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Blue tea is amazing.
From its incredible benefits to its ability to change color blue tea is becoming more and more popular day by day.
Blue tea is well-known in the East but only beginning to breakthrough in the West. There are many questions and facts that you might be wondering about with this wonderful herbal flower infusion.
What Is Blue Tea? Blue Tea, AKA Butterfly Pea Flower Tea is an herbal infusion derived from the Clitoria Ternatea plant, native to South-East Asia. The Butterfly Pea Flowers have been used for centuries as a base for herbal tea, cooking, and remedies for various ailments.
Now that we know what blue tea is, let’s dive in and try and get all the knowledge about this remarkable herbal tea that we can in my Blue Tea Guide.
Everything You Want To Know About Blue Tea
Butterfly Pea Flower tea has been used for centuries as an herbal tea in South-East Asia, particularly in Thailand and Vietnam.
It has only recently been introduced outside of its indigenous area and has started to become more and more mainstream in other places around the world.
Through food blogging and travel shows(source), this fantastic herbal flower infusion has become much more popular although it is still quite difficult to find in most western grocery stores.
You can find it online and at some specialty craft stores in the US and other western nations.
It is not really known exactly when the herbal tea was first used in South East Asia, but it has been a ubiquitous part of the various cultures there for generations.
Some Of The Best Blue Tea Benefits
Blue tea has a laundry list of wonderful benefits (source) that you can take advantage of with this delightful tea. Here are some of the best ones that I came across.
Keep in mind that a lot of research is still needed to get a clearer picture of just how useful blue tea can be from a health perspective.
But many of these conclusions are based on sound science and a wealth of study of blue tea, regular tea, and herbal teas in general.
1. Blue Tea May Help With Cognitive Health
Blue tea is known as a nootropic according to some studies. This means that it helps refresh and boost cognition which helps you feel more energized and can help you focus without the added caffeine.
Nootropics is still a pretty young discipline and one that is not fully understood.
So take this benefit with a grain of salt as the evidence that nootropics aid healthy people is anecdotal at best with some doctors claiming there is no strong evidence that nootropic work for otherwise healthy people (source).
2. Might Help Ward Off Grey hair And Baldness
The flavanoids in blue tea may help slow the aging process on your hair the same way it does with your skin.
The elasticin and anti-glyceric properties of the antioxidants found in blue tea might help stave off some of the signs of aging in your hair, most noticeable premature greying and some forms of baldness.
3. Blue Tea Has Anti-Microbial Properties
In some studies, blue tea has been shown to be effective against some bacteria particularly Staphylococcus Aureus. this bacteria is responsible for a wide array of ailments some serious.
Green tea has exhibited the same anti-microbial behavior against Staphylococcus Aureus (source) and has been more thoroughly studied but blue tea has shown a great deal of promise in this area.
4. Blue Tea Has Some Skin Benefits
Anti-oxidants are great for your skin and blue tea has a ton of them. Like most other teas and infusions blue tea also provides a number of vitamins and minerals that are integral to good skincare.
Blue Tea may also have anti-glycation properties that are a great way of keeping your skin looking young and healthy.
5. Butterfly Pea Tea Has Plenty Of Antioxidants
Anti-oxidants are going to be a recurring theme in the list of blue tea benefits and with good reason. They play a vital role in our overall health and the more places and varieties of antioxidants the better.
The anti-oxidants in blue tea help with a wide range of areas of our overall health. From skin to hair to heart and brain health, the antioxidants in Blue tea are one of the biggest factors for its role as a healthy beverage in our everyday lives.
The Butterfly Pea Flower Up Close And Personal
6. Butterfly Pea Flower Tea Has No Sugar
Blue tea is naturally sugar-free. This might be one of its most impressive benefits since sugar is such a destructive force in our life when we overuse it.
Ideally, you should not drink a lot of liquids with added sugar. Drinking sugared beverages in heavy moderation is the best course of action.
Replacing a sugary drink with a cup of blue tea is going to be incredibly beneficial to your overall health and will certainly aid in weight loss simply due to the reduction in calories.
7. Blue Tea May Help Manage Diabetes
The first way that blue tea can help manage your diabetes is by providing you with a sugar-free option when it comes to choosing your beverage.
Water is going to be your best bet when choosing a beverage but it’s always nice to get something with a little flavor every now and again. Blue tea fits the bill perfectly for any diabetic because of its sugar-free nature.
Blue Tea can also help regulate blood sugar but it is not a replacement for medical attention for your overall diabetes maintenance.
8. Blue Tea Is Stress Reducer
Blue tea can help you relax and maintain a stress-free environment. Stress has been linked to all types of ailments so drinking something to relax is going to be of great benefit to you.
Unlike traditional teas that contain varying amounts of caffeine blue tea contains none and this helps to maintain a relaxed stress-free environment while you’re drinking this wonderful herbal flower infusion.
9. It Helps Deal With Anxiety
Blue tea is caffeine-free which helps benefit its role as a way to deal with anxiety. There is some evidence that butterfly pea flowers are adaptogenic which helps deal with anxiety
10. Blue Tea Is Beneficial to Hair Growth
Quercetin in blue tea helps to strengthen hair and skin cells and helps to keep them properly hydrated. This leads to healthy skin and hair and promotes a healthy hair growth environment.
11. Blue Tea Can Be Used As A Detox
Like many other herbal teas, blue tea can be used as a detox. Drinking this tea helps regulate the body by clearing out toxins and promoting a healthy mindset according to detox proponents.
The full benefits, if any, are not yet known for any detox involving tea, although they are incredibly popular these days.
12. Helps Promote Eye Health
The antioxidant, proanthocyanidin, found in Butterfly Pea Flower tea is known to help increase blood flow to the capillaries.
This antioxidant is thought to help in the treatment of tired eyes and blurred vision among other common retinal stress issues (source).
While it is not a medical treatment for any of these issues, antioxidants play an important role in the overall health of our bodies and eyes and blue tea is a great place to load up of them.
13. Butterfly Pea Tea Has Some Anti Aging Properties
Another great benefit of the antioxidants in blue tea is there potential anti-aging properties. Blues teas antioxidants may help stimulate elastin synthesis in the skin that results in fewer wrinkles and younger-looking skin.
This leads to an overall more youthful look. Within reason of course. No tea, no matter how great, is going to completely or even significantly reduce the signs of aging but every little bit helps for our confidence are we get older.
14. Blue Tea May Contribute To Overall Heart Health
Just based on blue teas stress-reducing nature it could have a profound impact on your overall heart health.
Stress is one of the biggest causes of heart-related issues and anything that reduces that burden on your heart is going to be very beneficial to your overall health.
15. Blue Tea Has Anti Inflammatory Properties
Like many plants, the butterfly pea flower is packed with flavonoids. Flavonoids have been shown time and time again that they are great at reducing inflammation.
These antioxidants are some of the most well-known and can be found in a wide range of fruits and vegetables that you eat every day and you can add to that with a nice cup of blue tea.
16. It May Help Relieve Fever
Studies have shown that blue tea can have a similar effect to acetaminophen when it comes to reducing fever in some people.
These studies are not conclusive however and you should always seek medical attention for serious fevers and other related ailments. But blue tea has some benefits in reducing body temperature.
Many herbal teas such as chamomile and peppermint tea have also been shown to aid in fever reduction(source).
17. Blue Tea Has Pain Relieving Properties
Similar to its fever relieving properties blue can also be used a pain relieve in many situations.
This shouldn’t be used as a substitute for pain medication but there is evidence that blue tea can aid in pain relief.
The butterfly pea flower has been used for centuries as an anesthetic to help relieve pain and swelling.
18. Blue Tea Is A Good Choice For Weight Loss
Any drink that does not add calories to your overall diet is going to be great for weight loss. Blue tea fits the bill perfectly as it is carbohydrate, calorie, and sugar-free.
You’d be surprised how many calories you add to your overall diet just by drinking something with a lot of sugar or calories.
And this doesn’t necessarily have to be soda or another similar beverage. Even a glass of fruit juice which has a lot of vitamins and minerals is not great for you because of the amount of sugar has naturally in it.
You’re better off drinking a cup of blue tea and eating an apple rather than drinking a glass of apple juice.
So when you blend this together you start to see how important blue tea and really any herbal tea is going to be in losing weight and maintaining a healthy weight.
Blue tea can also help you lose or maintain weight by acting as a natural diuretic which would help you get rid of excess water weight during the day.
19. Catechins In Butterfly Pea Tea May Aid Fat Burning
Blue tea has loads of catechins which are thought to be important in raising your metabolism, although more study is needed to remove any doubt.
If it does increase your metabolism that would make your body burn more calories more efficiently and promote fat burning and weight loss.
20. Blue Tea Is A Natural Diuretic
Blue tea can help regulate your urinary tract making it more predictable and helps regulate normal and consistent blood pressure.
Side Effects – Be Sure You Are Not Allergic
It is always best to check with your doctor before trying new herbal infusions. Side effects and problems can occur if you happen to be allergic to the flower the infusion is made from.
There are also other factors to take into consideration such as the toxicity of the flowers. High doses of some herbal infusions might cause problems in some people (source) so you should always be aware of how much you drink on any given day.
Making A Great Cup Of Blue Tea
How To Make Blue Tea? The Perfect Cup
Steeping your tea properly is an often overlooked art, especially for herbal infusions. The wrong water temperate or steep time can turn a wondrous cup of tea into a bitter mess.
Luckily most herbal infusions are much hardier than their true tea cousins. It is very easy to burn and over steep a cup of delicate sencha green tea, here are our favorites.
Herbal infusions, on the other hand, can handle a little bit of extra heat, but you still need to be aware of your overall steep time and temperature. Here is what I recommend for a great cup of blue tea.
However, you should think of these instructions as a simple starting point for you to experiment with your own time and temp until you get the best tasting cup of butterfly pea flower tea for your particular palate.
Steeping Instructions For Blue Tea
- A 212°F/100°C water temperature is fine to use. That is a full boil. However, I like to let my water cool for a few seconds bringing the overall temperature just under the boiling point
- A 5 minute Steep Time is a good place to start. I recommend letting your blue tea steep for about 7 minutes but anywhere in the 5-10 minute range should be fine depending on personal tastes. Always steep your tea covered.
- 1-2 teaspoons of flower petals are all you need for a standard cup of blue tea.
What Should Blue Tea Taste Like?
Blue tea should have an earthy, slightly sweet, vegetable flavor to it. The flavor of blue tea is much closer to a good green tea, check out some of our favorites, than it is to your typical herbal flower infusion.
For a deeper look at the taste of butterfly pea flower tea, you can check out my full flavor profile right here.
This Beautiful Flower Makes A Wonderful Cup Of Tea
Frequently Asked Questions About Blue Tea
We’ve seen the benefits of blue tea and know the exact time and temperature that you can use to make a perfect cup of this wonderful azure liquid.
But you still have questions? Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about Butterfly Pea Flower Tea, see if your is in there. If not ask in the comments and I will try and find you an answer.
Does Blue Tea Have Caffeine?
Butterfly Pea Tea does not contain any caffeine. Since it is an herbal infusion and not a true tea you can drink it any time a day without worrying about the issues that caffeine may bring.
Keep in mind that there are some potential benefits to caffeine intake (source) in moderation so you lose out on those. But blue tea won’t mess with your sleep habits and actually has a soothing effect that you won’t find with caffeinated beverages.
Does Blue Tea Have Calories?
Butterfly Pea Flower Tea does have some calories, typically less than 2 calories per serving. However, this is an almost negligible amount and most teas are considered to be calories free for all practical purposes.
They are certainly far better to drink than any sugary beverage like soda or fruit juice. But they do technically have negligible calories in them and most nutritional information will simply list blue tea as having no calories(source).
Does Blue Tea Have Carbohydrates?
Blue tea does not have any carbohydrates to speak of. There may be a negligible amount similar to calories but it is nothing that is of any concern if you are looking to keep your carb intake at a minimum. This is true for most herbal flower teas.
Like everything else, blue tea should be consumed in moderation regardless of its calorie and carbohydrate content and it is probably best to make water your most consumed beverage throughout any given day.
Is Blue Tea Keto Friendly?
Because blue tea has negligible to non-existant carbohydrates, depending on who you ask, it is a great beverage to drink while you are on a keto diet.
Blue tea will not pull your body out of ketosis and has a ton of benefits that just aren’t available in a glass of water.
Substituting water with a cup of blue tea a couple of times a day is a great way to get some added health benefits for yourself without having to worry about pulling your body out of your hard-earned ketosis.
Is Blue Tea Good For Fasting?
Blue tea is fantastic for intermittent fasting. Because it has negligible calories and carbohydrates along with no sugar it is an ideal beverage for anyone in their fasted state.
Always drink it in moderation, however. When fasting it is ok to add in a cup of tea every now and again but the majority of your liquid intake should be water.
Does Butterfly Pea Flower Tea Change Color?
Blue tea is probably best known for its ability to change color. It changes from a deep blue to a robust purple when you add lemon juice to it.
It is common to see this little trick during a summer party with a nice pitcher of Blue Iced Tea or used as a base for some cocktails to impress your guests.
It is fun for the whole family.
Is Butterfly Pea Tea A True Tea?
Blue tea is not a true tea. Often herbal infusions are referred to as tea but they are not in fact teas at all. Only teas that come from the tea tree, Camellia Sinensis, is a true tea.
Herbal teas come from a variety of other plants that are infused in typically hot water. In the case of butterfly pea flower tea, it comes from the Clitoria Ternatea plant common in South East Asia(source).
Is Butterfly Pea Tea Safe During Pregnancy?
There is very little data on how blue tea will affect a pregnancy. As a result, anyone who is pregnant or is planning a pregnancy should consult with their doctor before drinking blue tea or any herbal infusion.
Be sure to check on each type of tea or herbal infusion that you would typically drink during pregnancy because each one may have different attributes(source) that could be problematic, again always check with your doctor.
Where Can You Buy Butterfly Pea Flower Tea?
Blue tea is available and many specialty shops around the world and is starting to show up in some grocery stores as well. The easiest place to get this fantastic tea is from Amazon or another online tea shop.
WanichCraft makes an incredible loose-flower butterfly pea flower tea. You can check the price at Amazon.
From This Pile Of Dried Flowers Magic Happens
The Last Drop Of Blue Tea
That brings us to the end of our guide to the wonderful blue tea. What we have here is a fantastic herbal infusion that is just starting to make its way into the lives of those of us in the Western World.
Whether or not blue tee overtakes green tea as the tea of choice for health-conscious tea drinkers remains to be seen.
To be sure green tea has been challenged constantly Through The Years. Whether it’s been rooibos tea, blue tea, or more recently yellow tea, green tea somehow manages to always come out on top.
Fortunately, for those of us who love tea, it’s not an either-or scenario. I love green tea but I have discovered that blue tea is becoming an increasingly large part of my tea drinking overall.
Will it ever replace green tea? I doubt it. But it is a wonderful herbal flower tea to add to your repertoire on a daily or weekly or even monthly basis.
The real problem that I’m having is it there are so many great herbal and traditional teas out there that it’s getting hard to fit them all in.
So it might be a week or two weeks or three weeks before I get to have another cup of blue tea just because of the way my drinking habit shakes out.
But even if you don’t make it a part of your daily routine I urge you to give blue tea a shot and see how you like it.
Especially if you’re a green tea drinker because there is quite a bit of similarity in the overall flavor of blue tea and a nice green tea.
That’s all I have for you today.
Thank you for stopping by and as always have a wonderful day.