Throughout history, people believed that tea is beneficial to the body without knowing the scientific reason. The ancient Chinese books claimed that tea can cure ‘100 illnesses’.
Tea drinking originated in China and has a history of over 5,000 years. Throughout history, people believed that tea is beneficial to the body without knowing the scientific reason. The ancient Chinese books claimed that tea can cure ‘100 illnesses’.
It was only in the past few decades that scientists began to take a closer look at what is behind tea’s purported health benefits.
Tea contains flavonoids, which are natural occurring compounds believed to have antioxidant properties. Antioxidants work to neutralize free radicals, which, over time, can damage elements in our body and contribute to chronic disease.
Tea is classified into white, green, red, brown, or black although they come from the leaves of the same Camellia sinensis plant. The most common type of tea are the Black and Green Tea.
The difference between Green and Black Tea is the way the tea leaves are processed. Green Tea leaves are steamed whereas the Black tea leaves are put through a fermentation process.
Green Tea is rich in the flavonol group of polyphenols known as catechins. Catechins are potent antioxidants and have significant free-radical scavenging properties. For Black Tea, the active polyphenols of the tea leaf are either greatly reduced or destroyed during fermentation.
The Prostate Cancer Research Institute reported that one of the catechins, Epigallocatechin-3 gallate, found in Green Tea is beneficial to prostate cancer patients. The catechins will attach to an enzyme often found in large amounts in human cancers and retard tumor growth.
Tea drinking has also been associated with oral health and bone health. Research also found that the consumption of tea may retard the development of lung cancer caused by carcinogens in tobacco and also reduced the level of oxidative stress, especially in smokers.
The most recent study carried out by the Tohoku University School of Public Policy, Sendai, Japan; found that adults in Japan who consumed higher amounts of Green Tea had a lower risk of death due to all causes and due to cardiovascular disease.