Starting on the Red Raspberry Leaf

This week I started drinking the ever so delicious red raspberry leaf tea. I went to our local health food store and bought the loose leaf Frontier brand in bulk. I was super surprised with how cheap it was!...and so much better than the tea bags. I actually just enjoyed the plain red raspberry leaf tea with out anything blended with it. Although I can see myself getting tired of it pretty quickly. I will probably add some peppermint or nettle to it and maybe change up between drinking it cold and hot. I also am loving my Teavana perfect tea maker for brewing up a lovely cup of this each afternoon. If you are a tea lover and have not heard of Teavava and their wonderful products you should definitely look into it. The picture above is the perfect tea maker in use. You just pour the loose leaf tea inside the maker and pour boiling water over top. Let it steep for the suggested time and place the maker over top of your mug and it strains out the bottom. Super slick!

...and about the red raspberry leaf tea...It is known as the herb for pregnancy. It helps tone the uterus for labor and helps reduce the pain during and after birth. It also helps give you more effective contractions during labor and can help prevent postpartum hemorrhage. It is rich in vitamins A, B complex, C and E as well as calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium. It also is a great treatment for anemia, leg cramps, and works as an anti-inflammatory. Not like this is already the most awesome tea for women, but it also helps with the production of breast milk!

If you are pregnant and wondering when and how you can start drinking it too here are some thoughts...

Some people who have had previous miscarriages or preterm labor should probably not drink it until they are in their 3rd trimester. Obviously consulting your midwife or doctor first would be the best, but I have heard of people sipping a small cup from the time they find out they are pregnant. So I think it just depends on you and what you are most comfortable with. I started a thread on Mothering in my due date club and got a lot of great ideas and stories. You can check that out here. I also read about someone who made a really strong infusion and mixed it with orange juice to freeze into Popsicle to enjoy during and after labor. Yum!