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Sorrel, also known as wood sorrel or sour dock, is a sour-tasting perennial that grows in woods and shaded locations. Sorrel has thin, delicate leaves that have a purplish hue on their underside. Often consumed as a tea, sorrel contains high quantities of vitamin C and offers a variety of purported medicinal benefits, including diuretic effects and blood cleansing effects, in traditional herbal medicine. Research has substantiated some of the health claims for sorrel.
ANTIOXIDANT
Sorrel tea contains flavonoid antioxidants that may boost your immune system, according to the Tropical Fruits Newsletter, a publication of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture. Sorrel has been found to kill some kinds of cancer cells and in places, such as Sudan, Senegal, Egypt and Mexico, where sorrel tea is consumed regularly, experts have associated sorrel tea with lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Sorrel also acts as a diuretic -- a substance that increases the production of urine -- assisting with weight loss. Mexican scientist Abigail Aguilar Contreras recommends drinking one liter per day of sorrel water made with 10 grams of sorrel in one liter of water. Sorrel can also be incorporated into your cooking and provides a rich source of vitamin C.
DETOXIFYING
Red sorrel has a detoxifying effect and is thought to increase the rate of toxin removal from chemicals in junk food and alcohol consumption, as well as the dangerous byproducts your body produces as it breaks these chemicals down, according to the book "The Purification Plan," by Prevention Health Books. The antioxidant protocatechuic acid in sorrel scavenges free radicals and is more potent than vitamin E in this regard. Sorrel has also been shown to prevent potentially cancer-causing chemicals from causing cell mutations in the skin and colon by as much as 90 percent, and induces apoptosis -- programmed cell death -- in cancer cells. Additionally, sorrel may lower blood pressure and inhibits production of cell-damaging enzymes. Make a batch of sorrel tea by boiling 10 cups of water with 2 cups of dried sorrel leaves. Drink 2 cups per day.
CANCER
Sorrel is one of four herbs that comprise Essiac tea -- an anticancer tea developed by the Ojibwa Indians of Canada, according to a report published in the January 2006 issue of the "Journal of Ethnopharmacology." Each of the herbs in the formula is thought to provide anti-cancer activity. In the study, Essiac tea showed considerable antioxidant capacity, reducing free radicals by 84 percent using a 50 percent tea preparation concentration. Essiac tea also prevented DNA damage. Researchers concluded that the antioxidant and DNA-protective effects observed in this test tube-based study may explain, in part, the reputed anti-cancer effects of Essiac tea and its component herbs.
ANTIBACTERIAL
Researchers at the Department of Food and Animal Sciences, Alabama A & M University, Normal, Alabama, demonstrated antibacterial properties of sorrel in a study published in the May 2011 issue of the "Journal of Medicinal Foods." Water extract of sorrel in concentrations of 2.5 percent, 5 percent and 10 percent inhibited E. coli in food samples, with higher doses producing better results. Researchers concluded considerable potential for the use of sorrel as an antimicrobial agent.
Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/470321-what-are-the-health-benefits-of-sorrel-tea/#ixzz2UbyQ9kC7
Sorrel Recipe
INGREDIENTS:
5 to 6 (1-inch) slices ginger
1 cup dried sorrel leaves
1 tablespoon cloves
Brown sugar
Red wine sherry,OR Rum optional
PREPARATION
Let cut ginger sit for 2 to 3 hours. The longer it sits the stronger it becomes.
Boil ginger in 2 quarts of water.
Once water is boiling, add sorrel and cloves.
Boil for 30 minutes.
Strain and add sugar and wine, to taste.
Chill and serve.
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