Ilex guayusa
| Ilex guayusa | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Aquifoliales |
| Family: | Aquifoliaceae |
| Genus: | Ilex |
| Species: | I. guayusa
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| Binomial name | |
| Ilex guayusa | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
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Ilex guayusa (/ˈaɪlɛks ˈɡwaɪjuːsə/ or /ˈaɪlɛks ˈwaɪjuːsə/) is a species of tree in the holly family, Aquifoliaceae.[2][3] It is native to the Amazon Rainforest. One of four known caffeinated holly trees, the leaves of the guayusa tree are harvested fresh and brewed like a tea for their stimulative effects.[4] It is known simply as guayusa in western languages like Spanish, as waisa in Kichwa and as wayus or wais in Shuar.[5][6]
Description
[edit]Ilex guayusa is an evergreen dioecious[7] tree which grows 6–30 m (20–98 ft) tall.[5] The leaves are ovate, elliptic, oblong or lanceolate; 7–22 cm (2.8–8.7 in) long, 2.5–7 cm (0.98–2.76 in) wide; with serrate or dentate margin.[5] The flowers are small and white, arranged in thyrses.[5] The fruit is spherical and red, 6–7 mm (0.24–0.28 in) in diameter.[5]
Distribution and habitat
[edit]I. guayusa is native to the upper Amazonian regions of Ecuador, Peru, and southern Colombia, between 200–2,000 m (660–6,560 ft) of elevation.[5] However, it has also been collected in Bolivia in 1939.[8] It is present in evergreen or deciduous premontane forests, especially ones dominated by Dictyocaryum palms.[5] Guayusa has been collected only rarely in the wild by botanists and is known almost exclusively as a cultivated plant (especially in the Ecuadorian provinces of Napo and Pastaza).[9]
Ecology
[edit]
This species is found wild and cultivated in sandy-loamy soils of pH 4.34–5.01 with low cation-exchange capacity and high metal content.[citation needed] The vegetation type preferred is lowland and premontane, neotropical jungle where conditions of soil, precipitation and humidity are appropriate for its development.[citation needed] Despite being a monoecious species and prone to floral polygamy, Ilex guayusa appears to yield little fertile material, so it relies mostly on asexual reproduction (basal shoots, sprouts and suckers).[citation needed] In its initial growth stages, Ilex guayusa behaves as an understory species, becoming a shrub with spreading branches when it receives higher amounts of light, eventually becoming a tree.[citation needed]
History
[edit]The earliest evidence of human utilization of this species is a 1,500-year-old bundle of guayusa leaves found in a medicine man's tomb in the Bolivian Andes, far beyond the natural range of the plant.[8][10]
Father Juan Lorenzo Lucero reported in 1683 the daily consumption of guayusa in infusions by the Jivaroan peoples.[11]
In the 18th century, several missionaries in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru wrote about the uses of the plant, and some of them also consumed the infusion citing digestive and stimulant properties.[11]
The Jesuits knew about the medicinal uses of the plant and traded it actively.[12]
A grove found in 1857 by Richard Spruce near the town of Baños, Ecuador was supposedly cultivated since precolumbian times.[9]
Uses
[edit]
Leaves of Ilex guayusa are used to make an infusion, especially by the peoples of the Amazon basin, particularly in Ecuador, Peru and Colombia.[5][9][12][6] After harvest, leaves are dried, which allows flavor to develop.[9] In the three aforementioned countries, guayusa is also used in the preparation of artisanal alcoholic drinks.[12]
The Kichwa people cultivate the plant in horticultural plots (called chakras) and use it as a daily drink.[12] Guayusa is also consumed at parties and local festivals as a social drink which promotes conviviality (convivencia in Spanish), which improves affectivity, and close relationships among families and friends.[12] The Kichwa usually boil guayusa in a pot and the infusion is served in gourds.[12] Guayusa drinking is often accompanied by stories, dream interpretations and light work (like the weaving of nets). It can also be part of certain rituals.[12] Guayusa is also used as a medicine and remedy, usually combined with ginger, lime juice, or sugar cane liquor.[12]
Jivaroan peoples in Ecuador and Peru also prepare a drink from the leaves to be drunk in large amounts during pre-dawn ceremonies that involve the vomiting of the excess drink to wash out the stomach and small intestine and avoid absorbing too much caffeine.[5][9] The Awajún people of northern Peru use guayusa in a similar fashion to that of the Jivaroans.[12]
A ritual use by the Quechua people involves drinking guayusa infusion to have foretelling dreams for successful hunting expeditions.[13]
Guayusa is also drunk by the mestizo and white populations of Ecuador.[12] It has recently[when?] begun to be sold internationally, and is drunk by some individuals in the Western world as a caffeinated drink which can serve as an alternative to coffee and tea. It has been promoted in western media sources as a stimulant with high antioxidant and polyphenol content.[14][15]
Chemical composition
[edit]
Guayusa leaves contain caffeine (1.73–3.48 %), theobromine and other dimethylxanthines (among them paraxanthine and theophylline).[9][16] Guayusa leaves also contain L-theanine, gallic acid, guanidine, isobutyric acid, nicotinic acid, ascorbic acid, riboflavin, choline, pyridoxine, triterpenes, chlorogenic acid and sugars among other compounds.[16]
See also
[edit]- Yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis) - South American caffeinated holly species used to make Mate.
- Yaupon holly (Ilex vomitoria) - southeastern North American caffeinated holly species used to make the Black Drink.
- Kuding (Ilex kudingcha) - Asian holly species used with Ligustrum robustum for Chinese kǔdīng chá tea.
References
[edit]- ^ Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) & IUCN SSC Global Tree Specialist Group (2019). "Ilex guayusa". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2019: e.T145566259A145678088. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-2.RLTS.T145566259A145678088.en. Retrieved June 29, 2025.
- ^ a b "Ilex guayusa Loes". Plants of the World Online. The Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. n.d. Retrieved June 29, 2025.
- ^ "Ilex guayusa Loes". Catalogue of Life. Species 2000. n.d. Retrieved June 29, 2025.
- ^ "Ecuador's "Superleaf" Tea: Could It Replace Your Afternoon Coffee?". 2014-07-04. Archived from the original on July 7, 2014.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Loizeau P.-A.; G. Barriera (2007). "Aquifoliaceae of Neotropics Ilex guayusa Loes". Monographia Aquifoliacearum. Retrieved 2 August 2011.
- ^ a b "Guayusa - Patrimonio Alimentario". patrimonioalimentario.culturaypatrimonio.gob.ec (in Spanish). Retrieved 2017-07-14.
- ^ Shemluck, Melvin (1979). "The flowers of Ilex guayusa" (PDF). Botanical Museum Leaflets. 27 (5/6). Harvard University Herbaria: 155–160. doi:10.5962/p.295225. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-10-06. Retrieved 2016-03-12.
- ^ a b Schultes, R. E. (1972). "Ilex guayusa from 500 AD to the present". In Wassén, H.; et al. (eds.). A Medicine-Man's Implements and Plants in a Tiahuanacoid Tomb in Highland Bolivia. Etnologiska Studier. Vol. 32. Goteborgs Etnografiska Museum.
- ^ a b c d e f Lewis, WH; Kennelly, EJ; Bass, GN; Wedner, HJ; Elvin, L (1991). "Ritualistic use of the holly Ilex guayusa by Amazonian Jivaro Indians". Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 33 (1–2): 25–30. doi:10.1016/0378-8741(91)90156-8. PMID 1682531.
- ^ Samorini, Giorgio (2019-06-01). "The oldest archeological data evidencing the relationship of Homo sapiens with psychoactive plants: A worldwide overview". Journal of Psychedelic Studies. 3 (2): 63–80. doi:10.1556/2054.2019.008.
- ^ a b Patino, Victor Manuel (1968). "Guayusa, a neglected stimulant from the eastern andean foothills". Economic Botany. 22 (4): 311–316. Bibcode:1968EcBot..22..311P. doi:10.1007/bf02908125. ISSN 0013-0001. S2CID 35093551.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Duenas, Juan; et al. (2016). "Amazonian Guayusa (Ilex guayusa Loes.): A Historical and Ethnobotanical Overview". Economic Botany. 70 (1): 85–91. Bibcode:2016EcBot..70...85D. doi:10.1007/s12231-016-9334-2. S2CID 18354079.
- ^ Spruce, R. (1996). Notas de un botánico en el Amazonas y los Andes. Quito, Ecuador: Colección Tierra Incógnita.
- ^ Clemens, Randy. Guayusa Tea: Like Yerba Maté, But Better. Los Angeles Magazine, Nov 20, 2012.
- ^ Falkowitz, Max. "Have You Ever Tried Guayusa?". Serious Eats. Retrieved 2024-06-12.
- ^ a b Schuster, Julius; Mitchell, Ellen S. (2019-03-08). "More than just caffeine: psychopharmacology of methylxanthine interactions with plant-derived phytochemicals". Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry. 89: 263–274. doi:10.1016/j.pnpbp.2018.09.005. ISSN 0278-5846. PMID 30213684. S2CID 52274913.