The Humble Cuppa
The humble cup of tea. It calms arguments, stops wars (probably), quenches thirst and is the most widely drank beverage in the world after water. A recent survey has found that more than 166 million cups of tea are consumed per day in Britain alone, which I think you’d agree is a lot!!
What a lot of tea drinkers don’t realise is that some teas can actually help you burn off excess unwanted fat and come with a whole host of health benefits. Probably the most well-known tea for fat loss is green tea. It’s packed with health benefits including, reduce cholesterol, combat cardiovascular disease, prevent cancer and Alzheimer's disease and aid weight loss. Green tea has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for centuries to treat everything from headaches to depression. The leaves are supposedly richer in antioxidants than other types of tea because of the way they are processed. Green tea contains B vitamins, folate (naturally occurring folic acid), manganese, potassium, magnesium, caffeine and other antioxidants (notably catechins).
All types of tea (green, black and oolong) are produced from the Camellia sinensis plant using different methods. Fresh leaves from the plant are steamed to produce green tea, while the leaves of black tea and oolong involve fermentation.
As mentioned above, Black tea comes from the Camellia sinensis plant and also has traces of fat blasting chemicals like theaflavins and thearubigins. Benefits of drinking black tea include decreasing your risk of cardiovascular disease (such as heart attack and stroke). As little as 3 cups of black tea per day can decrease the chance of cardiovascular death by as much as 11%.
Black tea is also a tremendous source of potent antioxidants. Vital for health and wellness. Antioxidants encourage a strong immune system, disable free radicals, improve cardiovascular health, fight harmful inflammation, and provide protection against chronic disease (cancer, heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and diabetes, to name a few).
Oolong tea is a semi-fermented tea. It has the richest taste among all kinds of teas. Oolong benefits have been known for a long time in China. The most well-known health benefits of oolong tea are its effect on the prevention of obesity and active contribution in weight loss. There are also other health benefits, including helping to slow the signs of aging skin, reducing high blood pressure, strengthening teeth and prevent tooth decay, relieving physical and mental stress, lowering blood sugar levels and the treatment for diabetes patients.
So next time you brew up, think of all those health benefits to your cuppa.