Aphrodesia is a blend of all organic ingredients including damiana, cacao nibs, safflower threads, jasmine blossoms, marshmallow leaf, lavender, rose petals, oat straw, cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, passionflower, feverfew, hawthorne leaf & flower, and just a bit of maple sugar.
The following information is for educational purposes only. This information has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Damiana is a small shrub that bears sweet-smelling, serrated leaves. It blossoms small, yellow flowers in summer that transform into small fruits with a fig-like taste. The Greeks named it aphrodisiakos, and it was known as the "goddess of love". The Mayas and Aztecs used damiana as an aphrodisiac, and also as a general tonic to improve health. They also used to smoke it for relaxation, as well as burning it during ceremonies to induce "visions".
Safflower petals are used in Traditional Chinese Medicine, Native American herbal medicine, and Ayurvedic medicine. The flowers are considered to move the blood and act as a heart tonic. The tea have can have a similar effect to chamomile tea, soothing and relaxing. The most recent research indicates that safflower tea may help reduce cholesterol levels.
Jasmine is a perennial climbing plant with sweet, highly scented flowers. It is native to the Himalayas, and is considered sacred throughout the region, specifically in India where it is the sacred flower of Kama, the god of love. It is intertwined into bridal flowers at weddings, and woven into garlands for important guests at diplomatic functions. Historically, it has been reputed to be an aphrodisiac, and is said to have a marked effect on frigidity and impotence.
Hawthorne is a heart herb in the rose family. It's white to brownish flowers and combined with its deeply lobed, rose-like leaves, and brown woody stems for use in teas and tinctures to treat the heart. The legends surrounding hawthorn trees go back centuries. Thomas the Rhymer, a 13th century mystic and poet, was said to have met the Fairy Queen underneath a hawthorn tree. Particularly sacred is any grove with oak, ash, and hawthorn, as it is said this is where the fairy folk reside. The hawthorn tree is a symbol of love and the union of couples in marriage, and is one of the sacred trees of the Wiccan religion. And if on May Day one was to bathe in the dew of hawthorn leaves and blossoms, ones luck, health, and beauty was said to increase exponentially for the following year.
Cacao beans and nibs, the raw materials for making chocolate, are high in flavonoids, contain more antioxidants than most fruits and appear to lower cholesterol in people with high cholesterol. In fact, the whole cacao fruit was used medicinally among the Maya, Olmec and Aztecs, and was spread from there to Europe after the Spanish conquest of those peoples. From the 16th through the 20th centuries, medical texts reported no less than 100 medicinal uses of cacao. Most commonly, the uses were to encourage weight gain, stimulate appetite, stimulate the nervous system and improve digestion and elimination. Of course, we know cacao as the source of chocolate, the decadently delicious, luxurious guilty pleasure. There are, however, some very good reasons that chocolate is a worldwide favorite food and flavoring, and scientists are discovering more of them every day. Among their discoveries: - Dark chocolate, which contains more cacao and less fats and sugars, can positively benefit the cholesterol profile - Cacao provides the same amount of antioxidant polyphenols as a glass of red wine - Cacao stimulates the production of natural antidepressants in the body, as well as containing its own stimulants, theophylline and caffeine- Cacao beans are rich in magnesium, calcium, iron, zinc, copper, manganese and potassium. They are also a good source of vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, C, E and pantothenic acid.
Marshmallow is a perennial herb used as an ornamental for its pointed foliage and purple flowers. References to marshmallow leaf as a healing herb are found in Homer's Iliad, written over 2,800 years ago. Its genus name Althaea comes from the Greek altho, to cure, and its order name, Malvaceae, is derived from the Greek malake, which means soft. Marshmallow leaf was widely used in traditional Greek medicine. The use of the herb spread from Greece to Arabia and India, where it became an important herb in the Ayurvedic and Unani healing traditions. All of these traditions used marshmallow as a soothing agent: demulcent, diuretic, emollient, and vulnerary. The German E Commission wrote that both the leaf and the root were good for sore throat and dry cough. Pliny the Elder believed that mallows could cure all the diseases of man and even wrote that "whoever shall take a spoonful of the mallows shall that day be free from all diseases that came to him".
Lavender has been thought for centuries to enflame passions as an aphrodisiac, and is still one of the most recognized scents in the world. The wonderful effects of lavender are so numerous, we could devote an entire day to describing them.
Rose petals The rose has been valued for its beauty and its perfume for thousands of years. Infusions of rose petals are thought to have effect on the heart and are used to lift the spirits.
Oat straw is the above-ground parts of the oat plant left after harvesting the grain. Oats are one of the plants that humans have eaten since prehistoric times The German E Commission states that oats, both straw and tops, are said to be good for chronic anxiety and stress. Recently, there has been some articles written claiming oat straw may help with erectile dysfunction, and as such is a popular ingredient in alternatives to pharmaceutical treatments like Viagra.
Cinnamon was used for centuries as a spice of the aristocracy and the wealthy. The quest for cinnamon was one of the major factors that led the Europeans to explore the world in the 15th century. In the 1st century C.E., Pliny the Elder wrote that 350 grams of cinnamon was equal to 5 kilograms of silver, or about 15 times the value of silver per weight. Cinnamon comes from the Laurel tree, a tropical evergreen that grows in low altitudes and that needs a moist, hot climate in which to thrive.
Ginger is the most widely used and available herbal remedy on the planet, with billions of people using it every day as both food and medicine. A tropical perennial growing to a height of two feet, ginger has lance-shaped leaves and bears stalks of white or yellow flowers. Ginger has long been the subject of fable and literature. For centuries, Europeans obtained ginger form Arab spice traders, who protected their sources by inviting stories of ginger field located in lands stalked by a fierce people called troglodytes. And Shakespeare wrote in Love's Labour Lost, "had I but one penny in the world thou shouldst have it to buy ginger-bread." Ginger is used either fresh or dried in nearly two thirds of all traditional Chinese and Japanese herbal formulas. Fresh ginger is used to relieve dryness and heat, while dried ginger is used to relieve dampness and chill. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, ginger is said to "rescue devastated yang," a condition in which invading cold or infection has reached the interior of the body. Ginger warms the energy channels and stops bleeding. It is a detoxifier, and is always included in formulas with potentially toxic herbs.
Passionflower has been used by herbalists in Mexico, Central America, and Texas as a calmative and sleeping aid for over 200 years. Relieving muscle tension, the herb lowers blood pressure and calms anxiety. Passionflower is also a source of chrysin, a chemical that helps the body release testosterone.
Feverfew is used primary to treat headache. The daisy-like feverfew was once believed to have been used to save the life of someone who had fallen from the Parthenon, the temp of the goddess Athena on the Acropolis in Athens, hence its scientific name parthenium. Is also employed in hysterical complaints, nervousness and lowness of spirits, and is a general tonic.
Cardamom has been used medicinally for centuries in India and China as a carminative, stimulant, and to treat urinary problems. The Egyptians chewed the seed as a tooth cleaner. In the Middle East it was considered an aphrodisiac, and is mentioned frequently in One Thousand and One Nights. In India it was known as the "Queen of spices" to black pepper as the "King of spices".
Maple sugar, the crystallized and granulated form, is made from the pure sap of sugar maple trees. After the sap is boiled longer than needed to make maple syrup and when the most of the water from the sap has evaporated, what will be left is solid sugar. It is further cooked to achieve the granulated form. It is a great healthier alternative to standard white sugar. Since maple sugar is made from pure sugar maple sap, nothing is added to create its sweet flavor. It is rich in calcium, potassium, and iron. A very small amount has been included in this blend to harmonize with bitter flavors. Please add more honey or maple syrup to your infusion if you prefer a sweeter taste.
