Yerba Mate

Yerba Mate' is a green tea from South America. It is made from a South American herb that has won many admirers in wide-ranging parts of the world. In the search for a natural stimulant devoid of side effects and toxicity, Yerba Mate currently holds the most hope. An invigorator of the mind and body, a natural source of nutrition, and a health promoter par excellence, Yerba Mate deserves the attention of every person interested in optimum health. Yerba mate tea contains practically all of the vitamins to sustain life-powerful antioxidant, tone the nervous system, retard aging, combat fatigue, stimulate the mind, control the appetite, reduce stress, caffeine free! Yerba Mate contains Vitamins A, C, E, B1, B2, B complex, riboflavin, vitamin C complex, magnesium, calcium, iron, sodium, potassium, manganese, silicon. Specially large amounts of pantothenic acid, a significant and vital nutrient.

Description of Yerba Mate' and constituents:

Yerba Mate' (Ilex paraquariensis) is an evergreen member of the holly family. We call Yerba Mate by several common names, including Paraguay tea, Jesuit tea, missionary tea and South American holly, but the most common is Yerba or Yerba Mate. It grows wild in Argentina, Chile, Peru, and Brazil, but is most abundant in Paraguay where it is also cultivated. New methods have been implemented and we find it also as an Organic Certified Yerba Mate Green Herbal Tea. We use the leaves nutritionally and medicinally. It is usually ground and steeped in hot water for several minutes and served hot or cold. The plant is classified according to Western herbal medicine as aromatic, stimulant, bitter, astringent, diuretic, purgative, sudorific, febrifuge, alterative and stimulant, but these terms sometimes do not reflect the true richness of its properties.

YERBA MATE IS ONE OF THE FEW PLANTS IN THE WORLD WITH SUCH NUTRITIONAL VALUES !!!

NUTRITION FACTS

Vitamins and Minerals:
100 grams (about 4 ozs.) of Yerba Maté brewed with one liter of water have approximately the following:

Potassium: 681.85 mg
Magnesium: 167.60 mg
Iron: 0.33 mg
Sodium: 4.57 mg
Phosphorus: 93.00 mg
Vitamin C: 2.55 mg
Niacin: 12.98 mg

Two 50-gram portions of Yerba Maté cover a great part of the minimum daily requirements recommended:

55.9% of Magnesium
34.1% of Potassium
99.9% of Niacin
11.6% of Phosphorus

Several attempts to characterize part or all of the constituents of yerba mate' have been made during the last few decades. They agree on some points, and disagree on others. This is not unusual; different assay techniques will be sensitive to different nutrients. The one thing that unites the various researchs is the consistent detection of numerous vitamins and minerals. There is the us ual array of resins, fiber, volatile oil, and tannins that characterize many plant substances. But then there is the growing list of vitamins and minerals, including carotene, vitamins A, C, E, B1, B2, B complex, riboflavin, nicotinic acid, pantothenic ac id , biotin, vitamin C complex, magnesium, calcium, iron, sodium, potassium, manganese, silicon, phosphates, sulfur, hydrochloric acid, chlorophyll, choline, inositol. Different research find different nutrients; there no single research that has found all o f them, and perhaps there are still other nutrients that have not been identified and classified.

One group of investigators from the Pasteur Institute and the Paris Scientific Society concluded that yerba mate' contains practically all of the vitamins necessary to sustain life. They focused especially on pantothenic acid, remarking that it is rare to find a plant with so much of this significant and vital nutrient. It is indeed difficult to find a plant in any area of the world equal to mate' in nutritional value.

In addition, yerba mate' contains a substance belonging to a very specialized class of chemical compounds. Though only small amounts of this substance occur in mate', its presence has generated a huge amount of attention. The substance is a xanthine alkaloid called mateine. Because of all the attention heaped upon its presence in yerbamate', the following fairly extensive treatment is given, even though in reality the substance probably contributes little if anything to the activity of the plant.

Is it Caffeine free?

International scientist like Dr. Mowry Director of the Mountainwest Institute of Herbal Sciences, in Salt Lake City, Utah, has expressed ".. It turns out that matei ne is not identical to caffeine; it differs from caffeine in some rather dramatic ways. Some members of the scientific community still resort to calling mateine a South American term for caffeine, or to maintaining, in perfect knowledge of the falseness o f the assertion, that two substances so similar chemically must have the same properties. Slowly, they are being forced to acknowledge the distinction between mateine and caffeine..."

"..modern studies seem to validate the difference between mate' and other xanthines-containing plants, such as guarana. Stereo-chemical and clinical work on xanthines in the last couple of decades have shown that, though similar in structure, the members of this class have widely varying pharmacology. In fact, there is only one effect that seems to be shared by all trimethyl xanthines: smooth muscle relaxation. It is this action that makes them with the exception of caffeine, whose smooth muscle relaxant effects are diminished by other side effects, good clinical dilators of the bronchi and hence useful in the treatment of asthma.."

" ..Researchers at the Free Hygienic Institute of Hamburg, Germany, concluded that even if there were caffeine in mate', the amount would be so tiny that it would take 100 tea bags of mate' in a six ounce cup of water to equal the caffeine in a six ounce serving of regular coffee. Mateine appears to possess the best combination of xanthine properties possible. For example, like other xanthines, it stimulates the central nervous system, but unlike most, it is not habituating or addicting. Likewise, unlike caffeine, it induces better, not worse, attributes of sleep. It is a mild, not a strong, diuretic, as are many xanthines. It relaxes peripheral blood vessels, thereby reducing blood pressure, without the strong pressor effect on the medulla and heart exhibited by some xanthines. We also know that it improves psychomotor performance without the typical xanthine-induced depressant after effects.."

"..Clinical studies show, in fact, that individuals with caffeine sensitivities can ingest yerba mate' without adverse reactions. The time has come, therefore, to discard the outmoded ideas that (1) xanthines are all alike, (2) that yerba mate' contains caffeine, and (3) that mateine is identical with caffeine. It is more likely that yerba mate' is, as some say, "Natures most perfect beverage," or, as others maintain, "the beverage of the Gods." Summarizing the clinical studies of France, Germany, Argentina and other countries, it appears that we may be dealing here with the most powerful rejuvenator known to man. Unlike the guarana of the Tupi, the coca of the Incas, the coffee of India, or the tea of China, yerba mate' rejuvenates not by the false hopes of caffeine, but simply through the wealth of its nutrients ".

HOW TO PREPARE MATE

Mate can be made hot or cold. Always use fresh filtered water. Mate is powdery so use a fine mesh filter for best results. We find the French Press or cotton reusable tea bag to be the best, leaving little to no sediment.

1. Mix the herb with a little cold water, which protects the nutrients and flavor (optional).
2. Never use boiling water. Just like green tea, use 185-degree water. Although Yerba Mate is traditionally steeped for 4 minutes. Do it however you like.
3. Yerba Mate may be used for multiple infusions. We suggest minimum 3 more uses, depending on your steep time.

---