Ilex guayusa

Ilex guayusa
Ilex guayusa
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Aquifoliales
Family: Aquifoliaceae
Genus: Ilex
Species: I. guayusa
Binomial name
Ilex guayusa

Ilex guayusa (/ˈaɪlɛks ˈɡwaɪjuːsə/ or /ˈaɪlɛks ˈwaɪjuːsə/) is a species of tree of the holly genus, native to the Amazon Rainforest.[1] One of three known caffeinated holly trees, the leaves of the guayusa tree are dried and brewed like a tea for their stimulative effects.[2]

Description

Photo of Ilex guayusa tree

Ilex guayusa is a dioecious[3] tree which grows 6–30 meters tall. The leaves are ovate, elliptic, oblong or lanceolate; evergreen; 7–22 cm long, 2.5–7 cm wide. The flowers are small and white, arranged in thyrses. The fruit is spherical and red, 6–7 mm in diameter.[4]

Distribution and Habitat

A tall tree native to the upper Amazonian regions of Ecuador, northeastern Peru, and southwestern Colombia, between 200–2000 meters of elevation.[4][1] It is present in evergreen or deciduous premontane forests, especially the ones dominated by Dictyocaryum palms.[4] Guayusa has been collected only rarely in the wild by botanists and is known almost exclusively as a cultivated plant.[5] Melvin Shemluck documented a flowering guayusa tree in Pastaza Province, Ecuador in his work between 1979 and 1980.[6]

Vernacular names

Leaves of Ilex guayusa

Wayusa as pronounced in the indigenous Kichwa (or Runashimi) is one of the many languages spoken by numerous indigenous nations in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Also pronounced "Why-sa" by the Kichwa people and "Why-ees" by the Shuar people.

Cultivation and use

The plant is grown primarily in Ecuador in the eastern provinces of Napo and Pastaza, but also cultivated in parts of Peru and Colombia. After harvest, the guayusa leaves are dried which allows flavor to develop.[5][7]

Traditionally, some Ecuadorian Kichwa people boil guayusa leaves in water and consume the resulting beverage for its stimulative effects.[5] In addition to drinking cups of guayusa like many Americans drink coffee, indigenous hunters drink guayusa to sharpen their instincts and call it the “Night Watchman" because it helps them stay alert and awake all night.[8] Fresh leaves are used as well as dried leaves, which are dried in rolls and strung together as a wreath resembling a Hawaiian lei.

In 2015, Runa Foundation carried out an extensive study on the uses and history of the plant amongst various indigenous groups throughout Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru which was published in Economic Botany in 2016.[9]

Chemical composition and properties

Picked leaves of Ilex guayusa plant in Archidona, Ecuador

Guayusa yields xanthines such as caffeine. Other holly species with significant caffeine content are Ilex paraguariensis, or yerba mate, and Ilex vomitoria, or yaupon holly.

In addition to caffeine, guayusa also contains theobromine, commonly found in chocolate, and L-theanine, a glutamic acid analog found in green tea that has been shown to reduce physical and mental stress.[10][2][11]

Chemical analyses in 2009 and 2010 have shown caffeine content in guayusa of 2.90-3.28% by dry weight.[12][13] Guayusa contains all of the essential amino acids for humans and has a “high antioxidant activity,” with ORAC antioxidant values of 58μM per gram, compared to 28-29μM per gram for commercial green teas.[14][15][16]

There have been few published studies on the possible medical benefits of guayusa, but one study has shown that ingesting guayusa helped reduce hyperglycemia and other side-effects of Type 1 diabetes in an animal model.[17]

Myths and legends

Michael Harner, the founder of the Foundation for Shamanic Studies describes how “the Jivaro say guayusa is so habituating that before it is offered to a visitor, he is warned that once he drinks it, he will ever always after return to the Ecuadorian Jungle.”[18]

The Kichwa people claim that guayusa induces dreams that foretell whether hunting expeditions will be successful.[19]

Leaves of dried guayusa

A 1,500-year-old bundle of guayusa leaves was found by Harvard University ethnobotanist Richard Evans Schultes in a medicine man's tomb high in the Bolivian Andes, far beyond the natural range of the plant.[20]

Commercialization

Commercial supply chains for guayusa incorporating fair trade practices and organic principles have been established in the Ecuadorian Amazon. A number of re-packagers sell dry and liquid guayusa products in various countries around the world, including Waykana, Runa LLC, Stash Tea Company, DavidsTea, and numerous others.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Tropicos | Name - Ilex guayusa Loes.". www.tropicos.org. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  2. 1 2 "New drinks review: Amazonian 'superherb' hits the market". Datamonitor Expert View. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
  3. ↑ Shemluck, Melvin. "THE FLOWERS OF ILEX GUAYUSA" (PDF). Amazonnian Tea. Harvard University Herbaria. Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 Loizeau P.-A. and G. Barriera (1 March 2007). "Aquifoliaceae of Neotropics Ilex guayusa Loes.". Monographia Aquifoliacearum. Retrieved 2 August 2011.
  5. 1 2 3 Lewis, WH; Kennelly, EJ; Bass, GN; Wedner, HJ; Elvin, L (May–June 1991). "Ritualistic use of the holly Ilex guayusa by Amazonian Jivaro Indians". Journal of Ethnopharmacology 33: 25–30. doi:10.1016/0378-8741(91)90156-8.
  6. ↑ Shemluck, Melvin (1979). The flowers of Ilex guayusa (Report).
  7. ↑ "Processing". Runa. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
  8. ↑ "Cultural Heritage". Runa. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
  9. ↑ Duenas, Juan; et al. (February 2016). "Amazonian Guayusa (Ilex guayusa Loes.): A Historical and Ethnobotanical Overview". Economic Botany (XX(X) 2016): 1-7.
  10. ↑ "Lab Number:056939". Advanced Botanical Consulting & Testing, Inc. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
  11. ↑ Kimura K, Ozeki M, Juneja L, Ohira H (2007). "L-Theanine reduces psychological and physiological stress responses". Biol Psychol 74 (1): 39–45. doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2006.06.006. PMID 16930802.
  12. ↑ "Lab Number:056939". Advanced Botanical Consulting & Testing, Inc.
  13. ↑ "Componentes Quimicos Guayusa 19Oct09".
  14. ↑ Dr. Adonis Bello Alarcón. "Identificación y cuantificación de aminoácidos". Retrieved 2011-08-03.
  15. ↑ To assess antioxidant capacity of Guayusa (Report). Center of Studies of Biological Research and Evaluation (CEIEB in Spanish) Pharmacy and Food Institute Universidad de la Habana. 2010.
  16. ↑ Test Report for the Whole ORAC Values (Report). Genox. 2010.
  17. ↑ Swanston-Flatt, SK; Day, C; Flatt, PR; Gould, BJ; Bailey, CJ (Feb 1989). "Glycaemic effects of traditional European plant treatments for diabetes. Studies in normal and streptozotocin diabetic mice.". Diabetes Res. 10 (2): 69–73.
  18. ↑ Harner, Michael The Way of the Shaman: A Guide to Power and Healing. Harper & Row, 1980. http://www.scribd.com/doc/59959885/The-Way-of-the-Shaman-Harner-OCR-Edition-Resistance-2010. ISBN 0-553-20693-1
  19. ↑ Spruce, R. (1996). Notas de un botánico en el Amazonas y los Andes. Quito, Ecuador: Colección Tierra Incógnita.
  20. ↑ ASIN B0006CBD7G, A medicine-man's implements and plants in a Tiahuanacoid tomb in highland Bolivia

External links

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