Is He Shou Wu, the new matcha? Matcha tea has seen a surge of followers due to its health benefits, such as reportedly enhancing metabolism, reducing stress, boosting the immune system and lowering cholesterol, as well as helping longer-term illnesses.
However, there is a little known herb in the West that can be enjoyed as ‘tea’ that is equally amazing. It is called He Shou Wu (also known as Fo-Ti) and is one of the most revered herbs in Asia due its extraordinary range of health-boosting properties.
‘He Shou Wu’ literally means “He’s Black Hair” in Chinese. Ancient Daoist texts dating to 812AD recorded that an old man who was weak and frail fell asleep in the forest and awoke the next day to see a tall vine next to him. He was attracted to the plant and proceeded to dig it up with all its roots, as was customary at the time in China, and took it home. He then prepared the herb according to Daoist principles, cooking its roots with clean water, and started taking it regularly.
His strength and vitality returned and within a week he became virile and fathered a child, which was a miracle. When eventually his hair turned from grey to shiny black, the whole village was in awe. He went on to live more than 100 years (some sources say 160) and fathered four more children. The man’s name was He Tianer, so the herb was named He Shou Wu, meaning “He’s Black Hair”.
I began drinking He Shou Wu after receiving a packet as a gift. The gift was intended to help strengthen my hair, which is what He Shou Wu is famous for. As well as hopefully serving its intended purpose, I discovered He Shou Wu is a great energy-booster and pick-me-up. I now have a He Shou Wu latte every day and recommend it as an alternative to coffee or traditional tea, due to its numerable health benefits.
Ingredients:
Method:
Stir one teaspoon of Fo-Ti powder into a saucepan of hot almond milk (enough for one mug). Let it come to the boil and sprinkle some cinnamon. Take it off the hob and let it cool a little. Add raw honey to taste. Enjoy!
