Tag Archive - polyphenols in green tea

Getting the most out of green tea

July 24, 2010 in green tea, health benefits, weight loss with 2 Comments

Tea drinking had its origins in China more than 4000 years ago. Green tea itself has been drunk as a beverage and used in traditional medicine throughout Asia. It has been used to help a number of ailments, including controlling bleeding, healing wounds, regulating blood sugar and even assisting digestion.

Reading the Tea Leaves
Green tea contains polyphenols which are considered to improve health, especially catechins.

Now most green tea drinkers will tell you that that the best-tasting green tea is brewed for under one minute with hot water that hasn’t reached the boiling point yet.

Creative Commons License photo credit: Rachel Strohm

It is also steeped for a short period of time. Boiling water and longer steeping times tend to give the tea a more bitter taste.

However his may not give you the best results for your health.

Researchers have discovered that using boiling water and longer steeping times actually increases the amount of polyphenols in the tea.

These studies suggest that the following guidelines can boost the polyphenol level in your green tea:

The tea leaves themselves - small loose leaf green tea is the best choice, because its infuses quicker. Tightly curled or large leaf tea require longer infusion times.

Teabags are not as effective - loose leaves are preferable to teabags. If you use tea bags they continuously dunked in the teapot to aid the extraction of the polyphenols

Temperature – boiling water may unfortunately increase the bitter flavour but it does aid the extraction of polyphenols

Steeping Time – tea should be steeped for more than two and less than five minutes. The polyphenol content of tea increases with steeping time.

Now this research raises a dilemma for green tea drinkers.

 

Should I extract the most from my green tea and live with the not so sweet flavour or should I just enjoy my tea and not consider the benefits of green tea?

I think the best answer is to see if you can acquire a taste for the loose leaf green tea that is brewed for longer and thus extract as many health benefits as possible from the drink. If the taste is too difficult I would suggest sweetening it with some natural honey. Nevertheless if you drink green tea weight loss can happen.

So why not treat yourself right now with a hot cup of green tea, a slice or two of mango and a relaxing detox foot spa?

Green tea not only helps with weight loss it has health benefits

July 24, 2010 in Health Advice with 0 Comments

Green tea can undoubtedly help you with weight loss. Even if you are already on the Pritikin diet or the fat loss 4 idiots diet, if you drink green tea weight loss can become a reality.

However it also has proven health benefits and you can access them now.

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The BBC reported that Claire Williamson of the British Nutrition Foundation said: “Studies in the laboratory have shown potential health benefits.”

Public health nutritionist Dr Carrie Ruxton discovered that published studies on the effects of tea drinking indicated that consumption of three to four cups of tea a day can reduce the likelihood of a heart attack.

Also, contrary to urban myth green tea is not dehydrating, but it can be healthier than drinking water. Ridiculous you might say but consider the facts. Tea not only hydrates and thus replaces fluids but it also supplies powerful antioxidants and nutrients that assist basic building blocks of health.

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Dr Ruxton’s team discovered that the average consumption of tea had dropped and was now under three cups of tea a day. This is partly due to the increase of sugar laden soft drinks that whilst popular are not conducive to good health.

Prospective health pay offs from the polyphenols in green tea include reducing the risk of cancers and heart disease. These polyphenol antioxidants are in various foods and plants, including green tea leaves, and they are known to aid the prevention of damage to cells.

 

The polyphenols and catechins found in green tea fight free radicals which are the contaminants that cause disease, cancer and cell damage. They also harm skin cells, increasing wrinkles and sun spots. Green tea helps destroy these free radicals thus encouraging healthy skin.

A Japanese tertiary study discovered that drinking more two cups of tea a day diminished the odds of mental impairment amongst seniors by 64%. The simple pleasure of tea drinking has a proven impact on better health amongst the elderly.

An early 21st century study by the Brigham and Women’s Hospital contrasted coffee drinkers to tea drinkers. They discovered that the creation of  anti-bacterial proteins were up to five times higher in the tea drinkers. This indicated that the tea drinkers had a stronger immune system.

A study published in Antiviral Research, found that one of the catechin antixoidants in green tea (EGCG) significantly repressed influenza virus replication.

All these various studies point towards the same outcome. Drinking green tea gives you an edge when it comes to your health.