Mate: Benefits And Harms

Yerba mate is a herbal drink of American origin. It has a tonic effect on the body due to its high content of caffeine analogs.

The raw material for the drink is young shoots of the Paraguayan holly plant. The process of preparing the raw materials is very simple: the leaves and young shoots of the holly are simply crushed and dried. It is brewed in a special vessel – a celeb as, and drunk through a special tube with a mouthpiece at the end – a “bombilla”. The tube acts as a filter that retains herbal particles. Yerba mate is an integral part of the culture of Argentina and other South American countries such as Paraguay, Uruguay, Bolivia, Ecuador, and others.

Mate is often called “Paraguayan tea,” although it has little in common with tea, except for its tonic effect.

Mate has a tart, sweetish flavor.

Chemical composition of yerba mate

Mate contains the following substances:

• Alkaloids (caffeine, theobromine, and theophylline).
• Cellulose.
• Chlorophyll.
• Vanillin.
• A large number of vitamins (groups A, B, C, E, and PP).

Trace elements such as sulfur, magnesium, manganese, potassium, sodium, copper, iron, etc.
There are several varieties of yerba mate – golden, green, and fried. The raw material is the same for all varieties, the difference is in the way it is prepared.

Effect of mate on the human body

Effect of mate on the nervous system

Mate has a tonic effect on the body, but it is milder than coffee. Mate can be recommended as a remedy for depression and various neuroses.

• It improves mood.
• Increases mental and physical activity.
• Eliminates feelings of anxiety and fussiness.
• Promotes emotional balance.

As for the positive effect on sleep, many people note that with the constant use of mates, they need less time to get a good night’s sleep. After drinking mate, sleep comes quickly, and a good night’s rest completely relieves fatigue and tension. The energy boost provided by the mate lasts for 8-10 hours.

This drink can be used to eliminate caffeine addiction. Other tonic and energy drinks are produced on the basis of yerba mate extract.

Mate for weight loss

The drink has a positive effect on the intestines, helping them to cleanse themselves of accumulated toxins and toxins. It also helps to normalize metabolism. These effects lead to weight loss, ridding the body of extra pounds. It is enough to drink yerba mate for a month twice a day, and your metabolism will return to normal, which will directly affect your weight. The drink itself affects the feeling of hunger, eliminating it and at the same time supplying almost no calories to the body. For Indians, yerba mate helped during times of food shortage by replacing vegetables and cereals.

It is useful to consume yerba mate after physical exertion and stress – it eliminates muscle tension and increases endurance. The effect of yerba mate on the immune system is known. During colds, drinking warm yerba mate promotes a quick recovery. The presence of beneficial vitamins and minerals helps the body fight infectious diseases.

There is a positive effect of mates on human sexuality. Substances contained in the drink help to increase the production of sex hormones in the body.

Drinking the drink increases diuresis (the amount of urine production in the body), which contributes to more intensive bladder function, and this, in turn, can be considered as a prevention of diseases of the genitourinary system.

Rules for brewing yerba mate

For South Americans, the process of brewing tea and drinking it is a sacred ritual. This sacrament has been perfected over several centuries. Here you can’t fuss, worry, or rush. You need at least an hour and a half for tea. You need the friendly company of family and friends and a good mood.

Now you can start brewing the drink. In a classic brew, 2/3 of the calabash should be filled with mate brew. After that, you need to tilt the calebas so that the dry mate crumbles to one of the walls, forming a void in the other. Place a bombilla – a special tube for a mate – against the empty wall of the vessel, covering its upper opening with your finger. This is done to prevent pieces of the brew from falling into it.

Now start pouring warm water (up to 60 ° C) into the vessel in small portions. The water should only moisten the brew, you don’t need to pour too much of it. After that, hot water (up to 80 ° C) must be added to the calabash. According to the Indians, boiling water burns the soul of the mate, and the taste of the drink is lost. After a few minutes, you can drink mate. Do not leave the drink for a long time – if brewed for a long time, it can become bitter.

Brewed mate should be drunk slowly, sipping through a bomb in small sips. It is almost impossible to get burned because the warm (not hot) water poured first protects you. You can add sugar, milk, honey, or jam to the meat. After the vessel has been emptied, it can be filled with hot water again. 5-6 toppings are allowed.

If you don’t have any special attributes for making a mate, don’t be upset. After all, the drink can be prepared according to the principle of making coffee.

For 1 liter of water, you need to take 5 tablespoons of brew. Pour the tea into a cup through a strainer. Please note that lemon should not be added to the drink. It will kill all the antioxidants, rendering the effect of drinking mate useless. You can eat lemon with a bite if you want. The water temperature should be no higher than 80 degrees.

Contraindications for using mate

• Mate is not recommended for people with disturbed heart rhythm, as the machine stimulates the heart muscle.
• Mate, like other tea drinks, increases blood pressure and body temperature.
• Frequent use reduces sweating and dries the skin.
• It is harmful in the case of bronchopulmonary diseases.
• It is a diuretic, contraindicated in case of urolithiasis.
• Frequent use of very hot mates leads to cancer.
• It is strictly forbidden for pregnant and lactating mothers.
• It is strictly forbidden for use by children and adolescents.

All the negative effects of the Paraguayan drink are manifested exclusively if consumed in very large quantities. It is contraindicated for the younger generation in any form since the caffeine analog in the drink has a stimulating effect on the cardiovascular system. At an early stage of development, such stimulation can lead to various diseases of the respiratory, musculoskeletal, and vascular systems.