As many of you know, my little guy Hudsen was born premature with severe lung, and other health issues. He spent the first 3 weeks of his life in the NICU with more tubes and wires coming out of him than I thought was possible! Doctors warned us that because of his underdeveloped lungs he would likely be vey susceptible to colds, flus, allergies, and most likely have asthma. So, right from the beginning it was very important for me to help his little immune system. I started giving him rooibos tea fromt he time he was a few months old, not a lot, but if he showed any signs of getting a cold or having the sniffles out would come the rooibos tea. My Grandma teased me that he was "addicted" to tea by the time he was 8 months old. Here are some of the reason I choose to give Hudsen rooibos tea, and I must say he has never had the poor immune system or the lung issues the doctors were sure would follow him for his life. I'm sure rooibos tea is not all to credit for this, but I'm sure it helped! It also helped his colic immensely. Between rooibos tea and my herbal tummy drops (which I will talk about another time) I don't think we ever had tummy tears that lasted more than half an hour. When Hudsen stopped getting a bottle for bed time, I transfered him into drinking tea every night for a while to give him some extra vitamins, and help relax him for sleepy time. I still make him tea for bed or nap time from time to time.
Rooibos tea contains no colors, additives, or preservatives, making it a wonderful natural beverage. it contains no caffeine as it is not actually a "tea" but an african herb. According to studies conducted in South Africa and Japan, rooibos has been shown to aid in health problems such as insomnia, irritability, headaches, nervous tension, and hypertension. Studies also show that this tea contains anti-spasmodic agens, which can relive stomach cramping and colic in infants. It has also been used to trat allergies such as hay fever, asthma and eczema very effectively.
Rooibos tea is also used for irritated skin. For diaper rashes a strong tea of rooibos can be brewed and added to bath water for a soak, or applied directly with a cloth to the irritated skin. Rooibos contains oxidants which help boost the immune system.
Rooibos contains the following minerals, copper, iron, potassium, calcium, zinc, manganese, alpha-hydroxy, magnesium, and others. In South Africa pregnant woman and nursing mothers drink rooibos because it contains no caffeine.
Because it has a naturally sweet taste, most kids will drink it without any sweetener. They also have flavored rooibos tea, such as strawberry and peach that can encourage a kid to drink it.
To use it: Simply brew it like you would any other tea, let it cool a bit, or add some ice, and serve in in a bottle or sippy cup. Or have a cup yourself!
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