Nourilo

Herbal & Flower Teas

Black Bean Calming Tea (Hei Dou An Shen Cha)

traditionally used to soothe restless infants, support peaceful sleep, and ease fretfulness

In short: Black Bean Calming Tea (Hei Dou An Shen Cha) is a herbal & flower tea that traditionally used to soothe restless infants, support peaceful sleep, and ease fretfulness. It is most often made for children's wellness, sleep & calm. Total time about 40 min. Key ingredients: rush pith.

By · Published under our editorial policy · Research library

Prep
10 min
Cook
30 min
Total
40 min
Makes
2 cups
Children's WellnessSleep & Calm
Black Bean Calming Tea (Hei Dou An Shen Cha)

Why people make this tea

It is one of the most exhausting experiences a new parent faces: a baby who simply will not settle — crying at odd hours, sleeping fitfully, impossible to soothe. In Cantonese food therapy, one traditional explanation for this pattern in young infants is uncleared “fetal heat” (tai re) — a residual internal heat that the baby may have accumulated before birth if the mother ate warming foods during pregnancy. Whether or not one subscribes to that framework, this little three-ingredient tea has been recommended by Nourilo to hundreds of worried parents over the years, and the community feedback has been encouraging: many report that after two or three days of the tea, their baby’s sleep visibly improves. The formula is notably gentle — black bean is neutral in nature, liquorice is mild and sweet, and rush pith is only slightly cooling — making this one of the more balanced and reassuring options in infant food therapy.

What studies say about the key ingredients

Traditional use is not the same as clinical proof. Here is the strongest human research we found for each ingredient, limitations included.

  • Black soybeans · Randomized controlled trial, 100 participants · 2013
    Systolic blood pressure fell more in the black soy peptide group (-9.69 mm Hg) than in the placebo group (-2.91 mm Hg) after baseline adjustment. Plasma malondialdehyde decreased and superoxide dismutase activity increased compared with placebo.Limitation: Used an isolated peptide supplement rather than whole black soybeans, and followed participants for only 8 weeks, so the results may not apply to food intake.PubMed 23924691
  • Licorice root · Randomized controlled trial, 66 participants · 2024
    Compared with placebo plus the same low-calorie diet, licorice extract was associated with greater improvements in body weight, BMI, body fat, lipid profile, fasting glucose, insulin and HOMA-IR at 8 weeks.Limitation: Small sample, short 8-week duration, and an extract dose that is not comparable to licorice eaten as food; the authors call for confirmatory research.PubMed 39080737 · 3 more licorice root studies

From the Nourilo Research Library. Findings come from specific doses, extracts and populations and may not apply to a home-cooked recipe.

Safety first — read before you cook

This is a traditional food, not a treatment. Please check with your doctor or pharmacist before making it a regular part of your diet if you:

  • are pregnant or breastfeeding, or are cooking for a young child;
  • take regular medicines — especially blood thinners, blood-pressure, diabetes or immune-suppressing drugs;
  • have a kidney, liver or heart condition, or a known food allergy.

Ingredient notes for this recipe

  • Licorice root: Contains glycyrrhizin. Large amounts or long-term use have been linked to raised blood pressure and irregular heartbeat, and even smaller amounts have caused problems in people with high blood pressure, heart or kidney conditions, or a high-salt diet. Large amounts are unsafe in pregnancy, and it can interact with corticosteroids. Source: NIH NCCIH — Licorice Root

Stop eating it and seek advice if you notice an allergic reaction or feel unwell. Safety notes reviewed 8 October 2026 · How we write safety notes

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