Most of us already know that Rooibos tea is good for us, but why should you give organic rooibos tea to a baby?
We consulted with some top experts to discover more about organic Rooibos tea’s health benefits for babies and toddlers, and we soon realized that this superfood actually has multiple health and wellness benefits for our children.
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Rooibos tea for infants and children
Children are often offered Rooibos tea as a healthy drink. It contains no calories and can help keep kids hydrated. So it’s superior to fruit juices, Pepsi, and Coke.
Its natural flavor and bright red color make it a popular drink among children. It creates a delightful and refreshing iced tea for youngsters in the summer.
It’s also used to calm and relax children. According to studies, it can assist children who are hyperactive and have difficulties falling asleep to relax.
Organic Rooibos Tea Benefits For Children And Babies
- Rooibos Tea reduces colic
One of the symptoms of colic may include extreme crying tantrums that don’t necessarily have a trigger. Mothers in South Africa use rooibos tea to aid in calming babies with colic down.
While there haven’t been any scientific studies to back up the idea that rooibos can aid with colic, some doctors in South Africa still recommend it to help soothe newborns with colic. - Rooibos Tea helps with digestion
The anti-inflammatory characteristics of most of the antioxidants found in rooibos tea, the most prominent of which are quercetin, orientin, and vextin, help to improve digestion.
Rooibos may be able to help with stomach discomfort, inflammation, cramps, and other gastrointestinal ailments because of the mix of antioxidants mentioned above.
Despite the low tannin content of rooibos tea, the tannins are effective in lowering diarrhea symptoms in your newborn or toddler. - Rooibos Tea helps to keep the brain healthy
The polyphenolic components in rooibos tea provide a variety of benefits for your baby’s brain health, ranging from relaxing effects to neuron protection. - Rooibos contains anti-inflammatory properties
The anti-inflammatory effects of Rooibos tea can help your baby’s stomach pain as well as pain in other parts of the body.
Because of the pain-relieving properties of rooibos tea, it has been suggested that it can help with arthritic pain alleviation. Vitamin C is abundant in Rooibos tea, which can aid in the repair of any collagen or connective tissues in your baby’s joints. - Rooibos promotes better sleep
Because rooibos tea is caffeine-free, it will not disrupt your baby’s sleep schedule. The combination of magnesium and calcium in rooibos may actually help your baby or toddler sleep better.
Have you ever wondered why a warm cup of milk makes you sleepy? Calcium is found in both milk and rooibos tea. “Calcium helps the brains utilise the amino acid tryptophan to make the sleep-inducing chemical melatonin,” William Sears, M.D. told Medical News Today.
- Rooibos tea provides teething relief
Rooibos tea has natural properties to help with your baby’s teething discomfort because it contains a variety of anti-inflammatory antioxidants. - Rooibos can help to manage blood sugar
While researching the effects of rooibos tea, it was discovered that the antioxidant aspalathin possesses antiidiabetic properties. - Rooibos helps to alleviate allergy symptoms
Everyone, especially babies, dislikes the stuffy nose and puffy eyes that come with allergy season.
As an alternative to antihistamines, rooibos tea includes allergy-fighting antioxidants (such as quercetin) that can help combat allergies.
- Rooibos helps to fights obesity
Currently the CDC reports that obesity rates in children between 2-19 years old stand at 18.5%, or around 13.7 million children. While the rates increased the older the child gets, for children between 2-5 years old the numbers were still around 13.9%.
As previously stated, rooibos aids in metabolism. One factor that contributes to weight gain is a slow metabolism. Other advantages of drinking rooibos tea for your baby or toddler’s weight include the fact that it is a calorie-free beverage with antioxidants that boost leptin levels (which aid in weight management).
- Organic Rooibos Tea is high in antioxidants
The antioxidant-rich micronutrients (polyphenols) in Rooibos are abundant, and one of them, Aspalathin, is found solely in the Rooibos plant.
- Organic Rooibos tea is a caffeine-free beverage
Rooibos is a caffeine-free beverage that is ideal for babies and children because it does not disrupt sleep.
- Organic Rooibos Tea is Tannin Free
Tannins can obstruct iron absorption in the body, thus being tannin-free is advantageous.
- Bos Rooibos tea is naturally sweet
Rooibos is naturally sweet and if you introduce rooibos tea without sweetener the baby will not miss the sweetness.
- Organic Rooibos tea can help with children’s skin irritations
You can add a strong cup of rooibos tea to the baby’s bathwater to help soothe the skin, or you can let a rooibos tea bag cool off after being soaked in boiling water and apply the tea bag directly onto the skin.
Always keep in mind that rooibos tea should not be used to replace your baby’s primary nutrition, but rather to supplement a healthy lifestyle.
With your infant or toddler, unwind and enjoy this soothing tea. Both of you will benefit!