Drinking herbal tea ever morning as you ponder life’s blessings, surprises, and challenges, you start to wonder what you will do for the day. Thanks to the tea that you drink every morning, you always feel calm and happy – enough to face life’s interesting battles for you.

Among all tea variants, there are a lot of famous types such as peppermint, chamomile, hibiscus, and ginger tea. But one type of tea is not as famous as the rest. This is called passionflower tea.

What Is Passionflower Tea?

Passionflower tea is a special type of tea that comes from passionflower, a long, strong, climbing vine with parts that go above the ground. The portion of the vine above the ground is used to make medicine, teas, and other forms of home remedies.

Various scholarly studies and research articles suggest that passionflower tea is a great central nervous system relaxant. It does this by increasing the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) inside the human brain.

But… what is GABA? It is an amino acid that occurs naturally in the human brain. It has the power to reduce the activity of the CNS (central nervous system). Because of its capacity to cause relaxation, drinking passionflower tea actually promotes enhanced mood, pain relief, a better sleeping schedule and disposition, and an overall relaxed feeling.

One of its amazing features is that it is capable of modulating the different chemical activities inside the human brain. It can facilitate the modulation of Na+ (sodium), K+ (potassium), and ATPase activities.

So, are you now interested in passionflower tea?

Well, to prepare this tea, you need to steep a dried passionflower, or you may opt to use pre-packed tea bags in a boiling pot of water. It will take about 5-7 minutes for its flavour to diffuse, and it will taste earthy and grassy – but this can be sweetened by honey, sugar, or corn syrup.

Origin and Uses of Passionflower Tea

Passionflower is a vine that has been nourished and used by native Americans for hundreds of years. Because of this, passionflower is a regularly-staying herb in Western Herbalism.

This enchanting vine originally came from the Southeast area of the United States, South America, and Central America. Approximately 700 different species of the Passifloraceae family and an average of 60 of this species are mainly utilized for food. One of its species is the passionfruit – an exotic and juicy fruit that brings a dash of bright magenta colour.

But the most used species is the Passiflora incarnate, a sun-loving vine that commonly places itself on fields, forests, and roads. This is usually found in places with hot climates and dry soils, similar to those in their native origin.

During the pre-Columbian era, passionflower was used for food and medical purposes. The Native American tribes, Cherokee people, and European settlers used passionflower as a tea by drying them and letting them steep in boiling water.

Missionaries and settlers from Spain and Europe often promoted passionflower as a medicinal herb, and the rise of passionflower tea became rampant in the 18^th century. By that time, botanists started to praise the said vine as well, and this resulted in a more widespread hype for passionflower tea.

Health Benefits of Passionflower Tea

Drinking passionflower tea has a lot of benefits. Here are some of them:

Relieves Anxiety

Many people experience having anxiety attacks randomly, or traumatic events or memories may also induce these. To help in relieving these nasty anxiety attacks, you may opt to drink some passionflower tea.

Passionflower is a known central nervous system relaxant, so it is quite obvious why it is an effective way to get rid of anxiety. It will calm the mind by relaxing it, along with infusing the brain with properties that will make it feel more at ease.

Drinking passionflower tea is also quite popular before having any form of surgical procedures. It reduces the patient’s nervousness when taken at least 30 to 90 minutes before the surgery begins. Studies show that it has similar effects with melatonin and midazolam, two anti-anxiety drugs that are given before surgery to make the patient drowsy and easier to operate on.

Minimizes Insomnia

It has been shown that the intake of passionflower tea or extract right before bedtime is an effective technique to sleep faster, therefore avoiding the possibility of insomnia. Not only will it make you fall asleep quickly, but it will also help you in getting a longer sleep time.

Because of this, a person with insomnia will have a better quality of sleep.

Aids in Opioid Withdrawal

Research and case studies have been rampant in providing us with actual proof that passionflower tea is one way to reduce the struggles of people who are experiencing opioid withdrawal symptoms.

Together with a drug named clonidine, passionflower tea is taken by the patient for two weeks. Based on scholarly data, the symptoms of patients gradually lessened as compared to when clonidine drug is taken alone.

Calms ADHD (Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder)

Passionflower tea is an effective drink to reduce the severity of signs and symptoms brought by Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder in children ages 6 to 13 years old. The tea is usually administered for at least 8 weeks, and it works even better when administered together with a drug known as methylphenidate given in low doses.

Anti-Inflammatory

This tea is composed of passionflower, which offers a great anti-inflammatory, soothing action. With this, various inflammatory illnesses can be managed better just by drinking some passionflower tea from time to time.

Illnesses such as arthritis and gout can be relieved with the use of this tea.

Treats Seizure

Seizures occur because the neurons in the brain make, give, and get electrical impulses that give the brain’s nerve cells the chance to communicate with each other. But sometimes, there are disruptions in their communication pathways, and it ultimately leads to a seizure.

Because of passionflower tea’s calming effect on the mind, thanks to its ability to increase the production of GABA, the central nervous system starts to calm down, therefore stopping the seizure right on time.