Tuesday Tea Time

Three days each week I work at a small Tea Room/Cafe...I have learned a lot about Tea during my 4+ years there and have decided that here on my blog Tuesday will be for Tea education...I will start with an article about the benefits of green tea published in the Harvard Woman's Health Watch. I hope you will find your time here to be enjoyable, interesting and informative.

Benefits of drinking Green Tea

The proof is in: drinking tea is healthy,

says Harvard Women’s Health Watch

Boston , MA —Although tea drinking has been associated with health benefits for centuries, only in recent years have its medicinal properties been investigated scientifically.

Tea's health benefits are largely due to its high content of flavonoids—plant-derived compounds that are antioxidants. Green tea is the best food source of a group called catechins. In test tubes, catechins are more powerful than vitamins C and E in halting oxidative damage to cells and appear to have other disease-fighting properties. Studies have found an association between consuming green tea and a reduced risk for several cancers, including, skin, breast, lung, colon, esophageal, and bladder.

Additional benefits for regular consumers of green and black teas include a reduced risk for heart disease. The antioxidants in green, black, and oolong teas can help block the oxidation of LDL (bad) cholesterol, increase HDL (good) cholesterol and improve artery function. A Chinese study published recently in the Archives of Internal Medicine showed a 46%-65% reduction in hypertension risk in regular consumers of oolong or green tea, compared to non-consumers of tea.

Here are a few tips to get the most out of tea-drinking:

*Drinking a cup of tea a few times a day to absorb antioxidants and other healthful plant compounds. In green-tea drinking cultures, the usual amount is three cups per day.

*Allow tea to steep for three to five minutes to bring out its catechins.

*The best way to get the catechins and other flavonoids in tea is to drink it freshly brewed. Decaffeinated, bottled ready-to-drink tea preparations, and instant teas have less of these compounds.

*Tea can impede the absorption of iron from fruits and vegetables. Adding lemon or milk or drinking tea between meals will counteract this problem.