Drinking tea for health? Drinking tea this way may be detrimental to your health!

Talking about tea

From West Lake Longjing, Huangshan Maojian to Anxi Tieguanyin

Countless varieties

Drinking tea is not only a necessity in daily life

It also has certain health benefits

But do you know?

Drinking tea is not only about the tea leaves, but also about the nature of the tea

Tea can be divided into cold and hot properties

Everyone has a different physique

Suitable tea is also different

Yang Wei, chief physician of the Department of Gastroenterology at the Chinese Medicine Clinic of the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, answered your questions.

If you want to maintain your health by drinking tea, you first need to choose the right type of tea according to your physical condition, and then make appropriate adjustments according to seasonal changes.

In spring, we first recommend that you drink scented tea with a fragrant and spicy smell, such as jasmine tea. Jasmine tea is warm in nature, can dispel cold and refresh the mind. The fusion of its floral fragrance and tea fragrance can make people feel happy and refreshed, and can drive away spring sleepiness.

Secondly, it is recommended to drink some tea that nourishes and regulates the liver, because the liver belongs to wood in the five elements, corresponding to the vitality of spring, so spring is the most suitable season for regulating and nourishing the liver. For those with normal physique, you can drink some rose tea, which can soothe the liver and regulate qi, and for women, it has the effect of promoting blood circulation, regulating menstruation and beautifying.

If you have a constitution that is prone to liver fire, you may be easily irritable and angry in this season, and some liver diseases may even relapse in spring. It is recommended to drink chrysanthemum tea to clear liver fire. Tieguanyin (tea) and Pu'er tea can also be drunk in spring.

If you are not sure whether your constitution is cold or hot, you can choose some mild and neutral teas, such as Tieguanyin tea, Oolong tea, white tea, Pu'er tea, etc.

Buy Tea

Don’t over-pursue “new” and “expensive”

Instead, you should choose tea according to the season and your physical condition.

It is more conducive to health preservation and disease prevention

Different teas, different benefits

1

Green tea: reduces internal heat and prevents cancer

Representative famous teas: West Lake Longjing, Dongting Biluochun, Xinyang Maojian.

Green tea is unfermented tea. It is cold in nature and helps reduce internal heat, making it the most suitable tea for people who are prone to internal heat. Compared with other teas, green tea has better anti-cancer effects. Green tea is generally believed to have the effects of lowering blood lipids, lowering blood pressure, and reducing weight. For regular smokers, drinking green tea can reduce the harm of nicotine.

Note: Green tea is cold in nature, so people with weak spleen and stomach should drink less.

2

White tea: improve eyesight and protect liver

Representative famous teas: Baihao Yinzhen, White Peony, Shoumei.

White tea is slightly fermented tea. White tea usually has certain effects of improving eyesight, protecting the liver, and promoting blood sugar balance. Especially old white tea, it also has the effects of reducing internal heat, reducing inflammation, and relieving sore throat. It has certain effects on treating laryngitis and sore throat. Compared with other teas, white tea has better antibacterial and anti-radiation effects.

3

Yellow tea: benefits the spleen and stomach and aids digestion

Representative famous teas: Junshan Yinzhen, Huoshan Huangya, Pingyang Huangtang.

Yellow tea is lightly fermented tea. It has a certain detoxifying effect, benefits the spleen and stomach, aids digestion, and also helps with fat metabolism. It is suitable for almost everyone.

4

Green tea: lowers blood lipids and anti-aging

Representative famous teas: Dahongpao, Tieguanyin, Phoenix Dancong, and Taiwan Dongding Oolong.

Green tea is semi-fermented tea, also known as oolong tea. Compared with other teas, oolong tea is more effective in weight loss. Some oolong teas are rich in "methylated catechins", which have anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic effects. Green tea contains more tea polyphenols, which has the effects of lowering blood lipids, anti-aging, and refreshing, but it is not suitable to be drunk on an empty stomach or before going to bed.

5

Black tea: warms the spleen and stomach and relieves fatigue

Representative famous teas: Sichuan Hong Gongfu, Dian Hong Gongfu, and Qimen Gongfu.

Black tea is fully fermented tea. Zhengshan Xiaozhong, Darjeeling, Sri Lanka, etc. are all black tea.

Black tea usually has red soup and red leaves, which helps digestion, warms the stomach, refreshes the mind and relieves fatigue. Compared with other types of tea, black tea is more effective in preventing cardiovascular diseases.

Note: People with a hot constitution should drink less black tea.

6

Dark tea: lowers blood lipids and relieves greasiness

Representative famous teas: Yunnan Pu'er, Anhua black tea, Wuzhou Liubao tea.

Dark tea is post-fermented tea. For example, Pu'er tea, Liubao tea, Anhua dark tea, Hubei old green tea, etc. are generally dark tea.

Black tea has a good effect in eliminating fat and greasiness, has a strong lipid-lowering function, and has the effects of preventing diabetes and anti-aging.

Tea drinking misunderstandings

1

Drinking tea regardless of body type

There are many kinds of tea, which can be roughly divided into unfermented tea, semi-fermented tea and fermented tea. Each type of tea is suitable for different groups of people.

Drinking tea regardless of your body type may cause some discomfort:

Green tea: Rich in tea polyphenols and caffeine, it is irritating to the stomach. People with weak stomachs should drink less green tea, especially not on an empty stomach, otherwise they may get drunk on the tea. Such people can choose black tea, which warms the stomach, or add milk or brown sugar to the tea.

Scented tea: Suitable for women, especially those before and after menstruation or in menopause. Drinking scented tea can relieve irritability.

Oolong teas such as Tieguanyin and Wuyi Rock Tea: have good effects in lowering blood lipids and aiding digestion. They can also be consumed when staying up late to refresh the mind and relieve fatigue.

2

Drink the same tea all year round

If you want to use tea to maintain your health, you should not drink only one type of tea all year round, but choose tea according to the season.

Spring: It is suitable to drink scented tea (such as jasmine tea).

Scented tea is sweet and cool, with an aromatic and pungent aroma. It not only helps to dissipate the coldness in the body, but also promotes the rise of yang energy, making people refreshed.

Summer: It is suitable to drink green tea.

Because green tea is cold in nature, it is the best for removing internal heat, promoting salivation and quenching thirst, as well as helping digestion and reducing phlegm.

Note: Green tea is rich in nutrients, but it has a strong irritating effect on the stomach and intestines. Therefore, it is not suitable for people with allergies, weak spleen and stomach, and those who are nervous and prone to insomnia should not drink it at night.

Autumn: It is more suitable to drink oolong tea.

Because the tea has moderate properties, neither cold nor hot, it helps to eliminate excess heat in the body. It also has the effects of moisturizing the skin, moisturizing the throat, promoting salivation, and clearing away accumulated heat in the body, etc., and relieves autumn dryness.

Winter: It is advisable to drink warm black tea.

Tea is sweet and warm in nature, can nourish yang energy, and is also rich in protein and sugar, can enhance resistance to cold, and can aid digestion.

Drinking tea regardless of body type

3

A handful of tea leaves for a day

On the one hand, if the tea is brewed too many times, its fragrance will no longer be tasted; on the other hand, long-term soaking in high-temperature water will cause the vitamins, tea polyphenols, flavonoids and other nutrients in the tea to oxidize and degrade, greatly reducing its health benefits.

Recommendation: Use a small teapot or a teacup with a strainer to brew tea leaves to separate the water from the tea. Generally, brew the tea leaves 4 to 5 times or replace them when they have no flavor.

4

Don’t wash old tea

Tea or oolong tea is often aged, especially Pu'er tea cakes. The older it is, the stronger the aroma.

This type of tea usually needs to be washed quickly with boiling water (10 to 20 seconds) before the first brew of tea is poured out. This can not only wash the tea and remove surface impurities, but also warm the tea to help the tea aroma evaporate.

5

Tea stains are not clear

Tea scale is formed by the oxidation of tea polyphenols in tea leaves and metal elements in tea rust, and is a metal chelate.

Although no relevant research has confirmed that tea stains are definite hazards to health, from a hygiene point of view, it is recommended to wash off tea stains in time. Tea stains can be easily washed off with toothpaste or salt water.

6

Tea should be brewed with boiling water and drunk while hot

Not every type of tea needs to be brewed with boiling water.

It is best to use freshly boiled water for black tea, black tea, and oolong tea, as the tea aroma will be richer.

It is suitable to brew green tea with water at 80℃~85℃ for 2~3 minutes, and it is best to drink it immediately after brewing. Green tea is relatively delicate, and if it is brewed with boiling water, the polyphenols in it will be destroyed, the tea soup will not only turn yellow, but also lose its aromatic substances.

Reminder: It is not recommended to drink tea while it is hot, as it can easily burn the gastric mucosa and oral cavity. Let the tea sit for a while before drinking it.