Skip to main content

Tasty Antioxidant Brews and Teas

As previously discussed, it is believed that excess free radicals, oxidative stress, and insufficient antioxidant levels are bad for the nervous system (and really the entire body) and play a role in neurological disorders and long-COVID symptoms.  One of the ways I try to get enough antioxidants is to make a variety of easy to brew herbal teas or tisanes.  

Useful Antioxidant Ingredients

As someone who treasures variety, I keep the following items on hand to work with, mixing and matching them as the mood suits me:

  • Dried Ginger Pieces
    • Sweet and spicy, believed help with nausea, inflammation and boost serotonin and dopamine levels
  • Dried Rose Hips
    • Slightly tart, loaded in antioxidants, may reduce inflammation, boost immune system, fight type 2 diabetes, and potentially even fight sagging of skin
  • Wild Blueberry Powder
    • Very high in antioxidants, and may help regulate blood sugar, boost immunity, support eye health, reduce gastrointestinal symptoms and possibly ease UTI symptoms.
  • Matcha powder
    • Pleasantly bitter brain boosting tea (made from powdered green tea leaves) loaded with antioxidants along with some caffeine balanced with l-theanine, a calming amino acid that fights stress
  • Pineapple powder
    • Sweet-tart flavor with healthy antioxidants and bromelain, an enzyme that aids digestion and fights inflammation.
  • Rooibos Tea
    • Slightly-sweet caramel/vanilla flavored herbal tea that makes it easy to skip sugar while also delivering antioxidants; naturally caffeine free
  • Ground Fennel Seeds
    • Mild licorice taste, full of antioxidants and believed to fight nausea and inflammation
  • Local Raw Honey
  • Stainless Steel Tea Infusers
    • An easy way to mix and steep ingredients
  • Electric Kettle with Temperature Control

Ginger Matcha Latte

 This warm flavorful pick-me-up improves my focus and energy levels while also soothing and calming.  It is a less jittery boost than coffee and does not seem to cause the post-coffee crash.
  • Half teaspoon or generous pinch of dried ginger pieces
  • Quarter teaspoon or small pinch of matcha powder
  • Half a dozen or small pinch of dried rosehips
  • 5 ounces of near boiling water
  • Milk and honey to taste
Place matcha powder directly into cup.  Add ginger and rosehips to tea infuser and place in cup on top of the matcha.  Add hot water and steep for 5 minutes.  After steeping remove infuser from cup and stir.  If you have a matcha whisk, tiny wire whisk or battery milk frother, they work great, but a small spoon will do in a pinch.  If you are unaccustomed to the pleasantly bitter rich taste of matcha, you may care to add a tiny bit of milk and honey.  Bonus points for “stretched” milk steamed using an espresso machine steam wand, or for heating the milk in the microwave and then whisking to make rich warm foam.  

Fun Variations:

  • add a pinch of fennel powder for added stomach soothing and antioxidants
  • add a pinch of Indian tea spice for a more aromatic and exotic flavor
  • add some chai or Earl Grey tea to alter the flavor or to completely mask the matcha if you are not a big matcha fan

Chilled Berry Refresher:

This caffeine-free antioxidant-rich iced drink tastes like a berry-flavored iced tea and is great for hot afternoons.
  • 1 tablespoon of dried ginger pieces (less if using fresh ginger or finely ground powder)
  • 1 heaping teaspoon or generous pinch of wild blueberry powder (less if using powdered extract made from dehydrated juice rather than powdered berries)
  • Half teaspoon of dried rosehips
  • Half teaspoon of rooibos tea (and/or black tea if you want some caffeine)
  • ~20 ounces of near boiling water
  • honey to taste
Add dry ingredients to infuser in a large mug, and cover in hot water for ~10 minutes.  Feel free to stir or shake the infuser a few times to ensure good circulation and extraction.  After steeping, remove infuser and use a spoon to taste the brew.  Since it is warm and concentrated, it will taste harsher than it will after you ice it.  Stir in a small amount of honey to taste, but be careful not to overdo it – the goal should be slightly tart at this stage.  Carefully pour it into two sturdy glasses completely filled with ice (large cubes are best).  Heavy pint glasses or beer mugs are great.  Be sure to pour it directly onto ice away from the edges of the glass so as not to overheat and crack the glass.  The hot liquid will melt much of the ice, diluting the tart beverage and the cold will mellow the flavor into something quite pleasant.

Fun Variations:

  • swap out some or all of the blueberry powder for pineapple powder
  • add a dash of cardamom for a hint of exotic spice and an anti-inflammatory anti-hypertensive kick
  • swap out some or all of the rooibos for another tea – Cream Earl Gray is a great choice if you would like a little caffeine
© 2024 All rights reserved. This blog reflects the personal experience and opinions of a long COVID and CFS survivor and is not qualified medical advice. Consult a doctor for your situation.

Labels:
Location: United States

Comments

Post a Comment

I invite on-topic, helpful comments from readers with free Google accounts. I am especially interested in comments that share useful tips for fighting long-COVID, Chronic Fatigue, Chronic Pain and Migraines. Off-topic comments, comments that name other sites or products without including much relevant textual explanation, and comments disparaging any person or group will be deleted. As I am trying to keep this a positive place, I may also delete comments in a despairing tone that focus only on symptom misery rather than helpful ways to combat it. Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts and helpful tips!

Popular posts from this blog

Neuro Diet for Brain and Nerves

Dietary Advice I Received from a Long COVID Program As with many conditions, eating the appropriate foods can help with symptoms of chronic fatigue, brain fog and neurological strain.  Interestingly, when I started the post-COVID rehabilitation program, they put me on a diet that was extremely high in lean animal protein which runs somewhat counter to the modern fads of plant-based everything.  But many of their other suggestions seem similar to aspects of the Mediterranean Diet, The Harvard “Healthy Eating Plate” and other mainstream health diets.  Here are some of their suggestions to me, which were adapted from a pamphlet called “ Healthy Brain, Healthy Nerves ” by Doctor Jinny Tavee, a neurologist specializing in neuromuscular disorders and integrative holistic medicine. They Asked Me to Eat: wild caught fish: 3-5 servings per week, prepared without much fat (e.g. avoid deep frying, butter poaching, etc.) brightly colored fruits and vegetables: 5-6 servings per day green Tea nuts o
Post a Comment
Read more

Recognizing Symptoms of Brain Fatigue Can Help

My last article discussed how to use pacing and energy budgets to improve performance and reduce symptoms.  However, I did a poor job of listing common signs of brain fatigue and how to recognize when a rest and cognition break might help so I decided to remedy that with this post.  Many of the warning signs are counterintuitive, so without a list it can be challenging to recognize when a symptom might be caused my mental fatigue and thus when a mental break is needed. Below is a list I copied nearly verbatim from a handout from a long-COVID recovery program from a highly respected research hospital.  It is not copyrighted nor proprietary, so I am free to share it here: Common Signs of Brain Fatigue Cognitive Symptoms of Brain Fatigue Difficulty concentrating Forgetfulness Slow speech Headache Word-finding difficulties Emotional Symptoms of Brain Fatigue Irritability Nervousness Withdrawal Physical Symptoms of Brain Fatigue Loss of appetite Low energy Nausea Balance Instability Nu
Post a Comment
Read more

Free Nurtec ODT for Migraine Headache Relief

Long COVID and Migraines A common post-viral long-COVID problem is persistent migraine headaches.   Although they do not seem to affect the majority of post-COVID patients, they commonly plague those who had a history of migraines before their infections.   For those not familiar with migraines, they can be excruciating, and tend to come with nausea, sensitivity to light and sound, and various other symptoms.   Imagine the worst hangover of your life, where everything is too bright and too loud, your head feels like it is being crushed in a vice and you want to vomit.   That is pretty much me every day, year after year. What is Nurtec ODT and How Does it Help with Migraines? But the good news is that after trying just about every common migraine remedy without much relief, my specialist prescribed me Nurtec ODT.   Nurtec ODT comes in little white tabs that you place under your tongue and let melt/dissolve to be absorbed directly into your bloodstream.   It is commonly prescri
Post a Comment
Read more