A Guest Blog Moment: By Todd Michael Schultz

When Todd first contacted me about a guest blog, I was very happy. It's always fun to learn from other tea enthusiasts. When I found out he wanted to write about Tulsi, I laughed. This was the second time in one day that Tulsi had come up - and the first day I had ever even heard of it! So, please enjoy learning about Tulsi from Todd of the blog Todd and Tea.

Coffee for the 21^st Century: The health benefits of Tulsi (Holy Basil)
By Todd Michael Schultz

 

I want to start by saying that I am not a licensed practitioner.

I strive every day to make life better for myself and those around me. That is, in my belief, the best medicine.

Tulsi is one of the most beneficial plants I have come across as of yet. It benefits your health, stamina, and overall stability. Sold widely across the United States by a company known as Organic India, the box for the “India Breakfast” flavor, my favorite one, claims a few things: (1) Stress-relieving (2) Invigorating and (3) Contains Caffeine. This was enough to start me on starting my mornings with Tulsi, also known as Holy Basil (It is extremely Holy, in my opinion).

I didn’t know what to expect to be quite honest. I hadn’t alternated my lifestyle from a coffee-lifestyle (I’ll explain below) to a, what I now consider to be the much healthier route, tea lifestyle. First question I wanted to answer was: Will I feel well caffeinated? The answer: Yes. The second and for me at the time, equally important: Was it really stress-relieving? You bet your teapot it was.

From my research, I have found that the differences between coffee and tea are not that many: They are both grown from the earth. They both contain caffeine naturally, and they both are brewed with water. So, why was I feeling that tea was the way to go? I didn’t want to be arrogant and make this assumption, so I spent some time researching it, both empirically (or through drinking the stuff) and through some research.

Coffee uses approximately 3 to 4 times the amount of ground materials as tea, giving it a stronger caffeinated kick. While coffee has on average 80-185 mg per 8 ounces, tea has between 15-70.

That’s about it, as far as the effects are concerned. Both are said to have health benefits, and of course too much of either is not the best route. Additionally, if you are a coffee lover, I urge you to love your coffee, I’m sure it will love you back. However, consider that coffee is much intense on your system. Instead of working with your system, it forces a large amount of caffeine into it. It can work like tea if prepared properly and is drunk in moderation, however, tea, and the variety available will have you drinking more water (which will help you lose weight and balance your system) and absorbing the Earth’s beneficial gifts of herbs and spices… real vitamins, real good stuff.

Now, to put it plainly:

Here are some of the health benefits to drinking Tulsi tea: According to the Wikipedia page, Tulsi is said to have anti-oxidant, or cancer protection and repairing properties. In addition to this, it has shown heart related benefits, potential protection from radiation poisoning, protection from cataracts. It has been shown to have a beneficial effect on the glucose levels of type 2 diabetics, as well as cholesterol.

Read about it, then come to www.ToddandTea.blogspot.com and order some off my site so you can prepare yourself for your tea journey! Ten percent of proceeds will go to supporting tea causes, like this blog you’re reading right now!

Love and Tea,

Todd Michael Schultz