Health Benefit of Oolong Tea

Health Benefit of Oolong Tea

 

Chinese has been drinking tea for centuries, and Oolong is much loved throughout Asia, particularly China, Taiwan, and Japan.     Almost every tea producing region has its own varieties of oolong teas.  Each oolong is different in taste, color, fragrance and appearance.   But no matter how different they appear to be, all oolong are from the same Camellia Sinensis tea plant.

Oolong tea’s popularity is now spreading throughout the world.  In recent years, Oolong is slowly becoming popular not only because it is delightful and delicious but also because of its slew of health benefits.   Let’s take a look at a few benefits.

 

Antioxidants

Oolong is rich in polyphenols, which are a type of antioxidant.  A ton of it!   It is estimated that teas have 10 times the amount of polyphenols found in fruits and vegetables.  A few cups are doing us a whole lotta good.   John Weisburger, PHD, senior researcher at Institute for Cancer Prevention in Vlahalla, N.Y. has published more than 500 papers, and has a ton to say on the subject of tea and antioxidants.

Let’s throw some big names around now…just for fun.   Teas are found to contain flavonoids (a type of antioxidant) such as Thearubigins, epicatechins, and catechins among others.     It has been shown that tea modifies our metabolism to detoxify harmful chemicals.  Tea can block DNA damage associated with tobacco and other toxic chemicals.

 

Help with Weight Loss

Further studies in Japan, Taiwan, and China have all shown that polyphenols in Oolong teas particularly can help battle the bulges and aid in weight loss.  The polyphenols in Oolong can aid the body in increasing metabolism, which helps the boy burn fat much more effectively.

 

Help with the Skin

Back to the “A” word.  The Antioxidants in Oolong tea are useful in helping to remove toxins that cause blemishes and discolorations on the skin.  Bye bye brown spots !

 

Heart Friendly

Kyoto University had conducted a study to show that drinking oolong tea reduces the possibility of cardiovascular disease.  The study show that dinking one to six cups of oolong tea each week resulted in a 22% cardiovascular disease risk reduction in females and a 38% risk reduction in males, in addition to lowering blood pressure and help to lower cholesterol.

 

Wow….what are you waiting for?   I am off to get my cup of oolong now.  Good drinking to you too!

 

Reference:

Weisburger, John H. “Prevention of Coronary Heart Disease and Cancer by Tea, a Review.” Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine 7.6 (2003): 283–288. PMC.