The Leaf

HOW TO BREW TEA

Tea has been a treasured elixir for thousands of Recent research studies are shedding light on why this beverage has earned its reputation for numerous wellness benefits. Today, a modern tea lifestyle is emerging as people look to take a moment of respite and explore tea to address a myriad health issues, ranging from weight loss, to stress reduction and osteoporosis. The role antioxidants play in the prevention of disease has positioned loose leaf tea as the ideal health beverage. Check out this summary of health benefits by tea type here, and you just might be inspired to incorporate fresh tea into your daily wellness routine.

All teas come from the same plant, the Camellia Sinensis of 12 years. However, white tea is the least oxidized leaves of all the tea types.

While black tea is oxidized the most, white tea skips this step entirely. This short processing helps keep more of the medicinal elements in the tea intact. White tea is the closest thing to a fresh tea leaf that most of us in the Western hemisphere will ever see. And those of us who drink it know that white tea leaves even look fresh and healthy!

Every year scientists are finding more and more health benefits in white tea. Up to 20% of the white tea leaf is made up of catechins. Catechins have very potent anti–oxidant and anti–microbial actions. Dr. Yukihiko Hara stated in an interview in the Tea and Coffee Trade Journal, "The anti–flu virus actions of tea catechins are just phenomenal." In addition, catechins have been proven to lower cholesterol and inhibit the increase of blood pressure.

White tea helps keep your skin acne–free. The antioxidants in white and green tea may have an effect on acne, and in some cases have been shown to work as well as a 4% solution of the much more harsh benzoyl peroxide. White tea is widely used in beauty and cosmetic products, with the promise that its high antioxidant content will keep your skin looking young.

New studies conducted at Pace University have indicated that White Tea has the ability to retard the growth of bacteria that causes infections, pneumonia and dental caries. “Our research shows White Tea can actually destroy in vitro the organisms that cause disease. Study after study, white tea extract proves that it has many healing properties. This is not an old wives’ tale, it’s a fact" says Dr. Milton Schiffenbauer, a microbiologist and Professor in Biology at Pace University’s Dyson College of Arts and Sciences and primary author of the research.