MOUNTAIN TEA | Sideritis syriaca | Herb

The name Sideritis translates from the Greek as ‘he who is made of iron’ was a generic reference for plants capable of healing wounds caused by iron weapons. The ancient Greeks knew of the plant, especially the physician, botanist and pharmacologist Pedanius Dioscorides, and Theophrastus.

An aromatic tea infusion of Sideritis stems, leaves and flowers is still popular in contemporary Greece, Albania, Kosovo, Bulgaria and Macedonia, and often served with honey and lemon. Traditional uses are to aid digestion, boost the immune system, suppress the common cold, flu and other viruses, help with sinus congestion, and address mild anxiety.

Modern studies have shown the herb to be anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory, and anti-oxidant, due to it’s active compounds diterpenoid, and flavonoids.

Research that supports the herb’s use to prevent colds, flu and allergies has been conducted in the Netherlands, and in Greece, Turkey, Macedonia, Bulgaria and Albania, where the plant is indigenous.

Studies conducted by Dr. Jens Pahnke at the Guericke University in Magdeburg, Germany, have shown that Sidertis had a positive effect on mice suffering from dementia. The herb is currently undergoing studies for Alzheimer's disease treatment in humans.

Mountain Tea, also known as Ironwort, Shepherd’s Tea, Greek Mountain Tea, or Mountain Shepherd's Tea, is a wooly-leaved, herbaceous perennial plants that grows in the Mediterranean region, the Balkans, Iberian Peninsula, Central Europe to the Middle East.