Chrysanthemum tea is prepared in the same way as traditional tea. The dried flowers are infused with hot water for over 10 min, and the tea is ready to serve.
For clinical usage, the chrysanthemum is boiled either alone or together with various other herbs, according to the prescriptions to suit a specific clinical purpose.Based on traditional usage, in addition to use as a tea, C. morifolium is used for the common cold, fever, migraines, conjunctivitis, eye, irritation, hypertension, ulcerative colitis, vertigo, ophthalmia with swelling and pain, etc.
As a mixture with other herbs, it has been claimed to be able to relieve migraines and eye irritation, improve vision, and cure keratitis.
The curing rates of ulcerative colitis and hypertension are reported to be more than 90% and 80% respectively.
Apart from the above traditional usages, there are also reports of other usage, such as antitumor activities.
Chrysanthemum water extract was found to significantly inhibit growth of transplanted tumor in nude mice, suggesting that the water-soluble components of chrysanthemum may have potent chemopreventive effects.
Although chrysanthemum is considered to be a “mild” herb and almost with no side effect in traditional medical practice, adverse effect has been reported with its flowers, and leaves may cause skin dermatitis.
In contrast there was no report that drinking chrysanthemum tea could cause respiratory or alimentary tract irritation.
Applications of Chrysanthemum Tea
