Organic Green Tea: what is it?
April 8th, 2009 Subscribe To Our Feed
Green tea leaves are harvested and dried before they even ferment. This process ensures that organic green tea keeps many of its healthy properties compared to other teas which undergo a lot of processes. Organic green tea produces a fresher and more aromatic flavor that many people love and enjoy. Aside from its taste and aroma, green teas are patronized more for their benefits to the overall condition of the body. They are now included in many diets and are made into diet supplements in the form of pills and extracts as well.
Basic Facts about Organic Green Tea
Men have been drinking organic green tea for over half a million years now. Its medicinal effects have been known by Chinese people long before researches and experiments have been done to prove its benefits. The history of green tea traces back from Asian culture, used as a beverage or an herbal medicine. As a matter of fact, history reports show that organic green tea was used as an astringent before to control bleeding and to help heal wounds.
What Makes Organic Tea Special
Catechin Polyphenols, a powerful antioxidant can be found richly in green tea. The compound is known to kill cancer cells, lowers bad cholesterol levels, and inhibits formation of blood clots. What sets organic green tea apart from other tea like oolong, and black tea is how it is processed. Organic green tea is steamed so its important compounds are not oxidized. Other teas are usually made from fermented leaves which make the beneficial health compounds not as effective as when it is only steamed.
Health Benefits of Green Tea
The popularity of green tea grew with the interest in fitness and healthy lifestyle. Tea contains a group of compounds called Polyphenols which acts as antioxidants to the body. Great benefits like preventing cancer have been proven to come from drinking organic green tea. Aside from that, here are a few more benefits of green tea to the health of a person:
* Prevents flu — Green tea can boost immunity against influenza
* Lowers Blood pressure — Blood pressure can be lowered by 50% by drinking at least two cups of green tea a day
* Cleanses the Digestive System — Tannins in tea cleanses the digestive tract and can calm a troubled stomach
* Aids in Weight Loss — Organic green tea is rich in antioxidants known as catechins which helps reduce the absorption of fats. Metabolism is also increased by drinking a cup to two of green tea everyday
* Dental Health — Cavity is prevented with the aid of fluoride from green tea. Aside from that, antioxidants kill bacteria and thus fresher breathe is obtained
* Bone Strength — Organic green tea is rich in Vitamin D which helps maintain bone density
Harmful Effects of Organic Green Tea
The hazards of green tea to the health are due to its caffeine. Insomnia can be experienced by those who consume more than five cups of green tea a day. However, compared to coffee, green tea contains lesser caffeine.
Eat Stop Eat: the “no diet” way to lose weight for good — and keep it off
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Tea’s amazing history
March 5th, 2009 Subscribe To Our Feed
Who knew tea’s history was so exciting? Robert Fortune stole the secret of tea.
“Green tea and black tea were not different species, as had been thought, but leaves from the same plant differently processed, one fermented, the other not.
He also discovered, to his horror, that the tea we were drinking should carry a health warning.
The Chinese were routinely slipping coloured dye into the tea intended for Britain because they thought we wanted it greener than it was naturally.
The dye was Prussian Blue, a form of cyanide. For years, tea had been poisoning us. “
Green tea for health
May 4th, 2008 Subscribe To Our Feed
The role of green tea in promoting health has been much in the news in the last few years. There is ample evidence that, consumed in moderation, green tea indeed does aid many aspects of functioning. Some of these benefits have been known for over a thousand years.
The polyphenols, flavonoids and even caffeine (in moderate quantities) present in green tea are all known to help the body protect itself. Green tea helps lower cholesterol (the ‘bad’ kind), absorbs free radicals that can damage cell membranes and reduces the prospect of certain cancers.
Despite Federal FDA denials, many studies lend strong support to those who tout green tea’s benefits. Black tea, as well, has most of the same benefits.
But green tea has many virtues beyond the medicinal. It tastes delightful and provides a relaxing form of enjoyment in a hectic world.
Just as with black or Oolong tea, green tea comes from the leaves of an evergreen called Camellia Sinensis. They are plucked, then processed. But unlike black tea, green tea leaves do not go through a long oxidation process.
Instead, green tea leaves are steamed, which retains the EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate) antioxidants. Black and Oolong teas undergo ‘fermentation’ which converts the EGCG into other compounds. ‘Fermentation’ in tea, despite the use of the same word, is not the same process as in winemaking. No sugars are converted to alcohol. It’s simply a synonym for oxidation, more or less.
As a result, the tea flavor is much more delicate and the aroma and taste retain much more of the ‘vegetative’ quality from the original bush. That flavor is enjoyed in a hundred varieties by tea drinkers the world over.
The Long Jing tea from Hang Zhou in China, pan dried and flat in appearance, often goes by the name Dragon Well. This green tea is among the most common drinks in China. Yet for all its commonality, it makes a fine brew. The Gyokuro, also known as Jewel Dew as a consequence of its color, is another fine green tea from China.
The Ryokucha from Japan is a green tea that is so common there that a form of the word (ocha) is often taken to mean simply ‘tea’. Connoisseurs regard the green tea from the Uji region of Kyoto to be among the finest. Matcha is a powdered green tea once used primarily in tea ceremonies. Now it is so popular throughout Japan and elsewhere that it finds its way into ice cream and other sweets.
Gunpowder, which has nothing to do with the explosive, is another popular variety. The leaves are rolled into tiny pellets, making for a very intense infusion. Its muscatel overtones make for a wonderful brew.
There is even a green tea-style Earl Grey. Though without the heady flavor of the more common black tea type, the bergamot oil combines well with green tea.
So if you have always been a committed black tea drinker, it’s time to open up your horizons. It may not make you wealthy, but it can give you enjoyment and promote your health. And isn’t that very wise?
Green tea for health
May 4th, 2008 Subscribe To Our Feed
The role of green tea in promoting health has been much in the news in the last few years. There is ample evidence that, consumed in moderation, green tea indeed does aid many aspects of functioning. Some of these benefits have been known for over a thousand years.
The polyphenols, flavonoids and even caffeine (in moderate quantities) present in green tea are all known to help the body protect itself. Green tea helps lower cholesterol (the ‘bad’ kind), absorbs free radicals that can damage cell membranes and reduces the prospect of certain cancers.
Despite Federal FDA denials, many studies lend strong support to those who tout green tea’s benefits. Black tea, as well, has most of the same benefits.
But green tea has many virtues beyond the medicinal. It tastes delightful and provides a relaxing form of enjoyment in a hectic world.
Just as with black or Oolong tea, green tea comes from the leaves of an evergreen called Camellia Sinensis. They are plucked, then processed. But unlike black tea, green tea leaves do not go through a long oxidation process.
Instead, green tea leaves are steamed, which retains the EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate) antioxidants. Black and Oolong teas undergo ‘fermentation’ which converts the EGCG into other compounds. ‘Fermentation’ in tea, despite the use of the same word, is not the same process as in winemaking. No sugars are converted to alcohol. It’s simply a synonym for oxidation, more or less.
As a result, the tea flavor is much more delicate and the aroma and taste retain much more of the ‘vegetative’ quality from the original bush. That flavor is enjoyed in a hundred varieties by tea drinkers the world over.
The Long Jing tea from Hang Zhou in China, pan dried and flat in appearance, often goes by the name Dragon Well. This green tea is among the most common drinks in China. Yet for all its commonality, it makes a fine brew. The Gyokuro, also known as Jewel Dew as a consequence of its color, is another fine green tea from China.
The Ryokucha from Japan is a green tea that is so common there that a form of the word (ocha) is often taken to mean simply ‘tea’. Connoisseurs regard the green tea from the Uji region of Kyoto to be among the finest. Matcha is a powdered green tea once used primarily in tea ceremonies. Now it is so popular throughout Japan and elsewhere that it finds its way into ice cream and other sweets.
Gunpowder, which has nothing to do with the explosive, is another popular variety. The leaves are rolled into tiny pellets, making for a very intense infusion. Its muscatel overtones make for a wonderful brew.
There is even a green tea-style Earl Grey. Though without the heady flavor of the more common black tea type, the bergamot oil combines well with green tea.
So if you have always been a committed black tea drinker, it’s time to open up your horizons. It may not make you wealthy, but it can give you enjoyment and promote your health. And isn’t that very wise?
Green tea for arthritis pain relief - the benefits of green tea grow
October 20th, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed
If you’re thinking that green tea is a magic liquid with benefits for many ailments, you’re right. New research indicates that green tea can provide arthritis pain relief.
Green Tea Fights Rheumatoid Arthritis reports:
Researchers examined the effects of green tea polyphenols on mice injected with collagen. (A procedure that produces a condition similar to rheumatoid arthritis in humans.) Polyphenols are considered to be an antioxidant and occur naturally within the body and in certain foods.
During three different studies, mice that were given the green tea polyphenols were significantly less likely to get arthritis. Of those who ‘drank the tea’, 44% became arthritic. For the ones who were not given the antioxidant, all but one (94%) developed the disease.
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All About Black Tea
July 31st, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed
Of all the varieties of tea, black tea is one of the most popular.
All true tea is the product of the leaves of the Camellia Sinensis plant. But, ah, what a difference a little oxygen and sunlight makes. Green tea is very lightly oxidized, Oolong moderately so and black tea the most heavily oxidized of all. There’s even a fourth variety, white tea, that rarely makes it to western shores.
The black tea leaves are plucked, washed, rolled and dried. From there they may find themselves partially ground into a tea bag or sold more or less whole. But in whatever form the leaf makes it to market, the flavor is largely the result of the region from which it came and the processing used there.
Much of it originated in China near Mount Wu Yi, in the Fujian Province. One style, the Lap Sang Sou Chong, is dried by holding the leaves over burning pine. The result is a delightfully strong, smoky flavor. From the Yunnan Province hails the tea that adopts the name of its homeland. Here is produced a dark, malty tea that is full of rich flavor.
India, for centuries one of the world’s largest tea producers, offers two with names that are possibly more famous than the tea itself. Assam is full-bodied and with a distinctive astringency that prompts many to dilute it with milk. The Darjeeling from West Bengal is more delicate, but still a very robust tea. Slightly spicy, it makes a perfect breakfast drink.
Initial efforts to grow tea in Ceylon (now known as Sri Lanka) in the 18th century were met with utter failure. But the growers persisted and tea drinkers around the world are the beneficiaries. The black Ceylon teas grace many fine table in their home country and throughout the world.
Vietnam has recently made efforts to join the ranks of major producers. The light aroma of a Vietnamese black is deceptive. This dark brew has a wonderful taste that is the real deal.
Even Turkey offers a black tea that any aficionado will want to sample. Hailing from the Rize Province on the eastern coast, this mahogany colored brew is prepared in a samovar and served up ‘koyu’. The best way to translate that word is simply to drink some. Be prepared for a jolt.
Black tea also makes for an excellent partner in traditional or modern blends. For example, the famed Earl Grey (named after its 17th century promoter) is a sweet, perfumey blend that gets its distinctive taste from a small amount of bergamot oil.
Whichever country you favor, whatever flavor you enjoy, sample a wide variety of black tea straight or flavored.
