The Power of Tea

It was 20 years ago to the day that I, as a hip New Yorker, went to Liverpool, England, to visit my recently engaged sister Lola and her in-laws (think the Fokkers a la Barbara Streisand). The next thing I knew we were sitting in a very proper English living room, sipping "tea" with finger sandwiches, scones, Devon cream and jam. For the first time in my life I felt truly civilized, despite the fact that the tea tasted like dish water. Upon mentioning to my hostess that with everything being so tasteful and elegant, why not the tea as well, she replied, "You're the entrepreneur, you go out and find the great cup of tea." She really inspired me.

A month later I was off to Thailand, Vietnam and Japan with my daughter Julie to experience the ancient world of tea--its meaning, ritual and consciousness. Long ago, while a Buddhist monk was meditating under a tree (a camellia sinensis, i.e., a tea tree), a tea leaf fell into his cup of hot water. What he drank helped to deepen his meditation and thus began the great tradition of using tea to stimulate and enhance one's spiritual practice.

Additionally tea will "make one live long to stay in good shape without becoming too fat and too heavy" according to Shennong Bencaojing Jizh, the classical Chinese book on pharmacology, written circa 500CE. Centuries later, tea is still revered for its healing properties. Modern scientific research has shown the health benefits of tea can be attributed to catechins, other polyphenols and flavonoids, like theaflavin, which have all been shown to possess highly anti-oxidative properties. Additional contributors are the close to 20 different types of amino acids, as well as high levels of several key vitamins and minerals that are also readily available in a cup of tea.

Although much of the attention has been focused on the rewards of indulging in green tea, each of the four main categories of tea, black, green, white and oolong have been scientifically shown to have extensive health benefits for those who consume them on a daily basis. One of the collective benefits of drinking tea is its ability to inhibit arteries from clogging by dissolving triglycerides, which in turn can help prevent heart attacks and strokes. Tea has also been shown to impede the growth of cancer, aid digestion and weight loss, and even aid in the prevention of tooth decay. In order to fully take advantage of all the healing rewards that tea has to offer, experts recommend drinking at least 3-6 cups a day.

As I traveled Asia with my daughter Julie, wherever we went, either for pleasure or business, tea was served first. Tea creates a gentle yet vibrant atmosphere, brings people together and inspires them to take the higher road in life, truly seeking health prosperity, peace and happiness for everyone.

Comments

[jamesinraro]

Tea, particularily green tea, is one of the remarkable polyphenols which have been shown in mulitple double-blind studies to impede cancer, heart disease and aging in general. Another compound, resveratrol, found in red wine, is an even more potent anti-cancer, anti-aging and anti-obesity polyphenol. In a Harvard study late last year it was shown to extend the life span of mice by 31%. Nothing else has ever been shown to do this. As hard as one might try to obtain the levels of resveratrol used in this study from wine this would be impossible. The researchers used a commercial bioforte and transmax purified resveratrol as their sources for resveratrol. Several drug companies are working on synthetic versions of resveratrol which will be up to 1000 times as potent as the natural chemical to treat diabetes and cancer.

[BRUMALIA]

Tea is great! I drink at least three cups per day. Hopefully,I am benefitting from it health wise and medicinally.As I post this response, I am actually drinking a cup of tea.Great beverage!

[godlessclif]

I love to roll it an smoke it.

[Dunnage]

8 cups of coffee and 6 cups of tea create balance in one's day.

[etan]

This is something we have been blogging about for while now. America's time is ripe for rediscovering this wonderful alternative to coffee.

http://blog.ateava.com/

Etan

[Aslanspal]

Hello is this working I tried earlier and it did not take my post....yeah tea is real...tea for two is even better.

[singermuse]

Tea is a wonderful drink. Loose leaves, not bags so they can unfold in the water and infuse. Pure boiling water and a rounded "teaspoon" per cup. Ceramic or glass or my favorite small Japanese cast iron pot well warmed before. Darjeeling or Oolong or Peach, white, or herbal; so many good choices.
My favorites are good quality Darjeeling , Earl Grey, or Genmaicha with nothing added to hide the taste.
I love to sip tea with good music at sunset.

[eShirl]

So what happened, did you ever find the perfect cup of tea? C'mon, don't keep us in the dark.

[keemia]

It's about time Americans catch up with the rest of the world in learning to drink tea. Please keep writing about it.

[bethinCary]

Need to add: new studies show that using milk in your tea counters any benefits of tea-so use soy if ya need to.

[Democritic]

I have been drinking tea for 25 years. I have never had a taste for coffee and mock all those Starbuck junkies with their "mocha-choco lattes". Tea is a contemplative drink, and in most countries, there is a ritual attached to the making and consuming of it. I wish there were more tea houses in the US.

[Dap]

Dear Ms. Novalle,

I heart tea also. :) Agape.

P.S. But not with milk in it. :{