Tea and its Health Benefits
Content Courtesy of the Forever Young Podcast with Christiana Egi and Cherrie-Marie Chiu.
Do you know that people around the world have been drinking tea for thousands of centuries? Numerous studies have shown that a variety of teas may boost our immune system, fight inflammation, and even ward off illnesses such as cancer and heart disease. In the most recent Forever Young Podcast episode we discussed the amazing benefits of tea and chatted about the different types of tea you can try for each taste bud! Listen to the full episode “Tea and its Health Benefits” below or keep reading to find out more.
A hot cup of tea or coffee can feel good, or even an iced tea or coffee over the summer. Adding fruits to your tea instead of sugar and honey can be a healthy and tastier alternative! There are many different types of tea but we will discuss more on black tea, green tea, white, and even red tea!
White tea has a very delicate flavor. Some say white tea is the most effective in fighting various forms of cancers due to its high level of antioxidants. It is also good for your teeth because it contains a high sense of fluoride that can strengthen your teeth and also make them more resistant to acid and sugar.
Red tea comes from a South African bush and has a very distinct flavor. Red tea is known to improve blood pressure and circulation. Red tea is also known to boost good cholesterol, lower bad cholesterol, and keep your hair and skin healthy. So what’s not to love about red tea?!
Green tea is essentially high in flavonoids that can help your heart health by lowering bad cholesterol and reducing blood clotting. Studies show that this type of tea can also help lower blood pressure, triglycerides, and total cholesterol. It is almost the same benefits you get from red tea. In many parts of Asia having a hot cup of green tea on a warm day can help cool them down. A regular cup of green tea naturally contains about 25 mg of L-theanine. The L-theanine can also help prevent cognitive diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease. So a cup of tea can help reduce levels of stress and anxiety and also help keep you cool on a warm day! Many skincare products contain green tea, which has been proven to be great for your skin. You can not only consume it, but you can also apply it to your skin to reap many health benefits!
But research has found that green tea has a possible impact on the liver, breast prostrate, and collateral cancer. They see variety as also showing that it's anti-inflammatory, which also helps to keep our skin clean and clear, and glowy. So in health, you should drink green tea.
Have you ever had matcha? Matcha is a fine high-quality green tea. It is different because you actually consume the tea leaves when drinking matcha, which makes it have more antioxidants than regular green tea. Some say drinking one cup of matcha is equivalent to 10 cups of regular green tea.
Black tea is made from the same plant that's used to make green tea. However, the leaves are dried and fermented giving black tea a much darker color and a richer flavor. Unlike other teas, black tea is caffeinated.
If you are sensitive to caffeine, you should monitor your intake of black tea. Black tea is rich in flavonoids, which combat inflammation and support healthy immune function.
The health benefits of black tea are not just limited to drinking it. You can also steam it and cool the water, and use black tea on cuts and scrapes. It can also help reduce swelling and relieve pain. So the next time you have a little scrape, you can brew some black tea, put it on a bit of compress and see how that helps. Vanilla tea is also a great type of tea that has a lot of aroma and flavor. Although it can be expensive, vanilla tea can be drunk with ginger or turmeric and honey.
There's another tea called oolong tea, have you heard of oolong tea? Oolong tea was introduced to Christiana as a weight loss aid. Oolong tea is a very traditional Chinese tea. As we discussed black tea is fully oxidized and green tea is not allowed to oxidize at all. Oolong tea is in the middle of these two and is partially oxidized. What Cherrie loves about oolong tea is that it is not as strong as black tea but has an amazing soft caramel flavor.
In addition, oolong tea is also really high in polyphenols, which are linked to lowering inflammation, preventing the growth of cancers, and decreasing type two diabetes risk. We definitely need to consider drinking more tea as often as we can as there are many health benefits to it.
It can be easy to reach for a cup of coffee in the morning to ease stress. However, tea has many benefits outside of helping you stay awake. There are so many specialty stores that carry all different kinds of flavored teas. You can make a matcha latte with almond milk at home. You could also make a green tea fruit tea with blueberries or raspberries. Green tea is great as it lends itself to adding a lot of fruit flavors to it. Fruits such as coconut, blueberries, strawberries, and pineapple go along with green tea and can be easily infused into your tea.
We discussed so many different teas but we have only scratched the surface! There are many different types of teas that can be used for a delicious brewed cold iced tea, which is perfect for the Summer. Instead of having fruit juice, try some tea with different fruits. What is your favorite type of tea? If we forgot to mention your favorite, connect with us on Instagram and let us know!
The Forever Young podcast is created and produced by Christiana Egi and Cherrie Marie Chiu. Produced and engineered by Elisse Hill. The podcast represents our opinions and those of our guests. The content should not be taken as medical advice. It is for informational purposes only. Please consult your health care professional for any medical questions. If you like our show, please tell your friends and leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts. New episodes are available every other Wednesday. Have questions? Email us at ourforeveryoungpodcast@gmail.com.
