Reishi Tea

Reishi tea made from Reishi mushrooms, has been used for centuries in eastern countries to cure a host of illnesses and health conditions. Reishi mushrooms called Ling-Zhi in Chinese are known as the "king of herbs" due to their medicinal properties. Reishi mushrooms are of six kinds, namely black, red, white, yellow, blue and purple. Out of these, red Reishi mushrooms are believed to be the ones which are most healing and hence, are utilized for making tea. Below is a list of all the benefits that Reishi tea provides to the human body, followed by the recipe to make the same.

Benefits

• It helps in fighting the abnormal cells in the body and thus can prevent certain cancers.
• Regular intake of Reishi tea helps in minimizing the symptoms of skin allergies, duodenal ulcers and diabetes.
• People who are on chemotherapy drugs, may find relief from the pain and discomfort with Reishi tea.
• It delays the process of aging by providing nutrition to the cells in the body.
• It lowers the cholesterol and thus helps in maintaining the heart health and preventing heart diseases.
• It is helpful in reducing the symptoms of respiratory problems such as Asthma. It is especially useful in bringing relief from cough.
• Benefits people under stress by soothing their mind and improving their sleeping patterns. It acts as a sedative for the nervous system and thus, helps people under stress, relax.
• It helps in fighting against hepatitis as it is believed to be having certain liver protective properties.

Procedure to Make Reishi Tea

The first thing to do when learning to make Reishi tea is to find some good quality Reishi mushrooms. They can be purchased either from a health store or from the Internet. Care should be taken that the supplier is reputed to ensure better quality mushrooms.

Step 1
Take one Reishi mushroom and soak it overnight to make it tender. The outer cover of the Reishi mushrooms is very hard and is covered with porous powder. It is in this powder that the healing properties of Reishi mushrooms lie so do not remove it while soaking.

Step 2
In the morning when the Reishi mushroom has softened a bit, cut it into a number of small pieces. Next, pour two liters of water in a pot, add the pieces to it, cover it with a lid and boil for up to two hours on slow. After two hours, take the pot out from the stove and add honey to the tea, if you like it sweet. Reishi tea can be cooled and refrigerated and is considered fit for drinking for five days.

Reishi tea is quite easy to make and has many health benefits too. Still it can cause an allergic reaction in some people and produce side effects such as dizziness, inability to sleep, stomach discomfort, dry mouth and tiredness. To avoid these, initially its consumption should be limited to just one tablespoon. If it does not cause any side effect, it can be increased to two tablespoons, then a cup and so on. Ideally, a person should consume two ounces of the tea, twice a day, to derive maximum health benefits out of it.