BISSAP BENEFITS
✓ Reduces blood pressure
✓ Regulates cholesterol and triglyceride levels
✓ Helps with weight loss
✓ Anti-inflammatory
✓ Fights free radical damage
What is bissap?
Bissap, a term derived from Senegalese Wolof, generally refers to bissap juice, hibiscus juice, or karkade. These names all refer to the same beverage made from the flowers of Hibiscus sabdariffa. This hibiscus, from the Malvaceae family, grows mainly in Africa and Southeast Asia.
The Hibiscus sabdariffa can reach 1.80 m in height and flowers profusely from July to October. It then produces beautiful red flowers which, when they fall, reveal the treasure of the Hibiscus sabdariffa: its fruit or calyx.
The purple calyces of the hibiscus have many traditional uses. Harvested from November to January, they are used in cooking as condiments and for making jams or sweet juices. Bissap is certainly the most famous of the juices obtained from hibiscus calyces.
After harvest, the calyces are cleaned, sun-dried and then turned into a beverage. They are then steeped for several hours in water. Once filtered, the resulting drink is sweetened and may be enhanced or not with orange blossom water or pieces of fruit. At the end of the process, bissap takes on a tangy pink color.
Bissap is a very popular drink in Africa and especially in Senegal. The cultivation of Hibiscus sabdariffa and the production of bissap provide an important source of income for Senegalese farmers.
Still little known in Europe, bissap is a refreshing drink with a tangy flavor. But it is not only interesting for its taste ! Bissap also has many benefits for health thanks to its richness in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals.
Nutritional composition
- Vitamines : C, B2, B3
- Minéraux et oligo-éléments : calcium, fer
- Pigments antioxydants : anthocyanes (delphinidine 3-sambubioside, cyanidine 3-sambubioside)
- Polyphénols
- Protéines
- Lipides
- Sucres
- Pectine
Benefits of bissap
❤️ Reduces blood pressure
Bissap is a very interesting health drink for reducing blood pressure. This hypotensive effect is due to the presence of anthocyanins, natural pigments that act on the vasodilation process. By supporting proper vessel function and promoting blood circulation, bissap is a valuable ally in regulating blood pressure in the arteries.
Bissap also has a diuretic effect meaning that it increases urine output. Consumption of diuretic foods is recommended to combat high blood pressure. By promoting the elimination of water and sodium from the body, they reduce the volume of blood circulating in the veins and therefore blood pressure.
By fighting hypertension, bissap supports heart health and helps prevent cardiovascular diseases.
This study from Boston University, conducted on prehypertensive adults or those with mild hypertension, shows how hibiscus infusion can lower blood pressure.
🍳 Regulates cholesterol and triglyceride levels
The exceptional composition of bissap gives it a cholesterol-lowering effect. In addition to being antioxidants, anthocyanins also play a beneficial role in the level of “bad cholesterol” or LDL cholesterol. While they lower LDL cholesterol levels, anthocyanins increase that of “good cholesterol” or HDL cholesterol.
The pectin and polyphenols present in bissap help improve fat metabolism and control the accumulation of triglycerides in the body. Finally, vitamin C and vitamin B3 (or niacin) also lower blood lipid levels.
This study from the University of Guadalajara, conducted on patients with metabolic syndrome, shows how powdered hibiscus flower extract reduced levels of bad cholesterol and triglycerides.
🏃🏼 Helps with weight loss
Bissap has a slimming action and supports weight loss. It prevents the accumulation of fat and reduces sucrose absorption. It is also low in calories and contains a large amount of water that contributes to the elimination and drainage of the body.
Bissap is a purgative drink. Thanks to the pectin it contains, it promotes proper intestinal function and improves digestion. These various actions make bissap a valuable ally for men and women who wish to control their weight.
This study of Iztapalapa University in Mexico, conducted on obese mice, demonstrates the effectiveness of Hibiscus sabdariffa extract in reducing body weight.
🌵 Anti-inflammatory
Bissap is a natural anti-inflammatory. This action is due in part to anthocyanins that reduce markers of inflammation. They act in particular on a key enzyme of inflammation: cyclooxygenase.
The polyphenols of bissap also exert an anti-inflammatory effect by interacting with the transcription factor NF-κB, an essential regulator involved in the body’s inflammatory response.
This study from Jakarta Medical University, conducted on rats, shows that Hibiscus sabdariffa extract is a potential anti-inflammatory.
🥝 Fights free radical damage
Because of its antioxidant content and vitamin C, bissap limits the damage caused by free radicals. It protects the body’s cells and fights oxidative stress. As a result, it helps prevent the development of certain diseases promoted by free radicals.
The natural pigments of bissap also reduce oxidative damage and liver lesions. Some studies are also investigating the effects of Hibiscus sabdariffa on cancer cells.
In this study from the University of Milan-Bicocca, conducted on human tumor cells, the extract of Hibiscus sabdariffa slowed their growth.
How to consume bissap?
Bissap juice
Bissap juice is the easiest form to find in organic and specialty stores or online. It is made from the flowers of Hibiscus sabdariffa left to infuse in water. The resulting juice is then sweetened with sugar and bottled. Depending on the recipes, bissap juice may also contain orange blossom, pineapple juice, nutmeg or vanilla.
You can make your own bissap drink. To do so, bring 1 liter of water to a boil and add 1 cup of dried Hibiscus sabdariffa flowers, 40 g of sugar, 1/2 a vanilla bean, a pinch of ground nutmeg and a few drops of orange blossom.
Bissap juice is served chilled.
Bissap powder
Bissap can also be offered in powder form. It consists of dried hibiscus flowers that have been finely ground.
Bissap powder is used to prepare an infusion, to be consumed hot or cold. You can also sprinkle it on your dishes to add a nice touch of color and a tangy flavor.
In cosmetics, bissap powder contributes to the beauty of the skin. Applied to the face, hibiscus infusion has an anti-aging effect and brightens the complexion.
Dried hibiscus flowers
To make your homemade bissap or flavor your preparations, you can use dried hibiscus flowers sold in bulk.
Be careful to choose red hibiscus flowers and not white ones, which do not have the same properties. White flowers come from a different hibiscus variety and have a more tart flavor than red bissap.
Bissap, ginkgo biloba and garcinia
To improve blood circulation, reduce high blood pressure, and boost antioxidant levels, pair bissap with ginkgo biloba.
To support weight loss, you can also take garcinia cambogia for its slimming properties.
Bissap dosage
⚖️ It is recommended not to drink more than 3 cups per day of bissap juice.
⏳ Also avoid consuming bissap late in the day because its tonic effect can cause insomnia. Bissap can be consumed daily or as a 4- to 6-week course before each change of season.
🥤As juice or infusion : up to 3 cups per day.
🥄 In powder : up to 30 g per liter of water.
🌺 In dried flowers : 5 tablespoons for 1 liter of water.
Contraindications and side effects
If the recommended dosage is followed, bissap consumption presents no toxicity. However, it is not recommended for the following people :
- Par mesure de précaution, et en raison de son effet emménagogue, les femmes enceintes ou allaitantes doivent éviter de prendre du bissap.
- Les personnes souffrant de troubles hépatiques, d’hypertension ou de maladies cardiaques doivent demander conseil à leur médecin avant d’en consommer.
Bissap consumption does not cause side effects. However, when taken in very large quantities, bissap can be harmful to the liver.
History, cultivation and market of bissap
An emblematic plant of West Africa
Developed from the 19th century, the cultivation of Hibiscus sabdariffa is today widespread in some regions of Africa. Guinea, Burkina Faso, Mali, Benin and Senegal are the main bissap-producing countries. Senegal alone has between 30,000 and 40,000 growers of Hibiscus sabdariffa.
The calyces are mainly used to make beverages, juices, powder and jams. But they are not the only parts of the plant used. The leaves, for example, are eaten as vegetables in the manner of spinach. Their taste, similar to that of sorrel, has even earned Hibiscus sabdariffa the nickname “Guinea sorrel”.
Report by Julia Perez and Charlotte Jean
Sources and scientific studies
McKay DL1, Chen CY, Saltzman E, Blumberg JB, 2010. Hibiscus sabdariffa L. tea (tisane) lowers blood pressure in prehypertensive and mildly hypertensive adults.
Gurrola-Díaz CM, García-López PM, Sánchez-Enríquez S, Troyo-Sanromán R, Andrade-González I, Gómez-Leyva JF, 2010. Effects of Hibiscus sabdariffa extract powder and preventive treatment (diet) on the lipid profiles of patients with metabolic syndrome (MeSy).
Alarcon-Aguilar FJ, Zamilpa A, Perez-Garcia MD, Almanza-Perez JC, Romero-Nuñez E, Campos-Sepulveda EA, Vazquez-Carrillo LI, Roman-Ramos R, 2007. Effect of Hibiscus sabdariffa on obesity in MSG-treated mice.
Gulshan Fahmi El Bayani, Nurasi Lidya E. Marpaung, Dedy Arnold Sastrajaya Simorangkir, Imelda Rosalyn Sianipar, Nurhadi Ibrahim, Neng Tine Kartinah, Indra Gusti Mansur, Jan S. Purba, and Ermita I. Ibrahim Ilyas, 2018. Anti-inflammatory Effects of Hibiscus Sabdariffa Linn. on the IL-1β/IL-1ra Ratio in Plasma and Hippocampus of Overtrained Rats and Correlation with Spatial Memory.
Malacrida A, Maggioni D, Cassetti A, Nicolini G, Cavaletti G, Miloso M, 2016. Antitumor Effect of Hibiscus sabdariffa on Human Squamous Cell Carcinoma and Multiple Myeloma Cells
