- Region
- South America
- Origin
- The upper Amazon in Ecuador, Peru and Colombia; mostly cultivated
South America · Herb · № 879
Ilex guayusa
Herb · South America
Guayusa
Ilex guayusa
A relative of yerba mate; the leaf contains a lot of caffeine and is stimulating.
Safety notes
Contains caffeine: not in the evening, not in large amounts, and with care in pregnancy, heart complaints and insomnia. Traditional use is no proof of effect; consult a doctor or pharmacist if you are pregnant or breastfeeding, take medication or have a medical condition.
Cautions by tradition (2)
- Healing traditions of the Americas: Contains caffeine; not in the evening and not with heart complaints.
- Kamëntšá and Inga medicine (Sibundoy): Contains caffeine: not with heart rhythm disorders, high blood pressure or insomnia, and in moderation in pregnancy.
Preparation
Steep or briefly boil dried leaves as a tea.
Use in traditions
Among the Kichwa of Ecuador a daily and social drink that goes with telling stories and dreams. The Awajún of northern Peru drink large amounts of the leaf early in the morning and then vomit it up again. In the markets of northern Peru guayusa is sold for diabetes. A bundle of guayusa leaves was found in a 1,500-year-old healer's grave in Bolivia.
Applications
Use by tradition
How different herbal traditions describe this herb. Amounts are traditional guidelines checked for obvious errors; they are not medical advice. For poisonous plants no dosage is given on purpose.
Healing traditions of the Americas
Attributed effects
As a stimulating, social drink; in the markets of northern Peru for diabetes.
Preparation and amount
Steep or briefly boil a few dried leaves for 5 to 10 minutes.
Caution: Contains caffeine; not in the evening and not with heart complaints.
Kamëntšá and Inga medicine (Sibundoy)
Attributed effects
The healers of Sibundoy and Mocoa regard guayusa as a cure-all. In the seventeenth century the leaf was exported to Spain, among other things against syphilis; near Mocoa trees from a Jesuit plantation still stand, 250 to 300 years old.
Preparation and amount
A tea of the dried leaf. In the markets of Pasto and Quito the leaf is sold in wreaths.
Caution: Contains caffeine: not with heart rhythm disorders, high blood pressure or insomnia, and in moderation in pregnancy.
- Ways to prepare herbs
- Tea (infusion)
Sources
- en.wikipedia.org
- ethnobiomed.biomedcentral.com
- Rainer W. Bussmann & Douglas Sharon, Medicinal Plants of the Andes and the Amazon (2015)
- www.varldskulturmuseerna.se
- Joseph W. Bastien, Healers of the Andes: Kallawaya Herbalists and Their Medicinal Plants (1987)
- Richard Evans Schultes & Robert F. Raffauf, Vine of the Soul: Medicine Men, Their Plants and Rituals in the Colombian Amazonia (1992)