Lapacho group

Lapacho (here the species Handroanthus impetiginosus ) in the San Rafael jungle reserve in Paraguay

Lapacho (Portuguese: Ipê-roxo , Pau d'arco ) is the colloquial name for several tree species that can be found in Central and South America and can reach heights of up to 35 meters. a. Handroanthus impetiginosus ( Syn. Tabebuia impetiginosa ), Handroanthus heptaphyllus and Handroanthus serratifolius . Lapacho trees are deciduous and have numerous pink, yellow, or white bell-shaped flowers during the flowering period (in South America from May to August).

Some indigenous peoples in America call the Lapacho the tree of life .

use

The Lapacho has a hard and heavy wood of high quality. In addition, the inner bark ( bast layer ) is suitable for the preparation of a tea: The watery extracts of the bark were already used by the Incas , and later the indigenous people of Peru , Bolivia and Paraguay adopted the lapacho infusion as a medicinal and enjoyable tea. In addition to potassium , calcium and iron , lapacho tea also contains trace elements such as barium , strontium , iodine and boron , but no caffeine . Active substances in lapacho tea are primarily the antibiotic naphthoquinone compounds lapachol and lapachone, which have a digestive stimulating and tonic effect. Studies in connection with a suspected effectiveness against cancer could not confirm this and warn of negative side effects.