A cup of chamomile tea soothes a cold and calms stress, but its benefits appear to stretch beyond that.
New research shows a correlation between regular chamomile tea consumption and a lowered risk of death by any cause in older women.
Over a period of seven years, a team analyzed 1,677 Mexican-American subjects of both sexes, aged 65 or older, who were enrolled in the Hispanic Established Populations for Epidemiologic Study of the Elderly.
Of the 14 percent who drank chamomile tea, only the women appeared to benefit from regular consumption.
However, it was a remarkable benefit: Women who drank the tea were 29 percent less likely than their peers to die of any cause during the study.
Right now, the team's not sure how its results came about.
Study author Bret Howrey offered possible connections, saying in a press release,
The reason for a difference in our reported findings between Hispanic women and men is not clear... This difference may be due to traditional gender roles whereby women manage the day-to-day activities of the household, including family health, and may also reflect greater reliance on folk remedies such as herbs.
Women, the study notes, are also more likely to use chamomile over a longer period of time and at a greater frequency than their male counterparts.
Indeed, chamomile has long been known as a home remedy for almost every illness. According to a 2011 peer-reviewed article, it can be used as anything from a poison ivy aid to a way to ease insomnia.