March 26/Guelph, Ont./Guelph Mercury -- Tea lovers have proclaiming the beverage’s health benefits for generations, and now, researchers at the University of Guelph are steeping a new brew that could be a virtual panacea for illnesses ranging from arthritis to HIV.
The tea contains an anti-inflammatory agent called rosmarinic acid or RosA found in spearmint. Research scientist Professor Laima Kott and her research team in the Department of Plant Agriculture, at the Ontario Agricultural College, have bred a variety of spearmint that has as much as 20 times the amount of RosA found in the regular, garden-variety.