefits of green tea Mate for women lies primarily in the fact that tea helps to lose weight very quickly and without unnecessary problems. It triggers fat burning processes in the body, regulates appetite and thus facilitates even the most stringent diets.In addition, tea can lift your spirits and restore vigor, which may be beneficial during PMS.

For men

South American tea is considered a strong natural aphrodisiac, as it contains a large amount of vitamin E. It also gives strength and increases endurance, which makes it recommended for athletes.

Can you drink Mate during pregnancy

Any drink that raises the body's tone can be dangerous while carrying a child - Mate is no exception. The properties of tea provoke unnecessary muscle contractions, which can be harmful and cause miscarriage or premature birth. In addition, when drinking tea, iron is absorbed worse - and this is also harmful to both the mother and the fetus.

Thus, throughout pregnancy, a healthy drink is a potentially risky product - it is better to stop drinking.

Is Mate tea good for nursing mothers

In a normal situation, the tonic properties of tea are very useful, but during lactation, they can harm the baby. Components that have a stimulating effect on the nervous system will enter the infant's body along with breast milk - and will lead to sleep disturbances in the baby.

It is not recommended to return the drink to the diet until 7 - 8 months of life. Later, you can start drinking tea again - but not strong and only in the morning.

Mate tea for children

A drink that stimulates the nervous system is also prohibited for young children. You cannot offer Mate to a child up to the age of 8, and Latin American tea can be given to schoolchildren only in the morning and no more often than once a week.

Benefits of Mate tea for weight loss

The drink not only stimulates metabolism, but also suppresses the feeling of acute hunger. These properties of tea make it very beneficial for the diet. True, you cannot drink Mate constantly - you need to take it no more than three times a week. It is best to drink the drink in the morning, but if there are no problems with sleep, then you can drink some tea with dinner to avoid night hunger.

How to brew Mate tea correctly

The taste and useful properties of tea largely depend on whether it is brewed correctly. For Mate tea, there is a whole ceremony that fully reveals this drink. First of all, it is recommended to purchase a special teapot. It is called a calabash and looks like a ceramic or metal round vessel with a narrow high neck.

As for the brewing process itself, the algorithm is very different from the traditional one.

• Dry tea mixture is poured into the calabash by about 2/3 of the vessel, and then cold clean water is poured.
• After the tea leaves soften and swell, and this will happen in about 3 minutes, a bombilla tube is inserted into the neck of the calabash and some hot water is poured with a temperature of about 80 degrees.
• After that, the tea is infused for another 2 minutes, and then they are drunk through the bombilla straight from the bottom.

It is not recommended to brew Mate in an ordinary teapot with boiling water - it will harm the taste of the drink, it will become bitter. In addition, the beneficial properties will also decrease.

The classic way

For the simplest brewing recipe, all you need is calabash, high-quality Mate tea, and some pure water. The tea leaves are poured into a special teapot, poured using a special technology, first with cold and then hot water, infused for a couple of minutes and drinking delicious and healthy tea.

It is the classic recipe that allows you to truly get acquainted with the taste of undiluted Mate and the beneficial properties.

Cold Mate

If you really want to cheer up in hot weather, but hot tea does not cause delight, you can make cold mate. It is brewed very simply - in this case it is not necessary to keep the tea leaves in cold water, they are immediately poured with hot water. But this tea has been insisted for a little longer - for 10 minutes.

The drink is then allowed to cool a little more and ice cubes are added to the mata. If desired, tea can be flavored with sugar, honey, vanilla.

Mate with milk

Healthy South American tea can be prepared according to the "European" recipe - with the addition of milk. Usually the drink is made like this:

• half a liter of milk is heated to 60 degrees;
• dry leaves of Mate are added directly to the milk in the amount of 2 large spoons;
• stir and remove the drink from the stove as soon as it starts to boil.

After that, tea with milk is drunk as usual - with or without sugar.

Mate with ginger and mint

Tea with mint and ginger has a wonderful warming and fat-burning effect.

• To begin with, clean water with 1 teaspoon of ginger added to it is heated and brought to a boil on the stove.
• When the water boils, it must be removed from the heat and cooled to about 80 degrees.
• A few tablespoons of dry leaves of mate are poured into hot, but not boiling water, insisted for 3 to 4 minutes.

A little aromatic mint is added to the finished tea - and Mate is drunk, enjoying even more unusual taste and unconditional benefits.

Citrus Mate for Immunity

Latin American tea with citrus fruits is perfect for the winter season as it strengthens the immune system. It is very simple to prepare it:

• in the calabash, mate is brewed in the traditional way - first the brew is poured with cold and then hot water;
• add 1 - 2 thin slices of lemon, lime or orange to the finished drink.

It is recommended to make such tea several times a week - then its benefits will be maximum.

Toning Mate

South American tea has an invigorating effect even in the classic version - but if desired, the tonic effect can be enhanced. To do this, pour 1 glass of water a teaspoon of Mate and a teaspoon of natural ground coffee, and then steam the mixture for 4 minutes. The finished tea is filtered and drunk as needed.

How to drink Mate tea properly

In order for unusual tea to bring only benefit to the body and not cause harm, it must be consumed according to the rules.

• Drinking Mate is recommended in the morning or afternoon - but not at night. In most cases, evening tea leads to problems with sleep, since the drink has pronounced tonic properties.
• The rate of consumption of Mate is 2 - 3 cups per week - it is not recommended to introduce tea into the daily diet.
• Tea is best consumed fresh, immediately after preparation. It is impossible to leave the cooled tea leaves in the calabash and use it after a few hours - during this time the tea will have time to acquire an unpleasant bitterness and lose all its benefits.
• For convenience, the drink can be poured into cups. But it is more correct to drink tea through the bombilla directly from the calabash - this will allow you to fully experience the taste, and the benefits will be more pronounced.

The calabash, intended for brewing mate, and the bombilla tube are regularly washed so that they do not accumulate toxins and bacteria.

The benefits and harms of Mate tea for some diseases

The doctors' comments on the benefits and dangers of Mate tea indicate that you need to be careful when drinking the drink - and take into account your health condition. In some cases, the volume of tea must be reduced, sometimes it is worth giving up the drink altogether.

With diabetes mellitus

In the presence of diabetes, the properties of mate are certainly beneficial - tea lowers glucose levels. Despite this, you still cannot drink it in large quantities - the drink is taken only twice a week, 1 cup in the morning.

Of course, sugar cannot be added to the drink - this will harm the body.

With pancreatitis

With a sharp exacerbation of the disease, Mate is excluded from the diet - until the onset of the remission phase. After the pain and nausea in pancreatitis subsides, you can drink Mate from time to time - but not hot, but only warm, and not more than once a week.

With cholecystitis

Mate has choleretic properties, so its use will be beneficial for cholecystitis. You need to drink tea literally a few sips in the daytime.

But if cholecystitis is accompanied by stones in the gallbladder and ducts, you will have to refuse the drink. It can promote the movement of calculi, which will certainly be harmful.

With gastritis and stomach ulcers

During an exacerbation of ulcers and gastritis, Mate will have to be excluded from the diet - the properties of tea have an irritating effect on the mucous membranes. During the period of a calm course of the disease, you can use tea, but you need to brew it weakly - and it is better to drink no more than half a cup once a week.

The use of Mate tea in cosmetology

The benefits and harms of Mate drink are important not only for internal, but also for external use. Paraguayan holly is actively used in cosmetology - Mate extract is included in skin care products, it is used in spa treatments. The product has a rejuvenating, firming and anti-cellulite effect, which is why it is highly valued by women.

Scrub

At home, you can prepare a scrub that will remove keratinized particles from the skin all over the body, noticeably soften the epidermis and nourish the skin with useful substances. They do it like this:

• 3 large tablespoons of dry tea leaves are poured with hot water;
• add 1 glass of medium-sized sea salt and 5 drops of any essential oil with an anti-cellulite effect;
• the resulting product is mixed with your favorite shower gel;
• the mixture is applied to the body and rubbed in with light massage movements.

The effect will be noticeable after the first application, and after several procedures the skin will become much softer and cleaner.

Wrapping

Mate helps to get rid of cellulite - for this you need to carry out useful wraps with Latin American tea a couple of times a week.

• 5 large spoons of dry powder and leaves of Mate are poured with hot water until a thick mixture is obtained, similar to sour cream in consistency.
• Add 2 large tablespoons of liquid honey and half a teaspoon of cinnamon to the mixture.
• The mixture is applied to clean skin in problem areas, wrapped in cling film and laid under a warm blanket for half an hour.

After 30 minutes, the mixture is washed off. With regular treatment, cellulite is reduced and body contours become more toned.

Side effects and possible harm of Mate tea

As great as the benefits of South American tea are, sometimes its properties can be harmful. Contraindications to the use of Mate are:

• oncology;
• pregnancy and lactation;
• hypertension;
• stomach ulcer and gastritis in the acute stage;
• severe ailments of the bladder and kidneys with the formation of stones;
• children under 12 years of age;
• fever with a cold.

Side effects from drinking too often are expressed in sleep problems, tachycardia. It is believed that an excess of Mate can lead to the appearance of cancer. Mate is not recommended to be combined with alcohol intake and smoking.

How to choose and store

Healthy Mate tea must be of high quality. When buying exotic tea, you need to pay attention:

• for the expiration date - Mate is stored for no more than 5 years, after which the tea begins to taste bitter and is harmful to health when consumed;
• on the appearance of the tea mixture - high-quality mate consists of finely chopped leaves, powder and small pieces of twigs, and the largest volume should be taken up by the powder.

Store Mate in a dark and dry place, it is recommended to keep tea in glass or tin containers. The lid must be left tightly closed, otherwise the Mate will lose its unique flavor.

Conclusion

The benefits and harms of Mate tea is a matter of competent use of an exotic drink. If you brew Latin American tea rarely and according to all the rules, then it will delight you with a bright taste and will benefit your health.

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