Flower teas have recently gained increasing attention as functional beverages that provide not only aesthetic value but also physiological and pharmacological benefits attributable to their physiological components. Although their precise historical o...
Flower teas have recently gained increasing attention as functional beverages that provide not only aesthetic value but also physiological and pharmacological benefits attributable to their physiological components. Although their precise historical origins remain unclear, flower teas have traditionally been consumed for health promotion and disease prevention. In this study, flower teas prepared from 66 medicinal and edible plant species belonging to 31 families cultivated in Korea were infused at a concentration of 1% and comparatively evaluated for their functional properties. The total contents of polyphenols, flavonoids, water-soluble proteins, and reducing sugars were quantified, and antioxidant and anti-wrinkle activities were assessed using in vitro assays. In addition, ten flower species with high commercial potential were selected for further evaluation of cytotoxicity and inhibitory effects on nitric oxide (NO) production in cell-based models. The findings provide scientific evidence supporting the health-promoting potential of flower teas and offer fundamental data for their prospective application as functional ingredients in health foods, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical products.
1. When the total polyphenol content of 66 flower teas infused at a concentration of 1% in water at 90 °C was measured, Bunkkoch tea exhibited the highest level at 514.61 ug/g. This was followed by Baegmoglyeon 424.20 ug/g, Geumhwagyu 382.44 ug/g, Napalkkoch 331.00 ug/g, and Saenggang-namu 325.31 ug/g, which also showed relatively high levels of extracted polyphenolic compounds.
2. The total flavonoid content was highest in flower tea prepared from Baegmoglyeon at 205.25 ug/g, followed by Honghwa-Petal 159.73 ug/g, Saenggang-namu 148.15 ug/g, Samji-guyeobcho 138.55 ug/g, and Dunggulle 137.98 ug/g.
3. The water-soluble protein contents of 66 flower teas infused at a concentration of 1% were as follows: Chunlan 33.65 ug/g > Baegmoglyeon 25.83 ug/g > Saenggang -namu 22.32 ug/g > Napalkkoch 20.09 ug/g > Geumhwagyu 19.18 ug/g > Bunkkoch 19.17 ug/g.
4. The reducing sugar contents of flower teas prepared from 66 flower species were as follows: Wonchuli 210.99 ug/g > Jangmi 108.36 ug/g > Jjille-Flower bloom 100.98 ug/g > Dalmajikkoch 97.47 ug/g > Dolaji-Fumigation 87.10 ug/g > Acacia 78.91 ug/g > Bunkkoch 75.02 ug/g > Dangaug 73.17 ug/g .
5. The DPPH radical scavenging activities of 66 flower teas infused at a concentration of 1% were evaluated, and higher scavenging activities were observed in the following order: Napalkkoch 87.29% > Geumhwagyu 86.00% >Begonia 83.93% > Dalmaj-ikkoch 80.66% > Bunkkoch 72.76% > Gujeolch 70.80%.
6. The ABTS radical scavenging activities of the flower teas ranged from 0.38 to 102.52%, with Mandeulami exhibiting the highest activity. In addition, flower teas prepared from Jjille-Flower bloom, Chanamu, Sulegughwa, Sanmoglyeon, Paenj, Geumhwagyu, and Dangdangpung showed ABTS radical scavenging effects exceeding 100%.
7. Under pH 1.2 conditions, nitrite scavenging activity was highest in Paenj 97.68% and Mugunghwa at 97.55%, both of which exhibited higher scavenging effects than the positive control L-ascorbic acid 93.14%. This was followed by Geumhwagyu 49.35%, Bunkkoch 43.90%, Dolaji-Loasting 36.61%, and Dalg-uijangpul 36.06%, which showed relatively high nitrite scavenging activities.
8. Under pH 3.0 conditions, nitrite scavenging activity was highest in Mugunghwa, showing 98.55%, which was higher than that of the positive control L-ascorbicacid showing 63.19%. In addition, Chamnali and Sanmoglyeon exhibited nitrite scavenging activities of 33.09% and 32.23%, respectively.
9. SOD-like activity was highest in Geumhwagyu, reaching 98.14%, followed by Samji-guyeobcho 100.79% and Baegmoglyeon 97.90%. Geumhwagyu showed higher SOD-like activity than the natural antioxidant L-ascorbic acid (94.76%).
10. Xanthine oxidase (XO) inhibitory activity was highest in Geumhwagyu, showing 46.60%. This was followed by Nolang-koseumoseu 39.77% > Napalkkoch 39.67% >Honghwa-Petal 28.68% > Euleumdeonggul 27.75% > Geumeunhwa 27.21%, which exhibited relatively strong XO inhibitory effects.
11. Elastase inhibitory activity, reflecting anti-wrinkle potential, was highest in Geumeunhwa, reaching 39.51%, followed by flower tea prepared exclusively from the petals of Honghwa-Petal, reaching 32.44%. In addition, Geumeocho, Kkochsagwa, Sulegughwa, Chopi, Jopab, and Euleumdeonggul exhibited elastase inhibitory effects ranging from 10.16% to 14.20%.
12. Cytotoxicity of flower teas prepared from ten species with high contents of bioactive compounds was evaluated in RAW264.7 macrophages using the MTT assay. A reduction in cell viability of approximately 15% was observed in Napalkkoch, while decreases of 9.46%, 5.19%, and 9.77% were observed in Begonia, Baegmoglyeon, and Bunkkoch, respectively, indicating no cytotoxic effects. In contrast, flower teas prepared from Jjille-flower in full bloom, Paenj, Samji-guyeobcho, Geumeunhwa Saenggang-namu, and Geumeocho increased RAW264.7 macrophage viability to levels ranging from 108.82% to 115.12%, further confirming the absence of cytotoxicity.
In this study, flower teas prepared from the flowers of 66 medicinal plant species cultivated in Korea were evaluated for their bioactive component contents, antioxidant and anti-wrinkle activities, and cytotoxicity under standardized infusion conditions. Several flower teas, particularly those derived from Baegmoglyeon and Saenggang-namu, exhibited relatively high levels of bioactive compounds.
In addition, flower teas prepared from Geumhwagyu, Baegmoglyeon, Napalkkoch, Mandeulami, Jjille-Flower bloom, Mugunghwa, and Samji-guyeobcho demonstrated notable antioxidant and anti-wrinkle activities without cytotoxic effects in cell-based assays. These findings indicate that the consumption of flower teas as daily beverages may provide antioxidant and anti-aging benefits beyond their sensory and aromatic appeal.
Furthermore, the observed biological activities suggest that selected flower teaspossess strong potential as natural functional materials. Overall, this study provides scientific evidence supporting the value of medicinal flower teas and offers fundamental data for their potential application as ingredients in health functional foods, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical products.