Top 10 Benefits of Green Tea

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Green Tea has antioxidants and these antioxidants make a green tea better over normal tea or coffee. Loose green tea leaves are preferred over bags as in Loose green tea leaves better extraction of polyphenols can be done. There are numerous benefits of drinking Green tea. Following are few of them -

1. Green Tea Benefits for Teeth - Green tea is consumed through out the world. the reason for it's mass consumption is number of benefits that it gives. Green Tea contains compounds that fight bacterial infection , controls inflammation, slows down growth of oral cancer, kills bacteria in mouth, dental plaque and lowers the acidity of saliva . Other benefits of Green tea for teeth includes its quality for making bad breath go away because it kills the microbes that make our breath stinky.

Quick Tip :  A quick 5 minute rinse with green tea results in reduced gum bleeding and less acid in their mouth.

2. Green tea benefits for Boosting Immunity -  Due to presence of polyphenols in Green Tea, which have anti-inflammatory properties resulting in gradual change in immune system. The importance of a healthy immune system is that it helps in fighting against various diseases. Consumption of Green Tea helps in fighting Certain forms of cancer.

3. Green tea benefits for Burning fat - Consumption of Green tea helps in Losing weight. Green Tea contains antioxidants. Drinking Green tea reduces blood fat , reduces food cravings & also reduces excess water level in body thus resulting in decrease of excess body weight.

4. Green tea benefits for Heart Diseases - Green tea is very Helpful in preventing heart diseases. Regular consumption of Green tea lowers the level of cholesterol and also relaxes blood vessels. With decreased level of  cholesterol ,chances ofHeart attack gets lower.

5. Green tea benefits for Cardiovascular Protection - Green tea helps in lowering cholesterol  level and also reduces level of chronic inflammation which are linked to Cardiovascular Diseases.

6. Green tea benefits for Skin - Green Tea can also be regarded as a boon for skin. Green tea helps in safeguarding the skin from sunburn. Due to presence of Anti Bacterial content in green tea, helps in reducing pimples and acnes and also improves the complexion of skin when drank or applied locally.

7. Green tea benefits in preventing dementia - Besides other benefits of green tea , it helps in boosting our memory and also increases the functionality of brain. A research done at University of Basel, found that green tea extract increases the brain's effectiveness. Significant changes were noticed in people who consumed green tea and how they performed functions that actively informed usage of Brain.

8. Green tea benefits for cold and flu - Green Tea contains Vitamin C, which helps the body in fighting with Cold and flu. Green tea is efficient against common flu and cold.

9. Green tea benefits for Anti-Aging - Polyphenols in green tea fights with free radicals. Fighting with free radical promotes aging.

10. Green tea benefits for Bones - Osteoporosis a major health problem in men and women in later stage of life. Evidence from various research have shown proof that consumption of green tea is beneficial in mitigation bone loss.

Types of Green Tea

There are countless varieties of Green tea available all over the world. The major types of Green tea are available and used are from Japan & China. Even though there are countless types of Green tea available but everyone of them has one common characteristic i.e they come from tea plant named Camellia sinensis. 

The Main reason due to Growth of different types of green tea all over the world is different locations, Climatic conditions, Method of cultivation and other numerous factors that directly or indirectly affect the growth of green tea.

Source: www.peonyts.com

Following are the Various types of green tea :

1. Chinese Green tea

A. Gunpowder - Gunpowder is one of the most popular form of Green tea used. the place of origin is still Zhejian Province of China. The reason for the name of this type of green tea is its resemblance to grains of black powder. Brweing method of Gunpowder tea is different due to its type being differently grown. Ideal water temperature for this type of tea is between 70 °C (158 °F) to 80 °C (176 °F). One of the good Gunpowder Green tea is  Twinings Green Gunpowder Tea, Loose Tea, 3.53-Ounce Tins (Pack of 6) .

B. Long Jing (China) - Also called Dragonwell, is the most common known type of green tea in US. This tea is also Grown in Zhejian Province of China. Ideal water temperature for this type of tea is between 75-80 °C or 167-176 °F. Dragonwell is one of the most expensive form of Green tea. There are 6 Varities of Long Jing Tea. Finding Long Jing in US can be tricky. According to us, Premium Dragon Well Long Jing Green Tea is one of good Teas.

C. Hyson Lucky Dragon - Dragon Hy-Son Tea  is a Chinese green tea grown in Anhui province of China. The leaves of the plant are thinly rolled to have a long twisted appearance that unfurls when brewed. This type of tea is Spring Like in flavor. There are three  types of dragon tea.

D. Snowy Mountain Jian - Grown in the high altitudes in the Yunan province in China, it is processed differently than other green teas, thus leaves of this tea are longer. this tea is processed like Black tea.

E. Pi Lo Chun - Green Snail Spring or Pi Lo Chun is a type of Green Tea grown in Dongting mountain region near Lake Tai, Jiangsu, China. The name  green Snail Spring is because it resembles snail meet.

2. Japanese Green tea

F. Matcha - Matcha is powdered Green tea, Grown in Uji region of Japan. Matcha is used to make green tea ice cream and also in creation of Japanese confectionery. Matcha is a Fine ground powdered green tea.

J. Gyokuro - Known as one of the best Japanese green tea. Optimum temperature for brewing Gyokuro Green tea is range of 50°C–60°C (122°F–140°F). The leaves of Gyokuro are pointed and flat.

K. Sencha  - One of the commonly used Green Tea of Japan. Several beverages are made from sencha & the The ideal colour of the sencha beverage is a greenish golden colour. Average temperature of Brewing of Sencha tea is 80°C / 176°F .

L. Bancha - Bancha is a Japanese Green Tea. it is harvested very late in autumn season. Bancha being harvested in later season is weaker in flavor as compared to other green teas. Average Steeping temperature of Bancha is 176 degrees Fahrenheit.

There are other types of Green tea too which shall be covered in upcoming posts.

How to Brew Green Tea

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What is Brewing ?

Brewing of Green tea simply means soaking the tea in boiling or very hot water.Brewing is the whole process and if over brewed the tea will taste bitter so proper temperature and timings shall be chosen to brew it. The better the brewing process is followed the better tea will taste.Steeping time and temperature of green tea type is different . According to researchers, longer brewing times and using boiling water increases the amount of polyphenols in the green tea. According to sciencedaily.com - "A polyphenol antioxidant is a type of antioxidant characterized by the presence of several phenol functions". Polyphenols are the main antioxidants in Green Tea that give the health benefits to green tea.

Ways through which polyphenols in Green Tea can be increased

1. Temperature  - Temperature is the most critical factor in brewing of green tea. if the Temperature is too hot it'll make the tea bitter in taste and if the Temperature is too cool it won't be successfully able to extract the flavour out of the leaves.The right Temperature to brew green tea is between 140°F - 185°F. time of harvest and grade of green tea are also influencing factors according to which steeping time should be decided. If using lower temperature, green teas picked during spring will be efficient due to their higher levels of amino acids.

2. Steeping Time - Green tea doesn't requires much time to be brewed Normal time of steeping should be  two to five minutes.It's the basic steeping time.For chinese teas Steeping time should be two to three minutes and for Japanese teas steeping time shall be one to two minutes.The lower the temperature, the longer tea can be steeped. Longer steeping time results in irregular flavour of tea and bitter taste.

3. Loose leaf vs. teabags -  For better extraction of polyphenols, tea leaves are preferred over tea bags as    tea leaves are untouched and  are  natural form of tea as compared to Teabags.

What is Green Tea

Green tea also called "True" tea comes from the plant species Camellia sinensis. In Other words Green Tea is simply a tea which has undergone little oxidation while it was processed. Green tea is popular and widely drank in countries like China, Japan, Korea and the middle east and recently it's demand has increased in the west here Black Tea was more consumed. Consumption of Tea dates back to China, it was first brewed in 2737 BC during the reign of Emperor Shennong. Green Tea was and is still used as a beverage and as a medicine in asia since thousand of years. Basic benefits  of Green Tea range from regulating Blood Pressure  , body temperature and promoting digestion.

A recent research showed the evidence that consumption of green tea can prevent Cancer of certain types like prostate, ovarian, breast but the research was considered as "inadequate and inconclusive".  Green tea lowers the level of cholesterol. In other researches , it was found that drinking green tea also reduction in risks of different sort of cancer, diseases like Dementia & Alzheimer and also cardio-vascular disease. detailed Benefits of green tea shall be discussed in upcoming posts.

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