Red Raspberry Leaf: A Woman’s Best Friend
Red raspberry bushes were said to have been discovered and much loved by the Olympian gods on Mount Ida in northwest Turkey, where the botanical name Rubus idaeus is said to have come from. It means ‘bramble (branch) bush of Ida’ in Latin. According to Societe’s Materia Medica blog, “In the story of Ida, the nursemaid to the infant Zeus, she pricked her finger while picking the snow-white berries, staining them red for all eternity.” (Societe, 2018)
During the time of Christ, fruits were gathered from the wild by the people of Troy in the foothills of Mt. Ida. When settlers from Europe came to America, they found the Native Americans already utilizing and eating berries. Teas of raspberry leaves were given to women of the Cherokee, Iroquois, and Mohawk Nations to soothe labor pains, ease contractions, and ease nausea.
The early settlers also brought cultivated raspberries that were native to Europe with them to the new colonies. In 1761, George Washington moved to his estate in Mount Vernon, where he began to cultivate berries in his extensive gardens. Jefferson planted raspberries at Monticello on several occasions starting in 1774. William Price sold the first commercial nursery plants in 1771.
When England imposed the Boston Port Act, a tea tax placed on the American colonies in 1773, the colonists began to make tea from sage or raspberry leaves to substitute for their favorite beverage.
The herb earned approval by the authoritative British Herbal Compendium and was officially listed in the U.S. Pharmacopoeia from 1882 to 1905 and in the National Formulary from 1916 to 1942.
Plant Description
Red raspberries are native to Europe and northern Asia but will grow in most temperate regions. The plant is part of the rose family and has been cultivated for centuries, not only for its delicious fruit but also for its leaves and roots. The plant likes sunny sites with well-drained soil and is often found in forest clearings and edges, disturbed areas, riverbanks, roadsides, and old fields. The bush has arching, prickle-covered stems that grow up to six feet high. The leaves are three to five oval leaflets with serrated margins and light gray, hairy undersides. Flowers are ½ inch wide, white, or greenish-white and appear individually or in small clusters like grapes. The fruit is ¾ inch long, red, and rounded. It is not a true berry but an aggregate (formed from several carpels of the same flower) fruit. There are over 200 varieties of raspberries.
Constituents:
Fruit –
Calories 64
Carbs 14.7 grams
Fiber 8 grams
Protein 1.5 grams
Fat 0.8 grams
Vitamin C 54% of RDI
Manganese 42% of RDI
vitamin K 12% of RDI
Vitamin E 5% of RDI
B vitamins 4-6% of RDI
Leaves – Red raspberry leaves are a true nutrient herb, high in fiber; flavonoids; carotenoids; citric acid; fragrine; pectin; tannins; vitamins A, B complex, C, D & E; and several minerals, calcium, magnesium, manganese, zinc, iron, chromium, phosphorus, selenium, silicon, and potassium.
The beautiful thing about using herbs in their whole state is that there are still many nutrients and constituents that we have not discovered yet. This may play a significant role in our body’s ability to utilize the nutrients we are ingesting. However, when we take the herb in its whole state, it does not matter if we have discovered it or not because everything is exactly the way the Master Chemist designed it to be – knowing what our body would need.
Medicinal Uses
Helps alleviate female complaints and promote a healthy pregnancy.
Red Raspberry leaf eases menstrual cramps, balances PMS symptoms, and minimizes bleeding during periods due to its astringent properties and the active ingredient fragrine. Due to B vitamins, it helps to reduce stress. Studies have shown that consuming red raspberry leaves before pregnancy can help implant and protect the womb as the baby begins to develop. Red raspberry leaf reduces nausea and morning sickness during pregnancy and tones and strengthens the uterus and all female organs.
A 2001 study published in the Journal of Midwifery and Women’s Health stated that women who used red raspberry leaf tea during pregnancy had few babies delivered by forceps and had shorter labors. It helps prevent miscarriage, regulate postpartum hormones, and increase breast milk production. The American Pregnancy Association has stated that consuming the tea might reduce medical intervention during childbirth.
A nourishing reproductive tonic for men and promotes male fertility.
The consumption of excess estrogen through meat, milk, plastic, and food additives, along with high-stress levels, can bring on male menopause or ‘andropause,’ which reduces testosterone levels. Red raspberry leaves can help to counterbalance this.
Can treat acute diarrhea.
In 2004, a Polish study showed that raspberry leaves are a rich source of tannins which are phytochemicals that can alleviate diarrhea.
Anti-inflammatory properties.
Anthocyanin is a chemical in red raspberries, which gives them their red color. This chemical is known to reduce inflammation and pain.
Antioxidant properties.
The Czech Journal of Food Sciences published a study that found that as measured by the DPPH free radical scavenging ability, extract of raspberry leaves ranked fourth out of seventeen tested herbal and berry extracts of antioxidant activity. Raspberries have one of the highest ORAC values. ORAC (Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity) is a method of measuring various food items’ antioxidant content. Raspberries have 40% more antioxidant content than blueberries and strawberries.
Protects against cancer and age-related disease.
According to the Berry Health Benefits Network, the Medical University of South Carolina’s Hollings Cancer Center performed tests that showed that the body quickly absorbs ellagic acid, which is present in red raspberries. Ellagic acid contributes to the death of specific cancer cells. According to the American Institute for Cancer Research, raspberries are rich in ellagic acid, which has been shown to prevent skin, lung, bladder, breast, and esophageal cancers.
Red raspberry leaf tea also has heart and circulatory benefits.
It has been shown to have vasodilation components that help to increase circulation. Berry fruits are one of the few foods which contain anthocyanins in both the skin and the flesh. Research data states that a mere intake of 0.2 milligrams of anthocyanins per day can significantly reduce heart disease risk in postmenopausal women. The anthocyanins also inhibit the formulation of blood clots reducing the frequency of strokes. Red raspberry leaf helps to stabilize blood pressure, and the polyphenols in raspberries have been shown to improve age-related cognitive decline.
Other Medicinal Benefits
According to the Berry Health Benefits Network, it is high in Vitamin C, gallic acid, and other phytonutrients, which can help with heart problems, fever, diabetes, vitamin deficiencies, sweating, urination, and bile production.
It has been used for centuries to help with cold and flu symptoms.
According to M. Grieve (1931), experience has shown that raspberry leaf has been used in severe dysmenorrhea cases. She writes, “an infusion of raspberry leaves, taken cold is a reliable remedy for extreme laxity of the bowels. The infusion alone, or as a component part, never fails to give immediate relief and it is especially useful in stomach complaints of children.”
Because of the leaves’ tannins, this herb is also considered an astringent that helps tone and tighten tissue.
Raspberry was used by many Native American tribes for a toothache (Cherokee), as an eyewash (Chippewa), and for kidney issues (Iroquois).
In Tibetan medicine, the tea was used for emotional disturbances and exhaustion.
The flavonoids and polyphenolic compounds in raspberries support vision health.
According to Washington State University, raspberries are super fruits that enable the body to ward off infections due to poor immunity.
The fruit comprises several individual sections, each having its own seed that surrounds a central core. This aggregate structure increases the fruit’s fiber content which helps with digestion and gut health.
The polyphenols in raspberries can offer cartilage protection and make arthritic conditions less severe.
The magnesium and silicon content of raspberries improves hair quality. Silicon is believed to thicken hair within a matter of weeks and may promote faster hair growth.
Like humans, animals have been shown to benefit from drinking red raspberry tea during pregnancy and labor. Farm animals benefit from consuming the tea after giving birth, both to assist in postpartum recovery and to support milk production.
How to Use Red Raspberry Leaf
Red raspberry leaf can be taken in capsule form or a liquid tincture. The best way and most easily assimilated is to take the leaves in a tea form.
Red Raspberry Leaf Tea
1 tsp of dried leaf to 1 cup of hot water
Steep for 10 to 15 minutes.
Strain
Honey to taste (optional)
Red Raspberry Herbal Infusion
Cover one ounce of dried red raspberry leaves with one quart of boiling water.
Allow it to steep for 4 to 8 hours.
Strain
Drink three or more cups per day – refrigerate unused portion for up to three days.
As we study the benefits of raspberries and the tea made of their leaves, it becomes clear that this might be something we should include in our daily routine, especially since the majority of us live in a climate where we could easily add a bush or two to our backyard landscape, allowing us to harvest both the leaves and the berries right from our own backyard.