The Wonder Of Chinese Green Tea In Today’s Society

The Wonder Of Chinese Green Tea In Today’s Society

Have you tasted Chinese green tea? As you all know, green tea is the most popular types of Chinese tea. Many people, not only Chinese, consider it as the best drink for sultry summers. The main reason for this claim is the fact that green tea is cool and fights off inflammation. Many have even claimed that it relieves fever.

Actually, the health benefits of Chinese green tea have been known throughout the world. The Chinese have known about these medicinal benefits since ancient times, as they have been using green tea to treat everything from headaches to depression. A writer named Nadine Taylor in her book Green Tea: The Natural Secret for a Healthier Life mentioned that green tea has been used as a medicine in China for at least 4,000 years.

These days, numerous scientific researches conducted both in Asia and the West is providing hard evidences for the health benefits long associated with drinking green tea. To mention, the Journal of the National Cancer Institute published the results of an epidemiological study in 1994, indicating that drinking Chinese green tea lowers the risk of esophageal cancer in Chinese men and women by nearly 60 percent. Also, it was reported by the researches of the University of Purdue just recently that a compound in green tea inhibits the growth of cancer cells.

There are other medical conditions to which drinking green tea is reputed to be beneficial. To sum up, these conditions include cancer, cardiovascular disease, infection, rheumatoid arthritis, impaired immune function, and even high cholesterol levels.

What Makes Green Tea Special?

The top secret of Chinese green tea lies in the fact that it is rich in catechin polyphenols, particularly the said epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). EGCG is basically an anti-oxidant that has the power to fight and kill cancer cells without harming healthy tissue in the body. Studies also revealed that this anti-oxidant has been effective in lowering LDL cholesterol levels, and hampering the abnormal formation of blood clots. The latter benefit takes on added importance for the fact that the formation of abnormal blood clots, medically known as thrombosis, is the main factor that causes stroke and heart attacks.

Furthermore, the effects of Chinese green tea and the “French Paradox” were highly associated. Researches were in the first place puzzled by the fact that despite consuming a diet rich in fat, the French have a less incidence of heart disease than Americans. The primary answer was found to lie in red wine, which contains resveratrol. Resveratrol is as polyphenol that restricts the negative effects of smoking as well as a fatty diet. However, in 1997, a certain study reported that EGCG is twice as powerful as resveratrol. And, this somehow explains the lower rate of heart disease among Chinese men even though approximately 70 percent are smokers.

Other Benefits

New evidences that reveal the other benefits of Chinese green tea are now emerging. One of those is the claim that Chinese green tea can help dieters. Researchers found that men who were given a combination of caffeine and green tea extract burned more fats than those given only a placebo and caffeine.

Chinese green tea is also said to prevent tooth decay. Just as its bacteria-destroying abilities can help prevent food poisoning, it can also fight the bacteria that cause dental plague.

Today, several skin preparations containing green tea, from deodorants to creams, are also starting to appear on the market. This is for the reason that Chinese green tea is found out to be powerful in fighting bacteria that cause skin imperfections.

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Green Tea - A Tea from the Far East

Green Tea – A Tea from the Far East

Green tea is a kind of tea that has been very popular in China and Japan for centuries, and has recently seen a massive explosion in popularity in the West. Its rise is linked in many ways to that of the alternative health movement, which sees green tea as having a range of traditional healing properties and abilities to cure diseases. Although these claims have not been proven, there is documentation for belief in them that goes back over a thousand years.

Some green tea is produced outside China and Japan, but it is mostly considered to be cheap imitations of the ‘real thing’ and not worth paying attention to, with the possible exception of a few Indian teas. Most green tea drinkers still import their tea from the East, considering this to be the best tea, and some green teas have become especially famous, such as Japanese sencha, and the Chinese teas Longjing, Hou Kui, Piluochun, and many more besides. Although most supermarkets still only stock one form of generic ‘green tea’, which is usually of very poor quality, health food and herbal shops will generally have a whole range of high-quality, albeit expensive, green teas to choose from.

In Japan, green tea is used as part of a ‘tea ceremony’, a Buddhist tradition where tea is specially prepared and served to the people present. Participating in the ceremony at all requires intimate knowledge of how it works, meaning that few non-Japanese have ever done so. Tea holds an interesting place in Chinese culture, too, with making tea often being used as a means of non-verbal communication to express sentiments like “I’m sorry” or “thank you”. The mythos surrounding tea in Eastern cultures allows the Western green tea drinker to feel that they are taking part in something ancient, traditional and mysterious simply by drinking green tea, and to a certain extent they are.

Green Tea And Some Of Its Benefits

Three to five cups of green tea a day can do you a lot of good.

Tea, especially green tea has long been known for its medicinal benefits. It helps digestion, boost metabolism and even wards off cancer and heart disease.

According to whether it is fermented or not, tea can be divided into 3 types:

green tea – not fermented
oolong tea – partially fermented
black tea – fermented

While people may prefer black tea or oolong tea, green tea has more healthy benefits. As it¡¯s dried straight after picking, it keeps most of its valuable polyphenols while its cousins ¨C black tea and oolong tea lose most of theirs in the process of fermentation. Green tea has a lot more polyphenols than black tea or oolong tea. What¡¯s the deal of those polyphenols things, you may wonder? They are known as powerful antioxidants, which remove free radicals from the body. Free radicals in the body’s cells are very bad. They are very unstable and tend to react negatively with other important molecules like DNA, causing malfunctions and injury on the cellular level. They produce destruction that may therefore pave the way for diseases like heart disease and cancer. Green tea contains rich polyphenols that play an active role in removing the free radicals from the body. Antioxidants in tea are also known to prevent death from second heart attack by helping blood vessels relax, thus blood can flow through more easily. As a result, that can help lower blood pressure and reduce stress on the heart. Studies show green tea drinkers have 50% lower risk of developing stomach or oesophageal compared to non-green tea drinkers.

One final benefit of green tea drinking can help lose some weight. It’s believed some of its polyphenols and caffeine work together to boost the body’s metabolism, thus boost our energy burning system.

How much tea shall we drink? Generally, three to five cups a day is fairly enough for us to get its medical benefits.

Shall we have a cup of tea now?

Green Tea Stir-Fry Chicken Over Udon

Ingredients (4 servings)

½ lb chicken breast
1 stalk scallion
1 tbsp sesame seeds
1 lb Fresh, refrigerated or frozen udon noodles
1/4 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon chili paste
1/2 tablespoon dry sherry or sake
6 to 8 fresh shiitake mushroom caps, crisscrossed on top with knife
1/4 sencha loose leaves

Preparing it (5 minutes)

1. Cut chicken into thin slices.
2. Dice scallion.
3. Cut Shiitake mushrooms into thin strands

Directions (10 minutes)

1. Boil udon noodle until well done.
2. Drain udon noodle.
3. Heat 1 tbsp sesame oil or skillet over high heat until hot (Approx. 350°F).
4. Add chicken and shiitake mushrooms and stir fry until done.
5. Add udon, sencha loose leaves, soy sauce, sherry or sake, rice wine vinegar, then stir fry until hot.
6. Top off with diced scallion and sesame seeds.

Cooking with Green Tea

Cooking with Green Tea

Recently it has become popular to cook with green tea. In powder and liquid form it’s so easy to use, delicious and good for you it’s really no surprise. You may ask why people would try to cook with such a thing. Well green tea is filled with a wide array of health benefits. It lowers cholesterol, is high in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. In fact most Asian countries have used green tea for cooking purposes for these very reasons. The other reason would be flavour. Green tea has a very distinct flavour that many enjoy and cannot be easily emulated by anything but green tea itself.

So now the big question, “How do I cook with green tea?” Well as I said earlier it’s really very easy to do. A very simple way is to substitute the water in a recipe with brewed green tea (at room temperature or as specified by the recipe). This is probably the best way for someone who is experimenting with a recipe or this style of cooking. When you do this keep in mind that you want the green tea to be strong. The stronger the tea is the more flavour and colour will remain in the end product. This is why loose leaf tea is generally recommended.

You may also just want to look for green tea recipes. I see new ones popping up every day. Simply go online and search for “green tea” and your favourite recipe. You may be surprised to find several already available.

A lot of green tea recipes will ask for green tea powder or matcha. This is ground up green tea leaves. Matcha specifically is ground up Gyokuro leaves and is used for tea ceremony purposes. You will find matcha generally more expensive than green tea powder, which can be made from almost any green tea. However you may find matcha worth the extra price for those specially recipes.

If you have never done it, I recommend buying green tea powder or matcha and trying it on some of your favourite recipes. You will find it amazing how much colour and flavour one teaspoon of this stuff can provide.

author:John Newman

Curb Cravings With Green Tea: Helps The Body Burn Fat

Curb Cravings With Green Tea: Helps The Body Burn Fat

Green tea has a long history of healthful benefits and its qualities are significantly more effective than black tea. Both teas come from the carnellia sinensis plant but green tea leaves are steamed rather than fermented like black and oolong teas. This prevents a powerful anti-oxidant, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), from being oxidized and therefore diminished.

Antioxidant Properties

Most of us have heard of the positive effects red wine can have on a fatty diet and its healthful benefits on heart disease. High amounts of catechins polyphenols, particularly EGCG, are present in green tea. And EGCG has twice as much resveratrol as red wine, making it a powerful weapon towards lowering cholesterol, inhibiting blood clots and negating the effects of a fatty diet.

EGCG is also used to treat diabetes and is reported to have glucose-lowering effects. In addition glucose can cause a person to feel hunger and by controlling insulin levels, you control appetite. Try drinking a mug of green tea at the first hunger pain and you are well on your way to managing your appetite.

Thermogenesis

Thermogenesis literally means heat generation. Green tea increases thermogenesis in the body, becoming a potent appetite suppressant and increasing fat oxidation, helping the body to use fat as an energy source. This means the body is preferentially burning fat over protein.

Green tea also raises the body’s metabolism, increasing the rate at which calories are burned. In a recent study, the combination of green tea and caffeine burned more calories than those given a placebo.

Add to its thermogenesis benefits, green tea also has energy-boosting properties, which makes it a perfect breakfast tea or mid-afternoon pick me up.

Other Healthful Benefits

There are many other conditions in which green tea is reputed to be helpful:

Killing cancer cells, while leaving healthy cells untouched
Treating Rheumatoid arthritis
Lowering LDL cholesterol
Preventing thrombosis which causes heart attacks and strokes
Addressing cardiovascular disease by inhibiting abnormal formation of blood clots
Preventing infection
Improving impaired immune function
Stopping certain neurodegenerative diseases (such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s)
Treating multiple sclerosis
Preventing tooth decay by killing the bacteria that causes dental plaque

When you compare the health benefits of green tea with the harmful effects of regular and diet soda, coffee and other damaging drinks, it is easy to see why green tea has a long and successful history of benefiting the drinker.

Adding Green Tea to Your Diet

Green tea has become so popular that it can be found in mainstream grocery stores as well as gas stations and convenience stores. There are many flavours and varieties of green teas so you will be sure to find a combination of flavours you’ll enjoy.

Consider also adding green tea water to some cooked foods. Adding tea to a pot of boiling pasta will affect the flavour in a fresh new way. Toss that same pasta with pine nuts, pesto and a dash of olive oil and you have a healthful dish with many antioxidant properties. Challenge yourself to find new and exciting ways to add green tea to your diet.

Green Tea Diet Facts

tea

Green Tea Diet Facts

More and more are exhibiting likeness of green tea. Some are already incorporating it into their diet. How do people see green tea? It’s a miracle drug that can enhance youthfulness, beauty, and a strong and healthy body. It is also considered as the protector of the human body from numerous diseases. For the fitness world, it serves as an agent in losing weight. These are just some of the benefits of having green tea diet.

Working out a natural diet

By incorporating at least 3 cups of green tea in your meal daily, you are enhancing a more balanced diet. Together with exercise, green tea has turned out to be more effective than ever. There is no such thing as how many servings every meal can green tea be incorporated. No exact doses. Just one cup every breakfast, lunch, dinner and even during midnight snacks is sufficient enough to be part of your daily diet.

Green tea preserves all its important compounds like antioxidants because it is brewed and not fermented, It is advisable to drink green tea while it’s still hot because live antioxidants are very prominent and its valuable nutritional affects are also preserved. It’s better to purchase and brew loose green tea leaves than the bottled or powdered ones because they are not as effective as brewing.

Black tea versus green tea

Black tea is not similar to green tea at all. While green tea is typically brewed, black tea is fermented. The fermentation process of black tea tends to eliminate the important vitamins and nutrients that are beneficial to health. Therefore, it is concluded that green tea is proven to be more effective than black tea.

Green tea diet benefits

• Reduce the risk for hypertension and high blood pressure

• Destroy free radicals

• Maintain healthy fluid and electrolyte balance that can help relieve fatigue and stress

• Lower increased amount of cholesterol level

• Toxin prevention in the liver

• Antiviral and antibacterial properties

• Reduce incidences of cancer in parts of the body like colon, pancreas, oesophagus, rectum, bladder and stomach by up to sixty per cent

• Increased metabolism

• Strengthen immune system

• Stops thrombosis formation which is the cause for heart attacks

Caffeine content

Thoughts about the caffeine content in green tea have bothered and quite alarmed avid drinkers of the beverage. Although, there are ways to lessen the caffeine content in your green tea by adjusting yourself in the effects and observing the tolerance of your body.

Warning on green tea caffeine

• If you have a medical condition or you’re pregnant, be sure to consult your physician first before consuming the beverage.

• Drink moderately. Caffeine is not the only thing that can do negative effects when increased. Higher concentration of polyphenols can damage the kidney and liver. Don’t drink 8-10 cups of green tea a day. That can be very harmful especially if you have a low tolerance level. The more acceptable intake is at least 3-4 cups a day.

• Don’t be fooled by energy drinks made from green tea. Aside from diminished or very less antioxidants, energy drinks have high sugar content. Drinks like these have already undergone a lot of processes that may lose important nutrients upon reaching your body.


Tea with Bill & Sheila

Green Tea: Cancer Fighting Miracle Brew?

tea

Green Tea: Cancer Fighting Miracle Brew?

For thousands of years, the Chinese and the Japanese have long been drinking green tea. It has been attributed for helping fight off different kinds of illnesses as well as help in weight loss, and this brew has also been linked to fighting cancer.

Only recently, green tea has been introduced in the west. And, people love them. Most people say that they never felt healthier in their entire lives, and health buffs even said that this tea is a miracle drink. Ever since then, the entire world is now drinking green tea on a daily basis.

So, is green tea really that wonderful? Does it really fight off cancer?

For starters, green tea has a lot of benefits. The main benefit of this brew is that it has antioxidants which are known to fight off cancer cells. So, to answer the question on whether green tea can prevent cancer, the answer is yes. It gets rid of free radicals from your body which leaves it free from toxins that can contribute to cancer.

This brew is full of the antioxidant called epigallocatechin-3 gallat or what is more known as EGCG. Unlike black tea, green tea is not fermented, which preserves EGCG. Because of this fact, this brew is much more beneficial than black tea and has a more positive effect in fighting diseases, which includes cancer.

You have to remember that when free radicals enter our body, it will have an effect to our cells. If this happens, it will make abnormal cells, which can result in cancerous cells that can reproduce all over your body creating tumours.

Free radicals can enter the body in different ways. It can be because of exposure to cigarette smoke, pollution, and it can even be because of exposure to excessive sunlight.

Whatever it is, it is important that we should get rid of free radicals from our body in order to keep it healthy and cancer free. Although some of the food we eat contains antioxidant, you have to remember that it is not really enough to fight off the amount of free radicals that enter our body. The best way to counter free radicals is by taking in more antioxidants in your body. This is where green tea comes in.

Because green tea has a high concentration of antioxidants, it will be able to fight off free radicals more effectively. With just three to four cups a day, you can be sure that you will be able to keep your body healthy and cancer free.

In fact, green tea is so effective that even the National Cancer Institute conducted studies on this so-called miracle brew and found that it does help in preventing cancer. Today, scientists are now looking at green tea as a key part of creating a cure for cancer. In time, thanks to this century-old brew, we will now see a cancer cure for the very first time.

One study even found that the antioxidants found in green tea was able to shrink tumours and prevented it from reproducing more cancerous cells and growing.

As you can see, green tea does help in preventing cancer. With the scientific studies being done with green tea today, it is only a matter of time that we will be able to see a cure for cancer.

Tea with Bill & Sheila

Green Tea Can Help you to Loose Weight

tea

Green Tea Can Help you to Lose Weight

Green tea – a product of brewing from the leaves of a plant named Camellia Sinensis. This kind of tea is said to have multiple health benefits that is very advantageous to the human body. One of the many benefits of green tea is that it can enable to enhance metabolism inside the body, thus, burning fat faster than usual. With daily consumption, there is a hundred per cent possibility of losing weight in no time. So you can eat all you want without feeling guilty on gaining additional adipose tissues because with just one cup of green tea, it washes away your worries.

But wait, there’s more.

The beauty about green tea is that is not fermented unlike other teas. Which is a good thing because it doesn’t take away the most important elements that is essential for keeping the body healthy. That would include the fat burning compounds.

There are three steps in the processing of green tea namely heating, then rubbing and lastly, drying. There are also different kinds of tea like: baked green tea, dried green tea, fried green tea and steamed green tea. Nowadays, green tea is becoming more popular in coffee shops or in grocery stores because of its major benefits that consumers are discovering. Even coffee shops are including a wide variety of natural green tea flavours in their menu for greater choice. Green tea has become an alternative to orange pokoe. Why all the changes and consideration in favour of green tea? Because you’re pouring the way for a healthier longer life.

Green tea is one of the active ingredients that is used in numerous weight loss products. According to researches, thermogenesis, fat oxidation and increased energy expenditure are just some of the result of what green tea can do to your body as an effective product for weight loss.

What’s in a tea?

Green tea possesses anti-oxidation effects which are highly effective. This antioxidant is called as epigallacatechin gallate which is a compound that is also know as EGCG. EGCG is from polyphenol that has the capacity to burn fat effectively. According to a research from Switzerland, drinking at least three cups of green tea regularly can cause 80 per cent of calories burned without even increasing the rate of heart activity and ruling out the caffeine content.

Antioxidants?

If you still have no idea what an antioxidant is, read on. An antioxidant is a kind of “good” chemical that can be found in plants. Antioxidants are kinds of substances that can protect a person’s body from free radicals. Free radicals are fragments of special molecules that damage the body in its cellular level. Hurting the body through the cellular level will have great negative effects by making the body more vulnerable to diseases that are degenerative like heart diseases and cancer. Antioxidants work by deactivating free radicals thus, minimizing the amount of damage that it can do to the body.

For centuries now, green tea has become the pride of China because of the many benefits it can contribute. No wonder the Chinese take pride in their tea. It is now considered as one of the most popular medicinal beverage that the world has recognized.

Green tea can refresh, enlighten, soothe, promote inner happiness, calmness, stimulate and more importantly, promote a healthy lifestyle.


Tea with Bill & Sheila

Green Tea and Caffeine

tea

Green Tea and Caffeine

It is very important to give proper attention to one’s health especially in today’s times. There are individuals who encounter problems with caffeine and as you know, green tea does contain caffeine. You can see a lot of advertisements on television about the positive effects of drinking the said tea but for those individuals who can’t take caffeine, they should be extra careful.

It seems that despite the good things about green tea, the modern community was able to prove that it also has a negative effect. Well, before you decide whether you will continue drinking green tea or not, read on and discover some amazing facts about the intake of green tea.

Some of the harmful effects of caffeine intake in people are heart palpitations, jitters, insomnia, and many other unwanted effects. Because of this realization, manufacturers of green tea are now producing decaffeinated extracts to cater to the needs of those who can’t take caffeine.

In fact, there are now supplements which are also decaffeinated. You should get this type of green tea and supplements especially if you’re not allowed to take beverages with caffeine. Although the caffeine content in green tea is much less than coffee, a person who is extra sensitive to caffeine will experience the same unwanted effects by drinking the tea.

For every eight ounces of tea, the caffeine content is about forty milligrams. Are you already computing your tea intake and the caffeine that you’re getting? The caffeine contents are relatively smaller in green tea and if you can get away with it without any bad effects, you will also benefit in other health areas.

Even if green tea contains caffeine, it also contains antioxidants like polyphenols which can benefit the body. The antioxidants can help in preventing certain types of cancer, lowers the bad cholesterol in the body, and it can enhance the immune system. The health benefits are truly amazing and this may the very reason why even the ancient Chinese continued to serve green tea at home and to their guests.

The modern world enjoys advanced medical technology and so it is no longer a surprise if scientists and researchers discover the good things about green tea. More and more advanced clinical studies and lab tests are conducted to prove the tea’s healing properties. If you think that the positive effects of green tea outweighs the negative, then there’s no reason for you to stop taking it.

In truth and in fact, caffeine occurs in cocoa beans, tea, and coffee. Cola drinks also contain caffeine because manufacturers use it to enhance the drink’s flavour. Green tea and black tea definitely has caffeine because the plant (Camellia sinensis) itself contain caffeine.

If you’re afraid of the effects of caffeine, you can just purchase the decaffeinated green tea. Even if the tea no longer contains caffeine, it would still taste the same; you will still get the great ‘kick’ in taste when you drink it. Most of the tea’s caffeine are removed in the decaf process. However, some studies show that because of the decaf process, the healing properties are ruined.

If you do have extreme problems with caffeine, then most probably you will go for the decaf green tea. For people who don’t have any problems connected to caffeine, it is advisable to drink the original green tea so that you can benefit from its healing properties.

All in all, the benefits of drinking the original tea preparation outweigh the negative effects. It is up to you whether you drink the decaf green tea or the original one. There’s black, green, and red tea. Green tea is obviously in the middle in terms of caffeine content. So what’s it’s going to be? Decaf, original, or no tea at all?

Tea with Bill & Sheila

Green Tea - Why Drink It?

tea

Green Tea – Why Drink It?

In Asia, green tea is quite popular. For many generations, the tea has already been a part of family gatherings and even their day to day lives. There are various reasons why Asian people loved to drink green tea. Aside from its excellent taste, you can also derive some health benefits from drinking green tea. Recently, medical communities and the western countries have recognized the benefits of drinking green tea. There are various reasons why individuals should drink tea and these reasons are found in this article.

The very first reason is that green tea is something different. You’re probably used to drinking soft drinks, coffee, fruit juices, and other beverages. Green tea is something new that you should try out. It’s not every day that you get to encounter something unique in terms of taste and most specially, very few beverages have health benefits.

Most Americans drink coffee several times a day and since it contains a larger amount of caffeine, some people are already looking into substituting green tea instead. You will surely enjoy the tea’s nutty aroma and its sweet grassy flavour. Although some studies show that green tea also has caffeine, there are now decaffeinated green tea sold in the market.

Still, if you want to go for the traditional green tea, it would help to know that the caffeine content is lesser as compared to coffee. Some people get jitters and you can avoid this by taking green tea in moderate amounts. Those who plan to stay late or those who work at night should drink green tea instead of coffee to help them stay awake.

The second reason why people should drink tea is that it contains healing properties. Because of today’s advanced science, many medical experts are discovering green tea’s healing properties. Green tea is mainly made up of antioxidants which can help in improving the overall health of an individual. If you lack energy to carry out the day’s tasks and chores, don’t forget to drink your tea because you will feel a burst of energy especially if you drink it every day.

Healthy cells are also promoted by drinking tea. There are still other health benefits that you can take advantage. You see, if you drink green tea, you can prevent heart diseases, cancer, and other health problems. Those who often get sick should take tea in order to boost the immune system’s health. People with weight problems can also take green tea instead of water and juices to reduce weight since the tea can suppress appetite. You can take it anytime you like, before meals, during, and after meals.

Are there still other reasons that you can think of? So far, there is no other beverage that can give you a lot of health benefits. If you go to the groceries, you can find different kinds of green tea preparations. It would be best if you can grow a tea plant so that you can prepare the original serving. But anyway, since people today live a busy lifestyle, they always prefer the instant – from food to their drinks. There are now bottled green tea which you can purchase and they are ready to drink. Hurry and go to the local grocery now to purchase your green tea.

If you want, you can also take supplements of green tea but before you buy any, ask your doctor first. It would also be good if you check product reviews regarding the supplements. That way, you will know which brands sell more and which are effective. Seek the doctor’s advice before taking any health supplement so that your actions can be guided, most especially if you’re a pregnant woman or if you have certain allergies and illnesses.

If the Asian people benefited from green tea for hundreds of years, then there’s probably no reason why you shouldn’t try it yourself. Medical communities are already promoting the intake of green tea, so don’t be left behind. Join other people who are now discovering the health benefits of drinking tea.

Tea with Bill & Sheila

A great Cup of Green Tea

Green tea

A great Cup of Green Tea

For starters, all tea came from the same botanical source and that is camellia sinesis, but the difference is on the processing of the tea leaves, giving each and every type of tea its distinctive aroma, taste and even colour, and also its properties. Green tea is steamed and dried thus maintaining its colour, chemical properties and natural taste while other types of tea are fermented. Studies proved that green tea had a lighter flavour and aroma compared to that of black tea, which makes all the beneficial chemicals intact, putting greatness to your enjoyable cup of green tea.

How to make a cup of green tea

• Brewing green tea is similar with other tea. Whether it is bagged or loose green tea. It is important to remember not to use boiling water. Brewing with water that’s just about to reach its boiling point is the right temperature; this is for the reason that green tea is more delicate than other tea.

• The best tasting green tea is brewed under one minute and let it steep for a short period of time, it is recommended not to prepare it with boiling water and longer time of steeping because it will make the tea bitter to the taste.

• However increased level of polyphenols in green tea is directly proportional with water temperature and time of steeping. It means that the longer time it was brewed under boiling water and the longer it is steeped means a greater concentration of polyphenols on every cup of green tea making it more potent than that of shorter time to brew and steeped. Polyphenols are the anti-oxidants found in green tea which contributes to the green teas’ medicinal properties.

Suggestions on how to boost antioxidant concentration of your green tea:

• Temperature- studies proved that with the use of boiling water more of the polyphenols, the anti-oxidants on green tea is extracted from the tea leaves. The higher the temperature used for brewing tea leaves the greater is the concentration of polyphenols to be found, thus making a more effective tea against diseases and illness.

• Steeping time- in order to attain more of the goodness in a cup of tea, longer steeping time is advised. Longer steeping time allows more polyphenol presence. Tea should be steeped 2 to 5 minutes to allow more polyphenol to emerge. Shorter steeping time means less or the polyphenol and greater caffeine content in your tea.

• Size of tea leaves- the smaller the leaf is, the better, even in size, green tea has proven the power of small things to create wonder. Studies have shown that small loose green tea leaves infuses quickly compared to that of tightly curled and large tea leaf which requires more or longer infusion time.

• Loose leaf versus Tea bags- it is more preferable to use leaves compared to tea bags. By simply allowing the green tea leaves to float on the water more of the polyphenol are being extracted while in order for tea bags to produce this anti-oxidant, the tea bags must be continuously dunked in the tea pot.

To this day, green tea has already proved to help cure and protect people against a lot of health problems. In order to attain optimum protection against illness proper nutrition, healthy lifestyle plus a cup of your favourite green tea will do the job.

Green Tea with Bill & Sheila