"Drink to your health" is more than a routine bar toast if the beverage you're drinking is tea. All real teas -- white, green, black and oolong -- come from a single plant and share many of the same properties, although in varying amounts. Tea provides antioxidants, and foods and beverages can supply all the vitamins you need to achieve natural health.
Benefits of Japanese Green Tea
Drinking Japanese green tea daily may help you live longer. A study led by Shinichi Kuriyami, a researcher at Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, found that people who drank 5 cups or more of green tea were 16 percent less likely to die early and 26 percent less likely to die from cardiovascular disease than people who drank little or no tea. The study, published in the "Journal of the American Medical Association" in September 2006, followed the health of 40,000 Japanese for 11 years. People in Japan live longer than anyone else on the planet, according to the World Health Organization.
Benefits of Chinese Green Tea
Drinking Chinese green tea may protect you against heart disease. According to "The New York Times," abdominal obesity is one of the leading risk factors for heart attacks. The catechins in green tea boost metabolism and may be especially effective in burning belly fat, according to several studies, including one by Kevin Maki, president of a private research firm. In Maki's study, men who consumed 660 mg of catechins -- the amount in about 5 cups of green tea brewed from fresh leaves -- lost significantly more weight around their middles than men who drank black tea containing 22 mg of catechins. The green tea drinkers also lost more weight overall, according to Maki's study, published in February 2009 in the "Journal of Nutrition."
Benefits of Oolong Tea
Drinking oolong tea daily for as little as four weeks can lessen your risk of heart disease and diabetes, according to the "Daily Mail." The newspaper states that doctors from Osaka University discovered that patients who drank 4 cups of oolong tea had lower cholesterol levels than patients who drank water. The oolong tea drinkers also had higher levels of a hormone called adiponectin, a hormone in fat cells that may protect against diabetes. According to Guo Xirong, an award-winning obesity researcher, the polyphenols in oolong tea accelerate weight loss by activating a fat-dissolving enzyme called lipase.
Vitamin Sources
Healthy foods and beverages are your best sources of vitamins, but supplements are important if you can't get meet your daily requirements through diet alone, according to Leslie Beck, a registered dietitian who writes regularly for "The Globe and Mail." Low-fat dairy products provide the best sources of calcium, which protect your bones and boost your metabolism. Adults younger than 50 need 1,000 mg of calcium daily, and those older and younger require more. If you take calcium supplements, Beck recommends ones that include vitamin D, which helps absorb calcium. Citrus fruits, strawberries and cantaloupe are good sources of vitamin C, which may also be found in fortified apple juice. Fortified breakfast cereals are another good source of vitamins, but check the labels to see if the amounts in a serving meet your daily needs, Beck says.
Precautions
Tea contains caffeine. Black tea contains more caffeine than white, green and oolong teas, but still less than coffee, according to the Mayo Clinic. Pregnant women should consult their physicians before adding tea to their diets. Women who drank more than 100 mg of caffeine daily were more likely to give birth to low weight babies, according to the "British Medical Journal." It is unlikely to ingest vitamins in toxic quantities through diet alone but, if you take vitamins in supplement form, check labels and follow dosage directions carefully. Beck says it may be especially important for vegans, who consume no animal products, to take supplements for calcium, vitamin D, iron and vitamin B12.
References
- "The Globe and Mail"; Green Tea a Possible Factor in Why Japanese Live So Long; Michelle Fay Cortez; September 13, 2006
- "Journal of the American Medical Association"; Green Tea Consumption and Mortality and Mortality Due to Cardiovascular Disease, Cancer, and All Causes in Japan: The Ohsaki Study; Shinichi Kuriyama, Yoshikazu Nishino, Yoshitaka Tsubono, Ichiro Tsuji; September 2006
- WHO: New Healthy Life Expectancy Rankings
- "The New York Times"; New Thinking on How to Protect the Heart; Jane E. Brody; Jan. 13 2009
- USDA: Flavonoid Composition of Tea
- "Journal of Nutrition"; Green Tea Catechin Consumption Enhances Exercise-Induced Abdominal Fat Loss in Overweight and Obese Adults; Kevin Maki etal; February 2009
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