Kupa Tea

January is National Hot Tea Month!

Exploring hot tea opens a whole new world of discovery. Tea provides amazing health benefits, cooking opportunities, and taste!

This is a question researchers are still squabbling over. Does green tea have more antioxidants than black tea? Should I drink instant tea or loose leaf tea for better health benefits? Is hot tea better than iced tea? And here is what it comes down to:

• Higher quality teas may have more catechin antioxidants than lower quality teas.
• White tea has more antioxidants than any other tea.
• Green tea has more catechin antioxidants than black tea since black tea goes through more processing.
• Unfermented rooibos tea has more polyphenol antioxidants than fermented rooibos.
• Freshly brewed teas have more polyphenol antioxidants than instant or bottled teas.
• More researchers seem to agree that brewed (cold or hot) or caffeinated tea has more antioxidants than instant teas.

Tea has magical powers. Tea consoles the lonely and unites the sociable. Tea stimulates in hot countries and heats the body where it is cold. Tea can alleviate or heal ailments of the body and the soul. Tea drinking is a many-faceted pleasure: it can cause us to dream, sharpen our minds, relax us, let us forget time and place, and heal our body, mind and soul.

Tea is the most commonly consumed beverage in the world after water. Among all varieties of tea - black, green, white, oolong, red, herbal - which one offers the most health benefits?

Regardless of the processing method, black, green, white and oolong teas all contain polyphenols. In fact, tea ranks as high as or higher than many fruits and vegetables in the ORAC score, a score that measures antioxidant potential of plant-based foods.

Research indicates that naturally-occurring flavonoids found in tea have very effective antioxidant properties. Drinking tea is a natural and pleasant way to increase dietary exposure to antioxidants.

Antioxidants are naturally occurring chemical compounds that absorb and destroy other compounds known as free radicals. Free radicals break down the cells of the body, and are among the underlying source of many serious diseases and ailments, including heart disease and cancer. Even physical aging has been linked to the activities of free radicals. These substances form in the body and are unavoidable results of the metabolism in the cells.

Over the past 15 years, research has found that drinking black, green or oolong tea may offer some protection from cardiovascular disease and cancer, lead to reduced risk of kidney stones, and strengthen bones, teeth and the immune system.

While tea cannot replace fruits and vegetables in the diet, science has shown that tea leaves contain more of the compound than most antioxidant-rich produce. The antioxidant activity in two cups of tea is equal to seven glasses of orange juice, five medium-sized onions or four medium-sized apples.

To get the most health benefits out of your teas, choose high-quality loose leaf teas. Brew it up and enjoy. It's never too late to enjoy the many health benefits from a cup of tea!