History of Yerba Mate

Every time I wake up from my long sleep after my work, I always check my phone to see if there are any important messages that I have missed during the time that I was enjoying my dreams :). I regularly receive SMS jokes, friends asking my whereabouts, missed calls and of course inquiries regarding lapacho and yerba mate tea. Today, I received an SMS inquiring about the grams, medicinal values and history of yerba mate. After satisfactorily replying to the message and while waiting for that person's reply :) I have decided to create another post regarding its history, so here it goes:

The Guarani Indians, the hospitable Native Americans of Paraguay were well-built, vigorous and healthy.  They were gifted with good character and abounding joy.   They often used Yerba Mate as their staple food, sometimes substituting it for such important food as bread and vegetables.  It easily eliminates the sensation of hunger and can impart as much invigoration as a full meal.  The peace corps workers have reported cases in which large groups of natives remain in good health for extended periods of drought and famine, even though they eat only one small meal per day.  Some natives spend their entire lives from such a diet and live to very advance ages, sometimes in excess of 100 years.

In South America, governments have adopted the practice of encouraging mothers, especially in poorer regions, to include Yerba Mate in the diet of their school-age children.  This is sue to its vitamins, minerals, B-complex, C-complex and other substances such as mateine, matesponins, polyphenols, chlorophyll, fatty acids, lauric acid and enzymes.