Coming down from the green fields of China, Green Tea is a Special tea. Made from Camellia leaves that are grown variedly, these leaves do not undergo the process of withering and oxidation, used for making oolong teas and black teas.
A hot cup of green tea.
One tablespoon of green tea in a cup of 150 ml. water. Steeped and brewed for about 30 seconds to 3 minutes at 61-87 degrees Celsius, will make a rejuvenating cup of tea.
It can also be consumed as iced tea on a warm day. For this, it has to be brewed for less than 20 seconds, cooled down and poured over ice- cubes. And a cool refreshing glass of ice tea is ready.
Caution: good quality tea should be steeped multiple times for short durations, else it will release an excessive amount of tannins, leading to a bitter, astringent brew.
Tip: you can leave the tea leaf inside the pot and add hot water gradually before consumption. Or you can also preheat the container to prevent the tea from immediately cooling down.
Loaded with healthy nutrients, green tea is theriac for the health of our body. It has been used as a traditional medicine In the Chinese and Indian cultures for generations and is said to cure indigestion, improve heart and mental health, and regulate body temperature. Recent studies reveal that Green tea is beneficial in weight loss, type-2 diabetes, and Alzheimer’s disease.
Benefits of green tea.
Green tea is full of polyphenols and antioxidants like Flavonoids or catechins. These antioxidants help prevent the body from radical damage. These prevent the growth of cancer cells.
These are the following types cancers on which green tea is said to have shown positive impacts:
- breast
- bladder
- ovarian
- colorectal (bowel)
- oesophageal (throat)
- lung
- prostate
- skin
- stomach
However, there are contradicting studies that have results of green tea not effecting cancer.
- Good for the Heart.
It was found in animal and human lab trials that Green Tea lowers blood pressure and reduces the mortality rate, especially due to cardiovascular diseases.
A study, conducted in 1994, over 40,000 Japanese, aged between 40 to 79 for 11 years revealed that those participants who drank at least 5 cups a day had decreased all-cause mortality rate than those who drank one or less cup of tea during a day.
- It lowers cholesterol and helps in weight loss.
It is found that consuming green tea as a beverage or in capsule form, helps reduce ‘bad’ cholesterol in significantly modest amounts. While there may be studies not agreeing with green tea associated with weight loss, but there is a promise of increased metabolism and fat oxidation, essentially fat burning through its regular consumption. Some lab results have depicted a decrease in new blood vessel formation within the fat storage areas. Thus, weight loss results only on an individual case basis.
- Effective for inflammatory skin diseases.
Recent studies have concluded that green tea could prove promising as a new treatment for skin disorders such as psoriasis and dandruff, and also for inflammation.
- Helpful for Working memory.
Green tea can enhance the cognitive functions of the brain, particularly the working memory. The catechin nutrients decrease the risk of developing Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases It could also be promising in the treatment of cognitive impairments associated with neuropsychiatric disorders, such as dementia.
- Lowers risk of stroke.
Consumption of green tea which contains about 20-45 milligrams per 8-ounce cup, regularly is related to a reduced risk of stroke. So, contrary to general belief, green tea also contains some caffeine, like as per some studies consuming 3 cups of green tea will have similar amount of caffeine as a cup of coffee.
Green tea is available in different varieties, including:
- Bottled and sweetened with sugar or an artificial sweetener
- in single tea bags
- as loose-leaf
- in instant-powder
- Green tea supplements, which are sold in capsule form or liquid extracts
Other than the caffeine, there are some risks and complications that should be taken into consideration
- People with caffeine sensitivities could suffer from insomnia, anxiety, nausea, upset stomach or irritability
- Green tea has vitamin k, so people on blood thinners should have cautious consumption of it. Also, it’s intake along with aspirin should be avoided, as both reduce the clotting effectiveness of platelets
- Green tea contains high levels of active nutrients, which if combined with other simulants like other herbs, drugs, etc. can trigger side effects
- Sometimes the way a green tea is presented makes it unhealthy – like some green tea bags (or other tea bags also) have micro plastics, that might get into our system – https://edition.cnn.com/2019/09/27/health/microplastics-tea-bags-study-scn-scli-intl/index.html
- Sometimes the disposable cups have coatings/wax that tend to get into our system with the consumption of green tea itself
So the final decision would depend on how you consume and what quality of green tea you consume.
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