Want to learn how to make lingonberry leaf tea and use it at home? Keep on reading and find out how to use lingonberry leaves.
Lingonberry leaves (Vaccinum vitis idaea) are very rich in tannins, organic substances with strong antibacterial and antifungal properties, and flavonoids with antioxidant effects, which give the lingonberry leaf its anti-infective action. Before we show you how to make lingonberry leaf tea, here is how to harvest lingonberry leaves and process them for later use.
In This Article You Will Find:
How to Harvest Lingonberry Leaves
Lingonberry leaves (Vaccinum vitis idaea) are harvested all year round, as they are evergreen, but the strongest effects seem to be before and after bearing fruit (that is, at the end of spring and at the beginning of autumn). After harvesting, which is done by simply tearing them off the stems, layer the lingonberry leaves in a medium-thickness layer (3-4 cm) until complete drying, and then store them in paper bags.
How to Make Lingonberry Leaf Tea
Lingonberry leaf tea is used for sitz baths, poultices, or gargles, rarely internally. The active principles in lingonberry leaves, which are assimilated by the body internally or topically, have a strong antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal effect, being useful in the treatment of almost all forms of urinary tract infections.
Prepare the tea by mixing a cold maceration with a hot infusion as follows. Put 4 teaspoons of lingonberry leaf powder in a cup of water at room temperature and leave to soak for 8 hours, or overnight. Strain and set the cold maceration aside. Now add another cup of boiling water over the used lingonberry leaf powder and steep until it has cooled down. Strain the infusion and combine it with the cold maceration.
How to Use Lingonberry Leaf Tea
1. Nephritis and Pyelitis – one teaspoon of lingonberry leaf tincture diluted in a cup of water (200 ml), 4-6 times a day, in 30-day courses, followed by a 10-day break. Alongside, take cowberry leaf sitz baths, as follows. In a basin with hot water, add 1-2 liters of cowberry leaf tea (recipe above), adjusting the water temperature, so that it is as hot as you can bear. The sitz bath lasts for 10-20 minutes, then keep warm for at least an hour. A Chinese study, published in 2001, shows that this natural treatment is also useful as an adjuvant to drug treatments for antibiotic-resistant urethritis.
2. Cough – take a natural cough syrup, and, alongside, gargle with the lingonberry leaf tea 3 times a day. This treatment has anti-inflammatory, antibiotic, and antiviral effects on the throat, and helps to eliminate additional mucus from the respiratory tract (has an expectorant effect).
3. Oral Bacterial Plaque – every evening, rinse your mouth for five minutes, with a cup of lingonberry leaf tea. Studies have shown that the active principles in lingonberry leaves destroy the bacteria that create the film (“plaque”) that forms on the teeth and gums. Do this after brushing your teeth, as a natural alternative to conventional mouthwashes that are loaded with toxic ingredients.
4. Gingivitis and Stomatitis – lingonberry leaf not only helps to eliminate infections of the oral mucosa but also has an anti-inflammatory and cicatrizing effect. The antibiotic action of cranberry leaf against some of the pathogens that cause these conditions, such as Streptococcus oralis, Porphyromonas gingivalis, or Prevotella intermedia, especially recommends lingonberry leaf for gingivitis and stomatitis. Rinse your mouth with lingonberry leaf tea 3-4 times a day, keeping the tea in the mouth for as long as possible.
Lingonberry Leaf Side Effects
Internally, lingonberry leaf remedies should be used with caution and only on the recommendation and under the supervision of a doctor during pregnancy or while breastfeeding. Using lingonberry leaves internally is not recommended in cases of acute constipation.
Read Also: How to Make Lingonberry Leaf Tincture and Use at Home
If you’ve enjoyed learning how to make lingonberry leaf tea and use it at home for various health conditions, please share this article. This way you help more people learn about the healing virtues of lingonberry leaf tea and how to heal using natural medicine. Stay healthy, naturally!
Share on Pinterest ❤️
