Dr. Weil is the person who originally got me hooked on green tea for its health benefits.
Here is a bit of information from his website concerning Rooibos, just in case you are thinking about trying Rooibos instead of Green Tea -
“ "Red tea" is the name the Chinese use for what we in the west call "black tea."
However, another kind of red "tea," Rooibos, really isn’t tea because it comes from an entirely different plant, Aspalanthus linearis, which grows in the wild in South Africa.
The name Rooibos is African slang for the Dutch word for "red bush." In South Africa, Rooibos tea has been used by some tribes for medicinal purposes and by white South Africans for treatment of hay fever symptoms, asthma, eczema and to soothe heartburn, ease the pain of stomach ulcers and relieve nausea.
Rooibos is being heavily hyped by producers and distributors as a new health beverage. Unlike true "tea," it is caffeine-free and low in tannins. It contains minimal amounts of calcium, potassium, iron, zinc, magnesium and much less fluoride than found in real teas. Studies have shown that Rooibos does contain antioxidants and therefore might have some of the health benefits of green tea, but very little research has confirmed this. I found only 17 scientific studies of Rooibos compared to more than 1,000 on green tea. So far, none suggest that Rooibos is the health equivalent of green tea.
Brewed, Rooibos looks red but doesn't really taste like tea – it has a slightly sweet and fruity flavor. If you like the taste and color, and want a caffeine-free herbal beverage, by all means opt for Rooibos, but if you want the health benefits of tea, I recommend sticking with the real thing.” - Dr. Weil
Give me a good cup of Japanese Sencha or Gyokuro Green Tea over Rooibos anytime...
Green Tea Health Benefits