By [http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Lorraine_Bevan/3625]Lorraine
Bevan
The Chinese have known about Green tea as a powerful medication
for at least 4000 years. According to legend, tea was discovered by a Chinese
emperor called Shen Nung. Some tea
leaves accidentally fell into boiling water, and he tried it and found it
invigorating. Green tea became part of the Chinese diet and many important
health benefits were attributed to it. Now recent medical studies in both asia
and the west are providing a scientific basis for the claim that drinking green
tea has very significant health benefits.
Green tea, like black tea is made from the leaves of the
plant Camellia sinensis. The
difference between the three main types of tea is the way that they are
produced. Green tea is unfermented tea meaning that the leaves used for green
tea are steamed soon after been plucked in order to prevent the oxidation of
the leaves. In this way the leaves remain green and the active substances
within the leaves retain their qualities. Black teas on the other hand are made
from fermented leaves and as a result have less nutritional and enzyme content
as the green tea. Thus green and black teas have different chemical properties.
Modern science has in recent times been able to demonstrate
that green tea is beneficial to one's health and this is mainly due to the fact
that tea contains high levels of antioxidants called polyphenols or flavonoids.
The antioxidant activity of tea has been compared to that of fruit and
vegetables in a number of studies. One study concluded that consuming three
cups of tea a day produced a similar amount of antioxidants as eating six
apples. Antioxidants help your body fight against free radicals which cause
damage to cells and tissues in your body.
While all tea is healthy to drink, it is green tea that contains
the highest level of flavonoids. Recent medical studies suggest green tea to be
beneficial in many areas including the following:
-Digestive and respiratory health.
-Lowers cholesterol levels
-Boosts your immune system
-Reduces high blood pressure
-Arthritis - anti-inflammatory effect.
-Oral hygiene - due to antibacterial
properties.
-Skin conditions such as acne
-Lowers blood sugar
Weight loss is another area that is attracting huge attention.
Recently published research in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
suggests that an extract from green tea may speed up fat oxidation. A study was
conducted of ten healthy men over a period of 6 weeks. It was discovered that
those men who were given green tea extract burned more calories per day than
those who were not given the extract. Much more research needs to be conducted
in this area but the signs are certainly very encouraging.
Anyone for tea!
Lorraine Bevere is the owner and operator of FOG Tea [http://www.fogtea.com]
which is a premier source of information about tea. For questions or comments
about this article, please visit: [http://fogtea.com]
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