Raspberry leaf tea is well known for strengthening the uterus prior to childbirth, and for relieving painful periods. It is also an effective and soothing remedy for ‘flu and fevers, helping reduce the aches and pains that go with them.
This tea is a good source of readily assimilated calcium and other minerals, making it a health-enhancing alternative to regular tea. Raspberries, especially wild ones, are very high in salvestrols, a class of cancer-fighting chemicals.
Rosaceae Rose family
Description: A slender shrub, up to 2m high, with arching stems; less spiny and more delicate than blackberry canes. The leaves are a light green, and silvery underneath. The stems are bare in winter.
Habitat: Wild raspberries are often found growing with brambles along the edges of woods.
Distribution: Found throughout the British Isles and northern Europe, up to the Arctic Circle, and in much of Asia and North America.
Related species: North American red raspberry (R. strigosus) is used interchangeably with the European species. In China, Korean bramble (R. coreanus) fruit is used as a kidney and liver tonic.
Parts used: Leaves and berries.
Raspberry is a member of the rose family, a plant of the Old World, spreading out to the temperate regions from the Mediterranean. The second part of its name, ‘idaeus’, refers to this ancient origin.
The Greek version of the raspberry legend concerns Ida, daughter of the King of Crete. One day she was looking after her infant, Jupiter, while picking berries on a mountainside. The lusty babe made so much noise that Ida was distracted. When she pricked herself her blood caused what were white berries to turn red. They have remained so ever since – and still grow on the slopes of Mt Ida in modern Crete.
Raspberry was given the common name ‘raspis’, meaning rough or hairy fruit (by contrast with the blackberry), and also ‘hindberry’ because female deer would feed on the leaves, and thereby assist in their own birthing.
The noted animal herbalist Juliette de Baïracli Levy has long advocated dog breeders using raspberry leaf tea, with impressive whelping results throughout the world. She quotes a Romany source: ‘Let all creatures with young, human and animal, take freely of raspberry herb. They will have very easy “times” and will be saved a tremendous amount of suffering.’
Use raspberry for…
The best way to enjoy wild raspberries is to eat them straight off the bush. They may not be as large as the commercial and garden varieties, but the deep, satisfying flavour is special. As the English herbalist John Parkinson wrote in 1629: ‘The berries are eaten in the Summertime, as an afternoones dish, to please the taste of the sicke as well as the sound.’
But it is the leaves rather than the berries that have the most benefit medicinally. The best time to pick them is on a sunny morning after the dew has dried off. Most herbals say drying the leaves is best, but we find the fresh and dried alternatives equally good.
If you are drying the leaves to use later, hang up bunches of the canes tied together with string, or spread the leaves on a drying rack – an airing cupboard is an ideal place. When they are crisp, they can be packed away in brown paper bags or bottles for storage.
Raspberry leaf is astringent, meaning that it tightens and tones tissue. It is high in nutrients, including iron, manganese and calcium.
The leaf tea is mainly used in pregnancy to help ease delivery and reduce pain in labour. Julie drank it when she was pregnant, and while she wouldn’t say labour was easy (the very name means work, after all!) it was not painful. Raspberry leaf continues its work after the baby is born, by helping the uterus return to normal and promoting milk production.
You may find disagreement in various books about how long to use raspberry leaf in pregnancy. Some authors advise taking it throughout while others restrict it to the last two or three months only. It partly depends on the dose, and we suggest you follow what your midwife or herbalist says is best for you personally.
Many herbals recommend using an ounce of dried leaf per pint of water, but this is a very strong brew and isn’t too pleasant to drink. Unless you are trying to stop diarrhoea, this strength isn’t necessary. We think a weaker tea taken more often is a better idea.
As well as pregnancy and for periods, raspberry tea and vinegar can be used to counter anaemia, and to relieve colds, ‘flu and diarrhoea. See the recipes overleaf.
Raspberries are high in vitamin C and other antioxidants. They are also high in a newly discovered class of chemicals called salvestrols, which have proven anti-cancer activity.
Professor Gerry Potter, Head of Medicinal Chemistry at De Montfort University and Director of the Cancer Drug Discovery Group, recommends a diet of foods that are naturally high in salvestrols, which includes raspberries and other red and blue berries.
Recent research has found that agro-chemicals inhibit plants from producing salvestrols, so wild or organically grown plants have higher levels. Here’s another reason to enjoy your wild raspberries!
Raspberry leaf tea
Pour a cupful of boiling water onto 1 rounded tablespoonful of dried raspberry leaf or a handful of fresh leaves. Let it brew for 15 minutes, then strain and drink, either hot or cold.
Dosages: For general use, drink 1 cupful one to three times a day.
In the last two/three months of pregnancy and for several weeks after giving birth, drink two cups daily, or as instructed by your herbal practitioner or midwife. To normalise heavy periods, drink 3 cups a day during your period, and 1 cup a day the rest of the month. At the first sign of a cold or ‘flu, stop eating for a day or two and drink lots of raspberry leaf tea.
For diarrhoea, make a stronger infusion with 2 to 3 teaspoonfuls of dried leaf per cup of boiling water. Drink 1 cupful three times a day. Children can have a wineglassful, and babies given a teaspoonful.
Raspberry vinegar
Fill a jam jar with freshly picked raspberries and pour in enough cider vinegar to cover them. Cover the jar and put it in a warm place such as a sunny windowsill, shaking it every few days.
After two weeks the vinegar should be a lovely deep pink. Strain through a jelly bag or fine sieve. If you want a clear vinegar, don’t press the pulp – just let the liquid drip out – otherwise squeeze to get the most flavour out of your raspberries, and pour into a sterile bottle.
Dosage: Take 1 teaspoonful every few hours for colds and ‘flu.
This rich, sweet-sour vinegar can also be used to bring a touch of summer sunshine to winter salad dressings. It has a wonderful flavour, enjoyed in the best gourmet restaurants – and your own home.
Raspberry oxymel
Mix equal parts of honey and raspberry vinegar.
Dosage: For sore throats, use 1 tablespoon as a gargle before swallowing. For a sluggish digestive system, add 1 tablespoon of the oxymel to a mug of hot water, and drink before meals.