Hibiscus Tea: Health Benefits, Buying Tips & When To Drink It

From chamomile to English breakfast, you can’t go wrong with a steaming cup of soothing tea. If you’re interested in adding tea to your life but aren’t into black or green tea, you’re in luck. There are thousands of teas to choose from, including herbal options like hibiscus tea.

Hibiscus tea is made with the dried calyxes—leafy structures that protect the flower bud—of the Hibiscus Sabdariffa1 plant. Hibiscus Sabdariffa, also known as roselle, red sorrel, wonjo, and karkade, is grown in tropical regions around the world, including Thailand, Indonesia, and Mexico.

Dried Hibiscus Sabdariffa calyxes have been used to make drinks like tea as well as food and natural medicine2 for thousands of years. 

Hibiscus tea, which is also known as sour tea, has a slightly tart, fruity taste and a deep, ruby-red color. Its saturated color comes from plant compounds3 concentrated in the calyxes called anthocyanins, which are natural plant pigments that have health-promoting properties. 

It can be enjoyed both hot and cold and is usually sweetened with honey or sugar to mask its tart taste. You can purchase hibiscus tea in tea bags and as loose-leaf tea. 

Hibiscus offers some serious skin health benefits, both when used topically as a skincare treatment and when consumed as a tea. Hibiscus tea is rich in antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds5, such as organic acids, flavonoids, and anthocyanins, which can help soothe inflammatory skin disorders, like acne, while protecting against oxidation-related5 skin damage.

Although most currently available research focuses on the topical use of hibiscus for supporting skin health, there’s strong evidence that increasing your dietary intake of antioxidants, in general, can help improve the health and appearance of your skin.

Sipping on hibiscus tea may help if you have high blood pressure. Scientists believe that the heart health benefits of hibiscus tea are due to its high levels of anti-inflammatory and antioxidant substances. 

The potent mixture of plant compounds found in hibiscus tea may help reduce inflammation in the body, which could help improve overall health. Researchers found that consuming 250 milliliters of a hibiscus extract drink per day significantly reduced blood pressure8 and levels of the inflammatory marker C-reactive protein ultra sensitive (CRP-US) compared to drinking plain water.

In addition to having high blood sugar, people with diabetes often have high blood pressure. Studies show that drinking hibiscus tea can help support healthy blood pressure levels10 in people with diabetes and may help improve blood sugar management.

Hibiscus tea is packed with antioxidant compounds, including vitamin C, organic acids, flavonoids, and anthocyanins, which help protect against cellular damage. Oxidative damage is caused by an excess of free radicals12 in the body, which overwhelms the body’s antioxidant defenses.

Consuming foods and drinks high in antioxidants, like hibiscus tea, is an easy way to support your body’s antioxidant defenses and protect against cellular damage.

You can buy hibiscus tea in ready-to-use tea bags or as a loose-leaf tea. If you like a richer, more flavorful tea drink, consider purchasing loose-leaf hibiscus tea in bulk. Using loose-leaf tea allows you to add more tea to your tea strainer to make a more concentrated beverage.

If you prefer a lighter tea, steep your hibiscus for a few minutes. For a stronger tea, steep loose-leaf hibiscus tea and hibiscus tea bags for 10-15 minutes.

Registered dietitian Lauren Manaker, MS, RDN, LD recommends making a large batch of hibiscus tea and keeping it in your refrigerator to enjoy throughout the day. 

Most traditional hibiscus tea methods, such as Egyptian Karkade, a hibiscus tea drink made with sugar, are sweetened. However, you can enjoy your hibiscus tea unsweetened or with a squeeze of lemon or lime. Sugar alternatives like monk fruit can also be used to counter the tart taste of hibiscus tea.

When shopping for hibiscus tea, it’s important to purchase products from reputable companies that are transparent about their sourcing and production methods. If you’re purchasing tea bags, steer clear of tea bags that contain adhesives like glue and tea bags made with nylon, such as “silken" tea bags made out of nylon. Studies show that these tea bags can leave behind microplastics16 in your tea, which can build up in your system and may harm your health.

When possible, opt for organic hibiscus tea as this ensures the hibiscus flowers were grown without the use of synthetic pesticides and herbicides. 

Hibiscus tea has been shown to be safe when consumed in amounts of up to 24 ounces daily (3 cups) for up to six weeks. Hibiscus tea isn’t associated with many side effects, but could cause digestive symptoms like gas and constipation in some people.

Even though hibiscus tea is a healthy drink that’s been linked to several health benefits, it’s not the right choice for everyone. Drinking hibiscus tea isn’t recommended17 during pregnancy or breastfeeding as there is some evidence it could stimulate menstruation and harm breastfeeding babies.

There’s also not enough research to show that hibiscus tea is safe for kids, so you shouldn’t give hibiscus tea to children under the age of 12.