Western consumers have a wide range options when it comes to tea, and it's easy to feel overwhelmed when trying to choose from the vast rainbow of colorful tea boxes lined up neatly on your grocer's shelves. Teas have been consumed throughout history for both their flavor and their medicinal properties. Herbal teas are attributed with a range of purported health benefits, but even among traditional teas such as oolong and green tea, differences in health benefits exist.
Types of Tea
Black, oolong and green tea are all derived from the leaves of the shrub known as Camellia sinensis. When these leaves are withered, steamed and then dried, green tea is the result. When the leaves are rolled up and allowed to partially oxidize, or ferment, the result is oolong tea. Fully fermented tea leaves produce black tea. Processing tea leaves through fermentation depletes them of compounds that provide healthful effects.
Catechins
Catechins belong to a class of nutrients called flavonoids that are found in plant-based foods, including tea. They have a variety of physiological effects and are widely studied by researchers interested in the connection between the foods you consume and your health. For more than 10 years, the scientific community has engaged in research to investigate the effects of flavonoids in fighting cardiovascular disease, cancer and immune system disorders, according to the FLAVO-project website.
Oolong vs. Green Tea Catechins
The fermentation process that creates oolong and black tea is responsible for depleting catechins from the tea leaves. The longer a tea is fermented, the lower its catechin content. White teas, which are the least processed, contain the highest ratio of catechins, while black teas contain the lowest. Green tea is higher in catechins than oolong tea because it hasn't undergone fermentation.
Health Benefits
Catechins are antioxidants, substances that neutralize unstable molecules in the body -- called free radicals -- that cause cell damage in your body. The high catechin content of green tea makes it the favorite among those seeking to bolster their health. Nancy Lowry, Professor of Chemistry at Hampshire College in Massachusetts, states that the higher antioxidant concentration of green tea has made it a popular subject of research to confirm its effects on health.
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