Saturday, September 19, 2009

Varieties of Tea

This article will focus on three popular varieties of loose leaf tea--black, white, and green. All three teas offer excellent health benefits to varying degrees. Let’s take a look at the differences.

Black Tea
This tea can be the boldest in flavor. It can be sweet, spicy and very fragrant. Black tea is best known for it's digestive benefits. Because of it's high level of tannins, it can have an anti-diarrheal effect. The theophylline in tea helps to lower cholesterol, expand the airways allowing us to breathe easier, and prevent tooth decay. Some recent studies indicate that black tea may even kill certain viruses that live on our skin and in our mouth!

Green Tea
Green tea is rapidly becoming popular due to its emerging known health benefits. Like black tea, it can lower cholesterol, fight infection and tooth decay, and can boost the immune system. Green tea contains EGCG which is a very powerful antioxidant also found in wine. There is more EGCG in green tea than in black tea.

White Tea
This tea is made from immature leaves that are picked before the buds are opened. It's pale in color and sweet in taste. It is now believed that white tea is the healthiest tea of all because it contains more antioxidants than green tea. This tea is usually also the most expensive to buy.

All three teas offer health benefits to anyone who chooses to drink them regularly. Because tea contains less caffeine than coffee, they are able to increase blood flow to the brain without increasing the heart rate. It is believed that this can enhance mental clarity.

If you're unsure about trying loose leaf tea, visit a tea merchant and sample a few varieties. These stores are fantastic. The sales associates are experts and can point you in the right direction. The price of tea varies dramatically. A good merchant will sell you quality tea without destroying your budget.

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