Forget the Hype – The Actual Benefits of Green and Wu Long Tea

Tea has been consumed for more than 5,000 years according to archeological evidence. While it was first cultivated in India and China, tea has become popular around the globe. In fact, it is the second most commonly consumed drink, behind only water. Both Green Tea and Wu Long Tea have received a great deal of focus in recent years. Let’s check out some of the advantages of each of these types of tea.

Green Tea comes from unfermented tea leaves. It has the highest concentration of polyphenols of any kind of tea. Polyphenols are vitamin antioxidants which can combat oxidative damage to your tissues brought on by free radicals. Free radicals originate from our bodies regular functions and can also come from the environment. Environmental causes include things like smoke, pollution, radiation and other harmful toxins. Free radicals cause cellular harm in the body, leading to illness and aging. Most cancers, heart problems as well as the physical ravages of time have all been connected to free radicals. Antioxidant rich green tea can help your body battle off the damage brought on by free radicals.

Green tea has long been found in both Indian and Chinese medicine. It works good as an astringent and can also help improve mental function, promote digestive function and control your blood glucose levels. Recently, it has been proven that green tea can help prevent the assimilation of fat and melt away calories.

While green tea seems to be an effective fat burner, it would appear that wu long tea has it edged out in that department. This semi-fermented tea is processed to a level that is in-between that of green and black teas. It’s got been scientifically proven that men and women who drank wu long tea burned two times that calories as those who take green tea. Wu long tea may be especially beneficial for those that have diabetes, thanks to being able to minimize the way that carbohydrates can spike your blood sugar. In a study reported in Diabetes Care, it was proven that individuals with type two diabetes were able to reduce their blood glucose levels simply by consuming Wu Long tea.

Wu long tea is also a good source of vitamin antioxidants, so just like green tea it can help you in your battle against oxidative damage. It seems that wu long tea may be particularly effective for individuals with skin problems. After just one month of drinking wu long tea, subjects in one study noticed a marked improvement in their overall skin quality.