Chapter 1.7

1.7 - Sage Tea

Lexus Schwoob , University of Guelph, Canada

Suggested citation for this chapter.

Schwoob, L. (2022) Labrador tea. In The Student Encyclopedia of Canadian Indigenous Foods. Editor, M.N. Raizada, University of Guelph, Canada. http://www.firstnationsfoods.org/

Product information

Sage tea has many health benefits. The sage plant has sacred meaning and uses in the indigenous communities more specifically the Ojibwe people. Part one of this paper will highlight the characteristics of northern sage as well as common sage, the significance of sage in the Indigenous communities as well as the benefits and limitations of sage tea

What is Sage Tea and where is it from?

Sage (Artemisia tilesii) stems are erect, rising directly from the woody base of the plant to a height of 2 to 3 feet (Viereck, 2015). The leaves are not silvery white; they're green and hair-covered only on the lower surface. The leaves of Artemisia Tilesii usually divide into narrow lobes having slender, sharp tips. The flowers are yellowish brown (Viereck, 2015).

Figure 1: Burke Museum WTU Herbarium. (2007). Artemisia tilesii. Burke Herbarium Image Collection. Retrieved October 23, 2021, from http://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Artemisia+tilesii.

Sage (Artemisia Tilesii) is a plant grown anywhere from East Asia to North America (PFAF, 2021). Sage is a perennial growing to 1.5 m and is suitable for light and medium soils. It is native to open rocky or gravelly wet or dry sites, mostly at rather high elevations in the mountains such as Montana to Alaska. The species has both male and female organs and is pollinated by insects. It is suitable for light and medium soils and prefers well- drained soil (PFAF, 2021). Like any other tea, the part harvested for tea is the sage leaves. Commercial sage tea is made from a different species of sage called common sage (Salvia Officinalis). Common sage is easier to produce rather than Artemisia Tilesii, but Artemisia Tilesii is still used in indigenous communities. Although hardy as a perennial, common sage will focus on flower production in the second year resulting in reduced yields (OMAFRA, 2012). It takes 60- 90 days to harvest common sage and do well in a range of 20-30 degrees Celsius. Sage is harvested by hand in the early fall so the plant can maintain reserves for the winter (OMAFRA, 2012). Although it can be difficult to find pure sage tea in grocery stores, it is readily available online and in health food stores. Celebration herbals is a large company based out of Wainfleet, Ontario that sells pure sage tea as well as other pure herbal teas (Celebration Herbals, 2011). Currently, Celebration herbals is getting their sage and other herbs from all around the world but, the product would easily become more profitable if the company could get their sage somewhere locally as many people appreciate buying from local companies that use local ingredients.

Figure 2: KBIC Health System. (n.d.). Ojibwe medicine. Ojibwe Medicine. Retrieved October 18, 2021, from https://www.kbichealth.org/ojibwe-medicine.

Indigenous background of sage and sage tea

The sage plant is used to preparing people for ceremonies and teachings (KBIC Health System, 2021). Smoke from white sage (Artemesia califoncia) is used for purification of mind, body and spirit and sacred articles in advance of prayers and ceremonies (Indigenous Corporate Training Inc, 2013). White sage is burned for meditation, smudging, and cleansing of spirit and dwelling. In some beliefs, white sage smoke is believed to provide a barrier that prevents negative spirits from entering the room in which the ceremony is being held (Indigenous Corporate Training Inc, 2013). Northern Sage (Artemisia tilesii) is used for tea and flavouring for chewing tobacco by Alaska Eskimo (Kuhnlein & Turner, 2020). Since sage is more medicinal and stronger than sweetgrass, it tends to be used more often in ceremonies (KBIC Health System, 2021). Sage is used for releasing what is troubling the mind and for removing negative energy. It is also used for cleansing homes and sacred items. It also has other medicinal purposes. There is male sage and female sage. The female sage is used by women. Sage is known to be one of the four sacred medicines with the three others being tobacco, cedar and, sweetgrass (KBIC Health System, 2021). According to the Ojibwe medicine wheel, sage lies in the west portion of the wheel. The Medicine Wheel, sometimes known as the Sacred Hoop, has been used by generations of various Native American tribes for health and healing (U.S National Library of Medicine, 2021). It embodies the Four Directions, as well as Father Sky, Mother Earth, and Spirit Tree—all of which symbolize dimensions of health and the cycles of life (U.S National Library of Medicine, 2021).

Benefits and limitations of sage tea

Sage is a homeopathic remedy: it has stimulant, anti-bacterial, anti-stress, digestive, antispasmodic, anti-perspiration, hypoglycemic properties (Webb James, 2018).

Sage tea has been traditionally used for the treatment of digestive and circulation disturbances, bronchitis, cough, asthma, angina, mouth and throat inflammations, depression, excessive sweating, skin diseases, and many other diseases (Hamidpour et al., 2014).

Some limitations of sage tea include increased chance of seizures. Common sage contains a constituent called thujone that can cause seizures in experimental animals and may also do so in people (NCCIH, 2020). A preliminary study conducted suggests that three to six cups of sage tea could be consumed daily without reaching toxicological thresholds (Walch et al. 2011). Although there were not any other identifiable limitations with sage tea, there is many ethical issues with white sage used for smudging. Due to the popularity of smudging in non-Indigenous communities, Indigenous people are worried about the overharvesting of white sage. Not only that but the people who are continuing to sell white sage are not harvesting it accordingly. The roots of the white sage plant are supposed to remain but commercialized companies selling it are not doing so.

In conclusion, sage tea has many healing properties physically and spiritually. It is one of the four most important medicines along with tobacco, cedar and, sweetgrass for a variety of native tribes. Sage also plays a large role in ceremony and healing by either ingesting or smudging ceremonies. More people need to be educated on the benefits and proper usage of sage tea. If anyone were to create a market for non- Indigenous people sage, it should be Indigenous people so that way there can continue to be respect for their culture when harvesting and ensuring there still remains to be enough for the communities.

References

1. Aboriginal sacred plants: Sage. Indigenous Corporate Training Inc. (2013). Retrieved November 12, 2021, from https://www.ictinc.ca/blog/aboriginal-sacred-plants-sage.

2. Agriculture: Province of Manitoba. Province of Manitoba - Agriculture. (2021). Retrieved October 23, 2021, from https://www.gov.mb.ca/agriculture/farm-management/production-economics/cost-of-production.html.

3. Burke Museum WTU Herbarium. (2007). Artemisia tilesii. Burke Herbarium Image Collection. Retrieved October 23, 2021, from http://biology.burke.washington.edu/herbarium/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Artemisia+tilesii.

4. Celebration Herbals. (2011). Who we are. Celebration Herbals. Retrieved November 12, 2021, from https://celebrationherbals.com/who-we-are.html.

5. Hamidpour, M., Hamidpour, R., Hamidpour, S., & Shahlari, M. (2014, April). Chemistry, pharmacology, and medicinal property of sage (salvia) to prevent and cure illnesses such as obesity, diabetes, depression, dementia, Lupus, autism, heart disease, and cancer. Journal of traditional and complementary medicine. Retrieved October 18, 2021, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4003706/.

6. KBIC Health System. (2021). Ojibwe medicine. Ojibwe Medicine. Retrieved October 18, 2021, from https://www.kbichealth.org/ojibwe-medicine.

7. Kuhnlein, H. V., & Turner, N. J. (2020). Traditional Plant Foods of Canadian Indigenous Peoples: Nutrition, botany and use. Routledge.

8. OMAFRA. (2012). Specialty cropportunities - sage. Ministry of Agriculture Food & Rural Affairs . Retrieved October 22, 2021, from http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/CropOp/en/herbs/culinary/sage.html.

9. PFAF. (2021). Artemisia tilesii. Plants for a Future. Retrieved October 23, 2021, from https://pfaf.org/User/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Artemisia%2Btilesii.

10. PFAF. (2021). Salvia officinalis - L. Pfaf Plant Search. Retrieved October 22, 2021, from https://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Salvia%2Bofficinalis.

11. Sage whole leaf. Webb James. (2018). Retrieved October 18, 2021, from http://www.webbjames.com/spices/sage/#:~:text=Now%20the%20world's%20largest%20producer,wild%20harvest%20is%20still%20prevailing.

12. U.S National Library of Medicine. (2021). The medicine wheel and the four directions - medicine ways: Traditional healers and healing - healing ways - exhibition - native voices. U.S. National Library of Medicine. Retrieved October 18, 2021, from https://www.nlm.nih.gov/nativevoices/exhibition/healing-ways/medicine-ways/medicine-wheel.html.

13. Viereck, E. (2015). Alaska's wilderness medicines: Healthful plants of the Far North. Alaska Northwest Books.

14. Walch, S. G., Kuballa, T., Stühlinger, W., & Lachenmeier, D. W. (2011, July 21). Determination of the biologically active flavour substances thujone and camphor in foods and medicines containing sage (salvia officinalis L.). Chemistry Central journal. Retrieved October 18, 2021, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3155476/.