Oolong Tea - A Healthy Refreshing Drink

Green tea is often touted as a wonder drink providing all sorts of health benefits. Studies have shown that green tea can prevent cancer, lower blood pressure, boost the immune system and reduce hypertension. Although green tea gets the spotlight, many of these same health benefits can be attributed to all sorts of tea including oolong.
Tea is, after all, tea. The only difference between green, oolong, and black tea is the way it has been processed after harvesting. White tea is a little bit different because of the way it is grown, but all tea is from the same plant - Camelia sinensis. And this plant has naturally occurring antioxidants that are beneficial to human health.
Antioxidants are also present in other types of food such as nuts, fruits, vegetables, and wines. They are good for disease prevention by combating free radicals - substances in the body linked to cancer, Parkinson's disease, senile and drug-induced deafness, schizophrenia, and Alzheimer's.
There are several components in tea that act as antioxidants including catechins, flavanoids, and polyphenols.
White, Green or Oolong?
Oolong tea is produced by allowing the tea leaves to oxidize for a short time after picking. Oxidation is the process which makes the leaves turn dark on exposure to oxygen. Oolong is semi-oxidized; black tea is fully oxidized; and green tea is un-oxidized.
Fresh tea leaves are high in catechins. Processing the tea reduces these levels, so the more the tea is oxidized the lower the catechin levels. This means that white tea has the highest levels of catechins closely followed by green tea.
Catechins are the media darling of green tea promoters and usually receive the most coverage when discussing the health benefits of tea. There is one point, however, which is often overlooked: As the levels of catechins decrease during oxidation, the levels of theaflavins and thearubigins increase.
These two substances are found in higher concentrations in oolong and black tea than in green tea and have anti-allergy, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer properties. A 2001 Chinese study indicated that the antioxidant properties of green tea and black tea are equal.
So it appears that oxidation does not eliminate the health properties of tea, but simply reduces one type of antioxidant while increasing other health-promoting compounds.
So is Oolong Good for You?
It is safe to say that all tea is good for you, but since we are particularly interested in oolong, let's see what the medical literature has to say.
Diabetes - Oolong tea may be an effective adjunct to oral hypoglycemic agents in the treatment of type 2 diabetes.
Eczema - Japanese researchers reported that patients with a form of eczema improved after drinking a liter of oolong tea daily.
Allergies - Two catechin derivatives (C-1 and C-2) with potent antiallergic activity were isolated from Taiwanese oolong tea.
Bacterial infections - Oolong tea polyphenols strongly inhibited the enzyme activities of some types of streptococci.
Cavities - Oolong tea polyphenolic compounds could be useful for controlling dental caries.
Obesity - Consumption of oolong tea stimulates both EE and fat oxidation in normal weight men.
Cancer - Oolong tea extract has a chemopreventive action against hepatocarcinogenesis.
Great stuff! Drinking oolong tea will make you healthier, live longer, be more beautiful and have great teeth!
The Bottom Line
Drink oolong tea for your health, but don't lose sight of this simple fact - people have been drinking tea for thousands of years because it is a great tasting beverage. Sit back, relax, and savour the sensations as you sip this wonderful drink. It's good for the soul, and what's good for the soul is certainly good for the body.
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References:
J. Agric. Food Chem., 47 (5), 1906 -1910, 1999. 10.1021/jf981114l S0021-8561(98)01114-5
Archives of Dermatology, January 2001
Diabetes Care 26:1714-1718, 2003
Appl Environ Microbiol. 1993 April; 59(4): 968-973.
131:2848-2852, November 2001 Nutr. The American Society for Nutritional Sciences J.
Caries Res. 1993;27(2):124-9.
Jpn J Cancer Res. 1996 Oct;87(10):1034-8.
Journal of Nutrition. 2001;131:2248-2251.
Copyright © 2006 by Ross MacIver
TeaFromTaiwan.com
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Ross MacIver is the webmaster of
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, a Taiwan-based merchant of high-quality oolong tea. Taiwan produces the best oolong tea in the world. All the tea carried by
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Drinking Tea May Guard Against Ovarian Cancer

And each additional cup of tea per day appears to provide significantly more protection, investigators found. Consuming two or more cups of tea a day over a period of time may reduce the risk of ovarian cancer dramatically, suggests a new study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
Because tea is the second most-consumed beverage in the world, its potential health benefits could have important implications for human health and disease prevention, says the Tea Council of the USA.
This is good news and points to yet another area where tea may have a positive effect on health." "These new findings suggest that drinking tea regularly may help to reduce the risk of ovarian cancer as well. "An abundance of research suggests that tea may play a role in the reduction of risk of cardiovascular disease and various types of cancer," notes Joe Simrany, president of the trade organization.
46 Percent Lower Ovarian Cancer Risk
Researchers at Sweden's National Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, examined the association between tea consumption and risk of ovarian cancer in 61,057 women 40 to 76 years of age who took part in the population-based Swedish Mammography Cohort.
The participants completed a validated 67-item food frequency questionnaire at enrollment between 1987 and 1990, and were followed for cancer incidence through December 2004.
At baseline, 68 percent of the participants reported drinking tea -- primarily black tea -- at least once a month. During 15.1 years of follow-up, 301 women were diagnosed as having epithelial ovarian cancer. The researchers found tea consumption of two or more cups of tea per day had a significant inverse association with risk of ovarian cancer.
Specifically, women who drank two or more cups of tea per day experienced a 46 percent lower risk of ovarian cancer, compared with women who drank no tea. Each additional cup of tea was associated with an 18 percent decreased risk of ovarian cancer.
Additional Health Benefits
A multitude of research studies suggest that drinking tea may contribute to overall health. Potential benefits include the following:
- Reduced risk of heart attack and stroke, and improved blood vessel function;
- Less risk of certain cancers, including colorectal and skin cancers;
- Decreased levels of oxidative DNA damage and increases in antioxidant levels in the bloodstream; and
- Oral health benefits -- researchers believe certain compounds in tea may inhibit bacteria that cause bad breath and plaque, and the fluoride content in tea supports healthy tooth enamel.