Beebalmby Aimee Amodio | More from this Blogger 25 Aug 2007 09:06 AM Beebalm is a plant that is native to North America. You can find beebalm as far north as Maine, as far south as Georgia, and as far west as Michigan and Ontario. Beebalm grows in the moist soil found in woodlands and along stream banks. During the days of the Boston Tea Party, Americans often drank beebalm tea instead of black tea! This herb was discovered in the area of Otsego (also known as Oswego) New York, the same area where writer James Fenimore Cooper lived and wrote. Native Americans used the plant both for medicine and for tea! Shaker settlers also used the plant as both medicine and tea. In the mid 1700s, beebalm crossed the Atlantic and was grown in Europe as golden melissa or Indian nettle. An infusion (tea brewed for several hours) of beebalm has been traditionally used for:
Beebalm tea has a sweet, citrusy scent and flavor. Both the leaves and the flowers are edible, and can be used fresh in cooking or dried in tea. You may find that the natural sweetness of beebalm makes a medicinal tea go down very easily! Beebalm is a member of the mint family, and the two taste good together. If you don't want to find or grow your own beebalm, it is often commercially available dried and bagged for tea. Modern scientists have found that certain varieties of beebalm contain thymol -- an antiseptic, antibacterial, and antifungal agent. Thymol is used in external ointments and powders used on fungal infections. It is also used as a hookworm remedy. In its pure form, too much thymol can lead to serious side effects like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Most modern medicines use synthetic thymol, rather than natural thymol extracted from beebalm and other plants. Learn more about Aimee Amodio  Aimee is a fiction writer... dog lover... music lover... Relevanthealth tags User Comments No comments on this article yet. Be the first to comment! Community Tags beebalm, herbs, herbal remedies, tymol, thymol Discuss this article
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