Green Tea, or not to Green Tea?

Let me start again, I think it's great that Oprah is the communicator to the masses that she is, without her or her influence, we would surely be less informed and less enlightened than we currently are, I can admit this, but there are certain things that exist that should not necessarily require the direction of Oprah or her throng of guests to bring to light there-well there mere existence… Is it just me or… Wait! Wow!
Perricone and agree with most of the good doctors ‘discoveries'. By the way I do like and enjoy both Oprah and Dr. Perricone did not invent green tea either, but you'd never know it by the response evidenced by his appearance on the Oprah show. And I know that Dr.

How many centuries has this natural substance existed? Green Tea is one such discovery…now there I go; it is not a discovery, although it seems like the entire US population has just been introduced to the latest and the greatest discovery since the last big thing, exercise for weight management?
Well, anyway… Hmmm, there's still Martha Stewart, hey Martha have you tried green tea? And the truth be known, I have known about green tea for decades and have enjoyed its many benefits for as long, boy do I need Oprah to discover me… I wonder if Bob Green would mind.
But if I may chime in, regimented exercise and proper supportive nutrition, as well as adequate hydration should precede any and all wonder discoveries for health, wellbeing, vitality and lifestyle, then again…what do I know. So, overall, 10 pounds in six weeks should be the result. When you switch over to green tea, you will get your much needed caffeine, in addition to lowering insulin levels and, here is the doosey…body fat will diminish somewhat rapidly. Perricone explains, "Coffee has organic acids that raise your blood sugar, which affects insulin levels and insulin puts a lock on body fat.

As it turns out, coffee just, well what do I know and who the heck am I anyway, here's what the expert has to say… Dr.
All jokes aside, I am elated to see that Oprah has jumped on the bandwagon and is exposing the numerous health benefits associated with green tea, like; its ability to enhance immune system function, build stronger bones, and decrease the risk of cancer…just to name a few. Conversely, the biggest buzz is about green tea's ability to contribute to winning the battle of the bulge, pretty cool eh?
Incidentally, by increasing activity, decreasing your caloric intake and managing your hydration, with the addition of green tea…weight loss becomes a natural process. Not to mention, green tea also assists appetite suppression, helps to burn more daily calories and works to increase your body's energy production. Sure enough, studies on green tea continue to reach the same conclusions.
Stewart!!! Martha, Martha… Ms. Personally, I don't know of anyone who has the time to prepare and drink 10-15 cups of green tea each day, nor based on my less than ‘official' expert opinion should you really have to, but I am not an official expert, just a lifelong practitioner of balance and moderation in exercise and eating right… How do you become an expert anyway?

The only drawback with these studies experts say is…that a person would have to drink a couple of quarts of green tea daily to obtain these benefits, which would be next to impossible.
-To Your Absolute Health, Kurt Lee Hurley

Don't Throw Your Tea Bags Away! Learn The Healing Benefits Of Tea Bags

Best of all, if taken in tranquility or in good company, tea can even ease your troubled soul. And the healing effect of drinking herbal teas is sometimes even more potent than taking herbs in pill form. Although hundreds, maybe even thousands, of plants show medicinal properties, only a handful are tasty enough to be brewed to make tea. Studies have proven the healing powers of plants.
Besides enjoying the healing benefits of tea beverage, here are other creative ways to use your tea bags:
Burns can also be washed with cooled aloe tea used in a mist-maker. Soak in the bath to allow healing and prevent moisture loss from the skin. Just brew two to four bags of aloe tea and pour it into cool bath. • Soothe a sunburn or radiation treatment with aloe tea applied topically on the affected area for faster healing and more comfort while sleeping.
• For a quick cold and flu fix, spice up your bath with ginger. Just brew two bags of ginger tea in a pot of hot water, let it steep then add it to a prepared bath. The warm and stimulating effect of ginger is perfect for those who normally experience cold hands and feet, or for those who are recovering from a chill after suffering from a cold, flu or other illness.
• For instant relaxation and skin rejuvenation, make your own handy facial mist by letting two bags of lavender or chamomile tea steep until cool, then pour in a spray-mist bottle.
If you are planning to sell your house, this could be just the trick you need to inspire that prospective buyer. Add a slice of orange, a cinnamon stick, or a few slices of apple for a more potent aroma. • Stir up some potpourri and soothe your senses at home with two tea bags (jasmine, orange or ginger works well) allowed to slightly simmer in a pan of water.
Visit the following website for more info about health and cooking recipes. The author is a big fan of cooking recipes.

Decorative Tea-light Candleholders - Kids Make

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Quick and simple to make and very attractive. Anyone who enjoys candlelight will love these little tea-light candleholders.
To make a tea-light candleholder you will need...
Make sure your jars are clean and dry. Knorr - 'Stir it up' cooking sauce jars are ideal for this. Shallow jars.
Metallic spray paint.
No nails glue.
Glass Stones.
When using spray paint it is important to make sure that you use it in a well-ventilated room and that you are not near any naked flames. Make sure that you read the back of the paint can before you begin. Spray paint your jars with a thin layer of metallic paint.
You may wish to apply two coats of paint for good coverage. Paint the outside and the inside of the jars and then leave them somewhere to dry.
No nails glue dries white. Be careful not to use too much glue because if it does splurge out onto the jar it will spoil the candle holders appearance. Use ‘No Nails' glue to stick on glass stones evenly around the outside of the jar.
Once the glue dries your ready to put the tea-light candle inside.
Never allow anything to cross the top of the jar because this would be a fire hazard. Do make sure that any decoration that you apply is on the lower part of the jar. Try substituting glass stones for seashells, sequins or buttons.

Glue on pasta shells or string before spray painting. You could use other things to decorate your candleholder.
Let your imagination go wild and create some beautiful tea-light candleholders for your friends and family this Christmas.
For more fun makes please visit Roberts has lots of Christmas craft ideas. S.
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Can't Stop Smoking, Start Drinking Tea!

Let me start off by saying, that this is not an article about how to stop smoking. In a way, it is quite the opposite. Whether it is a pipe, cigar, or cigarettes, some of us have found that we are smokers. Maybe you have attempted to quit, and maybe you haven't cared enough to try. Either way, the truth remains, "I am a smoker." If this sounds familiar, then you I write this for you.
It came to me one afternoon, when I was trying to fight off a sore throat, and I held my pipe in my left hand, and searched for my lighter with my right…I shouldn't be doing this. I have had this sore throat for a week, and I can't stop smoking.
And more importantly, was now able to balance the scales. Though this moment was quick, it was important, as it was then that I accepted my fait. Well, the truth was the truth, and I really didn't have intentions of stopping…Slowing down, yes; stopping, no.
Smoking makes you look old, smoking causes cancer, smoking smells, smoking makes your teeth yellow, and a million other STOP SMOKING ads rushed through my head…
I accepted them all…
Ok, now what…Well, I began to think. With a sore throat nagging me at the moment, I decided to attack this enemy first. Mouth wash, medicine, vitamins; I found these were all good ideas. But although I was helping the issue, my throat still hurt, and I was beginning to cough.
Perhaps the coughing was a blessing in disguise as I reached for cup of tea to help stop a fit of coughs. The steam helped me breathe, and the hot water cleared my throat. If nothing else, this experience got me thinking.
I looked further into the matter, as I of course stepped up my tea intake.
I found out that drinking tea, Rooibos Tea and Jasmine Green Tea in particular, will help me to relax (calming down my nerves), contain large amounts of anti oxidants to fight against the increased level of free radicals in my body from smoking (the cause aging skin and of course, Cancer), clean my body of toxins, help me breathe, and help my previously mentioned sore throat. I looked at this list, and the STOP SMOKING ads returned…
And as I end this article with no promises, I will restate a simply written statement that proves itself time and time again, "Drinking tea is a good idea…" And NO, I do not think drinking tea will protect me from all ailments, or that I will never get sick again, or I will avoid any other ill drawn fait that may await me, but with certain facts that I had to accept, I can only do my best to minimize the damage. From personal experience, I have found that tea helps. Could it be that a pot of tea was a helpful accessory walking down this smokey path??

Come to Tea: An Elegant Garden Gathering

Outdoor spaces of all kinds, including balconies, can be successfully adapted to a tea party. It's a charming reminder of bygone days and childhood make-believe. Perhaps nothing says "garden party" like having afternoon tea outdoors.
Tea parties span generations and will be enjoyed by your most sophisticated women friends or all the giggling little girls of your acquaintance.
What makes an elegant tea party? Look at these factors.
Flowers
Plan to hold your tea party when your garden is in its fullest bloom -- perhaps it's lilac time, June roses, or peony season. Be sure to cut some of the blooms for the tea table vases. If you don't have a garden, buy an armful of flowers at a farmers' market or stop by a country ditch and pick bunches of wild daisies and Queen Anne's lace.
Invitations
Include an invitation for the little ones to bring along a doll or teddy friend. -- perfect for day-blooming flowers. Typically, tea is held around 4 p.m. Your guests will recognize your party as an elegant affair and dress accordingly!

Send handwritten notes by snail mail.
Table Setting
If it's a little girls' party, you might want to invest in two or three miniature tea sets. Instead, use a crisp linen tablecloth, pressed cloth napkins and your best bone china cups and saucers. Stash the paper table covering and the plastic glasses just for today. The more elegant, the better.
They can add an elegant touch, whether left unadorned or covered with flowered chintz. Consider setting your straight-back indoor dining chairs outdoors. Try to have adequate seating for everyone.
Hats
Tea time is a fun way to introduce young ones to "elegant party" manners. Include "grown-up" shoes and old jewellery -- anything that will make the little ones feel elegant. You can also include a box of flowery cast-offs for dressing up. Make decorating the hats a fun activity at the party.

If the party is for little girls, collect old hats, scarves and silk flowers at a thrift shop, yard sale or discount store. Encourage all of your guests to wear hats -- big-brimmed, floppy and flowered.
Food
You can substitute mini-cupcakes or tiny tarts. Sugar cookies and petit fours are traditional sweets. Try sandwiches of watercress, cucumber, or egg with the crusts removed and cut in quarters. All sandwiches and sweets should be dainty finger-food.

Other than teaspoons, no cutlery should be required at tea.
Tea
One of the first things that I learned in seventh grade home economics class was how to brew a proper pot of hot tea, but that was many years ago. I suspect that tea-making is becoming a lost art.
Tea is actually the common name of one plant: Camillia sinesis. The three basic types of tea -- black, green and oolong -- are distinguished by the amount of oxidization that the tea leaves have undergone. The more than 3,000 varieties of tea in the world are all derived from those three basic types.
Herbal teas -- more properly, tisane or infusion -- are made from a wide variety of flowers, herbs, barks, berries, fruits and spices.
Have milk (not cream!), sugar and fresh lemon wedges available. At a minimum, offer your guests a traditional tea and a caffeine-free herbal choice.
So, dust off your teacups and your manners and sit down with your girlfriends for a proper tea party. It's a lovely summer interlude!
About The Author
Visit her at Her latest how-to guide "Attracting Butterflies to Your Home and Garden" is now available on her web site. Debbie Rodgers, the haven maven, owns and operates Paradise Porch, and is dedicated to helping people create outdoor living spaces that nurture and enrich them.
www.paradiseporch.com
Mail to and get a free report on "Eight easy ways to create privacy in your outdoor space".
debbie@paradiseporch.com
.

An Organic Herbal Tea Blend

Though sales have been mainly rooted in the standard teas stemming from the Camelia sinensis plant (Green tea, Oolong tea, and Black tea), a vast increase in herbal and natural medicines in the western world has brought upon a virtual explosion of Organic Herbal Tea Blend, releasing any confinements there may have previously been. Tea bags, loose teas, tea shops, and gourmet teas are only a few examples of the outlets for this ever increasing number. With US$5 billion market in the United States alone in 2003, a 500% increase in 10 years, tea is a well established industry that is quickly growing.
Now it is not only Big Business that is apart of this industry as the infinite number of herbal tea blends are combing with the free commerce of the internet. This conception is creating new life in an industry that had been patiently waiting. New companies are forming, new mixtures are being created, and now even new tea bags are being designed.
The machine manufactured tea bags are still standard in market where cost is being put before quality. A metal staple is used to close a bag filled with low quality tea dust, which is known to have very low health benefits and give a more bitter taste than its whole leaf loose tea counterpart. Due to the manufacturing techniques used by these production factories, tea dust is the only filler able to be injected with the machines used to mass produce these bags. As the general size of each organic herbal tea blend is larger, they are unable to be used with these processed bags.
Also, most bags are filled with green and oolong loose teas, as opposed to organic herbal tea. Though higher in quality than the stapled standard, problems of this style include a large shape and size that makes bulk packaging difficult. A more spacious bag allows for a free floating of the loose tea that is inside. Second in popularity is a relatively new pyramid shaped tea bag.
Fortunately as the number of companies is increasing, and more money is entering into the market, handmade gourmet tea bags are being created, better matching the ingenuity behind each organic herbal tea blend could be your gateway to differentiation in a busy tea industry. With the combined short falls of these two bags, the ever increasing number of organic herbal tea blends and home based companies are in desperate need for a tea bag to match their unique nature.

Organic Tea -- Is It Worth It?

But how can you be sure the "organic tea" you buy is really organic? Organic beverages such as tea and coffee are also available and they are very popular. We can buy organic vegetables, fruits, and even "organically raised" meat. Organic produce is everywhere.
What's to stop an unscrupulous tea vendor from falsely labeling his tea "organic" simply to get a better price? Organic produce, tea included, is usually more expensive than non-organic brands.
What is Organic Tea?
Organic tea is grown without the use of chemical pesticides or fertilizers. The soil is enriched with natural compost and a layer of mulch retains the moisture while providing extra nutrients as it breaks down.
These competitions are held "blind" so that the judges can only use taste, aroma and color as the judging criteria. Tea competitions in China, Japan, and Taiwan have consistently chosen organic teas as the best teas of their class. This growing method is more labor-intensive but produces superior quality tea.
Scientific studies have shown that these compounds are found in higher concentrations in good quality tea. These are the antioxidants that provide many of the health benefits that tea is famous for. In addition to the improved flavor, organic tea is also higher in health promoting polyphenols and catechins.
This means that the farmer has less expense in replacing tea plants. Tea plants can live more than 100 years, and organic farming methods allow the tea plants to remain healthy for the duration of their lifespan. Organic tea is also better for the tea farmer.
Is it Really Organic?
Organizations like the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movement (IFOAM) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) have certification programs that examine the growing practices of a particular tea plantation and issue certificates to those that meet their requirements. For one thing, there are several governmental and non-government agencies that certify products as being organic. When you pick up a package of tea that is labeled "organic" how can you be sure it's the real McCoy?
Packaged organic tea is required to meet the standards of the certifying agency, so look for tea which has the label of a recognized agency.
You are paying a premium for organic tea, so accept nothing short of the best. If it is not superb, it is probably not organic. Organic tea should titillate the taste buds with complex flavors and subtle delights. Above all, however, you should rely on your taste buds to tell you whether a tea is really organic.
Paul Dickson is a contributing writer to
Tea Genius.com
Information about the types of tea, tea production, tea growing, the health benefits of tea, and making and serving tea can be found at Tea Genius is a complete knowledge base of tea. .
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