Cayenne Tea

Ugh!  It's spring and I feel a cold coming on!  At the first sign of sickness, I immediately begin to chug what I call Cayenne Tea.  And by chug I mean all day long, as many cups as I can handle.

This "tea" is a hybrid of another tea I was introduced to while on my travels, that I will talk about at a later date.

This is a very simple tea to make that you most likely have all the ingredients on hand already.

Here's how:

Warm up 8oz of water (stove, microwave, etc.), stir in on teaspoon Honey (local is better, but not a deal breaker), and all the Cayenne Pepper you can handle.

Hint: You CANNOT handle a lot of Cayenne Pepper at first, go easy. Overtime, your palette will be able to handle more.

When I chug this tea, typically my cold will not fully develop and rather tuck tail and run!  I put this theory to the test last month when 24 hours before I was about to board a plane for California for a 10-day trip, I was getting a head cold!  I chugged this tea all night and by the morning I was fine, my symptoms never fully developed.

Why does this work?

Lets start with the Cayenne Pepper, it is very high in Vitamin C and helps to unblock the sinuses and clear out mucus.  It also helps to soothe soar throats.  Cayenne has antibacterial properties, along with high amounts of Vitamin A, which both help with healing and fighting infections.  If you're running a fever, Cayenne can help lower the body's core temperature.  Of course, Native Americans are well aware of all the benefits of Cayenne and have been using it for thousands of years.

As for the Honey, it also aids in soothing a sore throat and may been an effective cough suppressant.  Honey has strong antibiotic properties as well as being an antimicrobial agent (kills or slows growth of microbes). It also helps to boost immunity. "Different varieties of honey possess a large amount of friendly bacteria (6 species of lactobacilli and 4 species of bifidobacteria), which may explain many of the "mysterious therapeutic properties of honey." - http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=96

Or, this could all be in my head, a placebo if you will.  For me, it doesn't matter, because it's working.

So, next time you start to feel not so great, kick back a Cayenne Tea or two and see what it can do for you!

Keep It Healthy!
The Hoff