“Zahraa”, a Unani multicomponent herbal tea widely consumed in Syria: Components of drug mixtures and alleged medicinal properties

In Unani system of medicine, drugs consist of complex formulae with more than three components, for which, literature analysing these mixtures as they are sold in the market is scarce. In this paper, the main botanical components of the herbal tea known as “Zahraa” in Damascus, which contains between 6 and 14 species components is elucidated: Alcea damascena (Mout.) Mout. (Malvaceae), Aloysia triphylla (L'Herit.) Britt. (Malvaceae), Astragalus cf. amalecitanus Boiss., Cercis siliquastrum L. subsp. hebecarpa (Bornm.) Yalt. and subsp. siliquastrum. (Leguminosae), Colutea cilicica Boiss. et Bal. in Boiss. (Leguminosae), Crataegus aronia (L.) Bosc. ex DC. (Rosaceae), Cytisopsis pseudocytisus (Boiss.) Fertig. (Leguminosae), Eleagnus angustifolia L. (Eleagnaceae), Equisetum telmateia Ehrh. (Equisetaceae), Helichrysum stoechas (L.) Moench. subsp. barrelieri (Ten.) Nyman. (Compositae), Matricaria recutita L. (Compositae), Mentha longifolia L. subsp. noeana (Boiss. ex. Briq.) Briq. (Labiatae), Mentha spicata L. subsp. condensata (Briq.) Greuter and Burdet (Labiatae), Micromeria myrtifolia Boiss. and Hohen. in Boiss. (Labiatae), Paronychia argentea Lam. (Caryophyllaceae), Phlomis syriaca Boiss. (Labiatae), Rosa damascena Mill. (Rosaceae), Salvia fruticosa Mill. (Labiatae), Sambucus nigra L. (Caprifoliaceae), Spartium junceum L. (Leguminosae), Zea mays L. (Gramineae).