Tea is relatively simple to brew at home and the great attraction in every culture is the ritual surrounding it. Tea is the drink of friendship, offered before anything else when guests arrive. Tea is meant to be bitter, just as beer is meant to be bitter. If you sweeten it, you are no longer tasting the tea, you are merely tasting the sugar; you could make a very similar drink by dissolving sugar in plain hot water. Tea is good for your teeth. Drinking tea is kind to teeth because it contains no sugar to decay them or acid to erode them, unlike the majority of fizzy drinks on sale today.
Tea is more varied, you have fruit teas, jasmin teas, lemon teas, strong, weak you name it. All Coffee has is variations that image concious muppets care about, skinny mocha latte? Tea is a shrub (Thea sinensis) which has fragrant white flowers and evergreen leaves. The dried leaves of this plant, plucked in various stages of growth and prepared by various processes, are used to make a hot beverage. Tea is central to the economy of East Africa and, with over 150 tea factories in the region, the sector provides employment and much-needed foreign exchange. But the fuel-hungry industry has been hit by unreliable electricity supplies, forcing many producers to use oil-fired generators to back-up temperamental national grids.
Drinking tea goes well with spicy food and Sichuan is one of the most important regions for the production of tea in China. Drinking tea with meals can reduce the amount of iron the body can absorb from your food. So it's especially important for children to avoid drinking tea, especially at mealtimes.
Tea can be used not only as beverage, but also as the edible dye - for colouring and simultaneously vitaminizing jelly-candy and lozenge (yellow, green and brown colours may be obtained from tea). In Asia dry tea is used as seasoning for dishes with meat, fish and game. Tea can also be an affordable luxury and an exploration of some of the world's most beautiful places. Did you know that tea is grown in more than 30 countries?
Drinking tea on a regular basis has been linked in some studies to a reduced risk of heart disease, although the link is not proven. Researchers think that it's the chemicals called flavonoids in tea that might exert this beneficial effect. Drinking milky tea, however, made no difference to the arteries. The researchers believe that the milk proteins interact with the tea decreasing the levels of antioxidants, which are the active ingredients known to protect against heart disease. Drink extra water to counteract them. People with disease conditions may experience a healing crisis if they drink too much too soon which not everyone can cope with.
Drinking Pu-erh tea can help reduce cholesterol, according to scientific studies. By helping digestion (particularly of fatty foods), Pu-erh is the perfect tea after a heavy meal. Drinking tea, scientists believe, can help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease by improving cholesterol levels and blood vessel function. And there's much positive evidence to suggest that tea may make a contribution to preventing certain cancers, though more work is " needed.
Oolong tea can simply burn body fat. It is rich with iron, calcium, numerous minerals, while contains various natural properties that promotes the digestive enzymes to break down fat substances in the blood. Oolong is a type in between green and black tea. No other tea type goes through such a broad range of fermentation. Oolong tea gains exactly the same results as Okinawan tea. Oolong tea can also be called 'Wu-long' tea.
