No one will bat an eye when they hear “eat your greens”. There’s also no reaction when they hear “eat your rainbow of foods”. What about “drink your flowers”? Did that get your attention? Drinking a cup of chrysanthemum tea is said to bring happiness and health.
In late autumn, you can find chrysanthemums, mums, or chrysanths growing on sidewalks and embellishing gardens. These beautiful flowers are so much more than just ornaments, they are amazing ingredients for healing the body and skin.
Chrysanthemum flowers
Found in gardens worldwide, chrysanthemums are the most popular flower just after roses. Mums belong to the Asteraceae family. It’s related to other flowers that are amazing for both body and soul such as chamomile, milk thistle, and dandelion.
The flowers look a bit like a daisy. You could also mistake it for a chamomile but if you look closely, a chrysanthemum flower only has a single layer of white petals.
The name chrysanthemum comes from Greek, with chrysos meaning gold and anthemon flower.
Originally, chrysanthemums are native to East Asia. There are many different varieties with many different colours. They are cultivated across the globe but you can deduce it originally came from China because the center of diversity is there.
China alone has 17 varieties. The people first started cultivating (or perhaps writing about it) chrysanthemums (菊花) as a flowering herb in the 15th century BC.
Arts and culture
In Asian art, the chrysanthemum is one of the four Four Gentlemen (四君子) along with plum blossoms, orchids, and bamboo.
Legend has it that a young man who lived in a village near the Ru River in Henan Province was inflicted with evil curses by a demon that dwelled in the nearby water. This young man, Heng Jing, sought counsel from an immortal sage.
This sage taught Heng Jing how to kill the demon and that he had to do it on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month when it returns. Heng Jing had to have Chrysanthemum liquor at hand. The scent of the flower would confound the demon giving the young man the opportunity to strike it down.
Even though the Double Ninth was the day the demon returns, it is now a festival not unlike Chinese New Year. It’s celebrated also in Taiwan, Korea, and Japan.
Speaking of Japan, the imperial seal of Japan is a chrysanthemum. It’s also the national flower.
Chrysanthemum tea
Chrysanthemum tea was recommended by grandma when we were feeling under the weather. It’s also recommended when you feel
- An oncoming sore throat
- Stressed
- Headache
- Spots breakout or a rash
- When your eyes feel tired.
With so many symptoms and mums varieties, it’s difficult to know which type of chrysanthemum flower is best for a certain symptom.
All varieties of chrysanthemum flowers have cooling effects. In other words, they are good when you are getting heaty (上火) and can clear heat.
White chrysanthemum (it’s more a pale yellow) is more suitable to clear the liver and relieve tired eyes
Yellow chrysanthemums are used when you want to relieve fever, cough, sore throat, fever
Wild chrysanthemum has smaller and browish-yellowish flowers and is the strongest in clearing heat, but it’s described by traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) physicians
As you can see in when to use chrysanthemum, it’s all about its clearing heat, cooling effect. In TCM, it’s all about having too much hot or cold qi – it always about hot-cold, cold-hot…
Content
Mums are highly appreciated: It’s a good source of vitamins and minerals such as
- Vitamin A (in the form of beta carotene that your liver turns into vitamin A)
- Vitamin Bs
- Vitamin C
- Vitamin K
- Calcium
- Iron
- Magnesium
- Potassium
- Zinc
Apart from the vitamins and minerals, mums also contain adenine, amino acids, and glycosides.
The Chinese were on to something because current research does show that chrysanthemum has anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties.
Note, all varieties of chrysanthemums are considered edible flowers. It’s just that not all Chrysanthemums are cultivated as food grade but more for ornamental purposes. These are not grown to be ingested or used for making an infusion. So take note and do NOT try to take mums from your florists and make them into a tea since they most probably are grown with pesticides/chemicals that you don’t want to ingest.
Chrysanthemum tea taste like drinking flowers – not unlike chamomile tea. And even better if you want to make your own tea: You don’t even have to worry about timing how long you steep, you can just leave the flowers in as long as you want.
For your skin
Mums are an excellent source of beta carotene that your body converts into vitamin A and then it serves different purposes. It acts like an antioxidant and so can prevent oxidative stress.
Let’s take a step back shall we and look at what antioxidants are. These are substances that can help protect your cells from free radicals and the damage they cause (oxidative stress). They can damage cells in organs around your body including your skin.
Thanks to the beta carotene and vitamin C, chrysanthemums can clear up skin irritation, redness, and chronic conditions, such as eczema. Of course, as an antioxidant, chrysanthemums in general also help to reduce the signs of ageing (think wrinkles and dark spots).
Lightening
It’s very interesting that the chrysanthemum flower has shown activities in blocking tyrosinase. This substance is an enzyme that your body needs to make melanin (skin pigment).
Anti-irritant
As a source of potent antioxidants, chrysanthemums offer soothing effects comparable to classic anti-irritant ingredients such as aloe vera.
Enhance your SPF
It’s not in commercially available products yet, but researchers found that a mixture of chrysanthemum flower extract and a vitamin C derivative could protect against effects of UVA radiation on the skin.
Danger zone
Be cautious if you know you’re allergic to daisies or ragweed, you may also be sensitive to chrysanthemums.
In closing
Just as the sacred figure buddha is pictured sitting on a lotus throne, so does the Japanese emperor sit on a Chrysanthemum Throne. In Asia, chrysanthemum tea has long been accepted by people from all walks of life as a great health drink. It’s also priced in Chinese cuisine where its leaves are steamed and used as you would spinach. In Korea, chrysanthemum is used to make flavoured rice wine.
In the Indian traditional medicine Ayurveda and the traditional Chinese medicine, it’s often used like chamomile in the West.
Since chrysanthemum tea clears heat, too much means you’ll have too much cold qi. So, it’s not advisable to drink in large quantities for extended periods of time.
You may want to make a bit more than you’d drink and pour the rest into a spray bottle. Mix the mums tea with a few drops of vitamin E and voila, your toner is ready. Use it whenever your skin needs a pick-me-up or in your normal routine.
