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Martial Joe
03-12-2001, 12:32 AM
What is in green tea(greean tea leaves) that is so good for you,and what does it do...and are any of these things in alot of othger teas...I sure like tea.


Joe

dunbarj01
03-12-2001, 02:41 AM
Hi Martial Joe,

I'm also a tea lover. Green tea is rich in antioxidants and free radical scavengers. These chemical prevent the adverse effects of the environment or poor diet. Other beneficial things include polyphenols in oolong teas and similar teas such as Pu Erh. These are also benefical in aiding digestion especially after an oily meal. Pu Erh is an excellent digestive tea with a very earthy aroma. White teas (such as Pai Mu Tan and Green Lung Ching) are also refreshing digestives. In addition to this polyphenols have a possible action in retarding the uptake of caffiene. This produces a longer lasting but milder "lift" than coffee.

Also recommend Japanese Tea (Sencha, Gyokuro or Genmaicha) which has a very high level of Chlorophyll. In summer, Mugicha is nice but this is technically not tea but barley instead.

Cheers,

dunbarj01
03-12-2001, 02:41 AM
Hi Martial Joe,

I'm also a tea lover. Green tea is rich in antioxidants and free radical scavengers. These chemical prevent the adverse effects of the environment or poor diet. Other beneficial things include polyphenols in oolong teas and similar teas such as Pu Erh. These are also benefical in aiding digestion especially after an oily meal. Pu Erh is an excellent digestive tea with a very earthy aroma. White teas (such as Pai Mu Tan and Green Lung Ching) are also refreshing digestives. In addition to this polyphenols have a possible action in retarding the uptake of caffiene. This produces a longer lasting but milder "lift" than coffee.

Also recommend Japanese Tea (Sencha, Gyokuro or Genmaicha) which has a very high level of Chlorophyll. In summer, Mugicha is nice but this is technically not tea but barley instead.

Cheers,

jacob360
03-12-2001, 02:55 AM
I heard somewehere, I think on the news, that green tea was scientifically proven to raise your metabolism for a little while.

Martial Joe
03-12-2001, 03:15 AM
Vlad, what does it exactly do for your diet.And is black tea also very good for you.And I also like BlackBerry lipton tea.What about that stuff?

Budokan
03-12-2001, 05:56 AM
First of all just let me say I'm stunned there's a thread that's not related to one of mercilesspanker's idiotic philosophies at the top of this board. That aside...

I often drink tea myself and am also curious as to the health benefits (real or perceived) from consumption. I have to admit I've never developed a palate for green tea..but will try it again if I can be convinced of the health benefits involved...

Great thread by the way. Of course, anything without mercifulsuckhead is leagues better than what this forum's been getting lately...

K. Mark Hoover

monkey mind
03-12-2001, 06:03 AM
I saw a report on the tv news recently (and we all know that if it's on the news, it must be true!) about a study on green tea and cancer. According to this study, drinking green tea regularly does not reduce the risk of cancer, contrary to some claims.

I also had a Chinese history professor in college who told me that green tea, like red wine, can counteract the effects of some saturated fats and thereby help reduce cholesterol.

Sorry I don't have more specifics or references, but there you go. Peace.

joedoe
03-12-2001, 06:34 AM
Don't know as much about the technicalities of tea as our learned chemical friend Vlad ;) but I know green tea can help to calm and soothe me.

I heard there is some difference between green and black tea for antioxidant value. I think it is something along the lines of black tea being dried longer or something, hence breaking down some of the antioxidant properties.

Green tea doesn't directly lower the risk of cancer, but its antioxidant and free radical scavenging properties are supposed to help in the prevention of cancer.

Guns don't kill people, I kill people

dunbarj01
03-12-2001, 07:42 AM
Generally speaking, saturated fats have fewer chemical bonds (C=C) than unsaturated fats giving them higher melting points and straighter carbon chain which allows them to be packed tighter together. Unsaturated fats have a lower density and lower melting point and are therefore more fluid in cell membranes and aren't prone to blocking arteries and the like. Oxidation causes the conversion of unsaturated fats to saturated fats and leads to blockages in arteries and a less plastic (and less effective) cell membrane structure. Vitamin E (Tocopheryls) are excellent antioxidants but as for tea I'm not sure if the polyphenols and other antioxidants are working at a cellular level or at the stage at which fats are absorbed into the blood. This requires a bit of work on my part. About cancer, I have heard of green tea extracts being for skin cancer, not as cure but to help alleviate erythema and development of melanoma. Have to check this too.

Black tea has undergone full drying and has a higher caffiene and tannin content than green and semi fermented teas. The quality of tea is determined by the grade of leaf (full leaf, broken tips etc) and locality (altitude, soil type, estate etc). A word of warning: too much black tea consumption (excessive tannin intake) can promote constipation. (Just thought I'd add that....)

Cheers,

Shaolin Temple
03-12-2001, 08:09 AM
This is a fantastic thread. I am learning alot from all of you regarding tea. There also exists Monkey pick tea which in China is the most expensive tea attainable. It costs around RMB2000 per kan i.e. almost 1/2 kg.

The expensiveness is due to the fact that these tea leaves are specifically picked by specially trained monkeys that runs to the top of trees and gathers the leaves.

In Chinese history, this is the tea used in Huang Di Nei Jing (The Yellow Emperor's Medicinal Book) for prevention of many ailments and disease. Its anti-oxidative properties are highly researched into and is known to be the highest attainable in any herb. Even more than grapeseed extract or good old pycnogenol (French maritime tree bark).

The tea is also shown to actively cleanse the liver from pre and post LFT (liver function test) and is an excellent preventative solution for hyperlipidemia, hypercholestrolaemia and hypertension. However, if you are pregnant...do not touch as it is too potent for the growing foetus to handle.

Monkey pick is also available as Ti Quan Yin, Oolong, Jasmine, Sou mee, Hiong pin, Fa hiong, Kuk Fa and Luk cha...i.e. Monkey Pick Ti Quan Yin and etc.

The other reason as to why monkey pick is so good is that, like any animal, they know from instinct which food material is good for its medicinal properties. As these monkeys are releases in the Ti Quan Yin patches, they pick the best. If they are releases in the Oolong patches...same thing.

Of course, you do not have to pay thousands of dollars for these. they are available in different grades. Grade 1-5. Grade 1 being shown and known to be the best.

To tell if they are authentic, smell it. It comes in spherical pellets and the smell is strong with a touch of bitterness and fragrance of burnt wood. This is to seal in the nutrients as the old classics says.

Have fun drinking tea the traditional way. Buy a small tea pot set and drink it. This is called Kung Fu Cha. Yes...kung fu tea as it is an art.
:cool: :D ;)

Which Shaolin is authentic. North or South.
As Sifu would say...there is no permanence and there should not be any discrimination.
The point is therefore, who cares.
The more Shaolin there are, the better. Be civilized and chivalrous in your behaviour. As martial artists, we are supposed to not forget that we learn this art to help others and ourselves in times of need...not be a thug!!!
Amitabha.

Shaolin Temple
03-12-2001, 08:10 AM
This is a fantastic thread. I am learning alot from all of you regarding tea. There also exists Monkey pick tea which in China is the most expensive tea attainable. It costs around RMB2000 per kan i.e. almost 1/2 kg.

The expensiveness is due to the fact that these tea leaves are specifically picked by specially trained monkeys that runs to the top of trees and gathers the leaves.

In Chinese history, this is the tea used in Huang Di Nei Jing (The Yellow Emperor's Medicinal Book) for prevention of many ailments and disease. Its anti-oxidative properties are highly researched into and is known to be the highest attainable in any herb. Even more than grapeseed extract or good old pycnogenol (French maritime tree bark).

The tea is also shown to actively cleanse the liver from pre and post LFT (liver function test) and is an excellent preventative solution for hyperlipidemia, hypercholestrolaemia and hypertension. However, if you are pregnant...do not touch as it is too potent for the growing foetus to handle.

Monkey pick is also available as Ti Quan Yin, Oolong, Jasmine, Sou mee, Hiong pin, Fa hiong, Kuk Fa and Luk cha...i.e. Monkey Pick Ti Quan Yin and etc.

The other reason as to why monkey pick is so good is that, like any animal, they know from instinct which food material is good for its medicinal properties. As these monkeys are releases in the Ti Quan Yin patches, they pick the best. If they are releases in the Oolong patches...same thing.

Of course, you do not have to pay thousands of dollars for these. they are available in different grades. Grade 1-5. Grade 1 being shown and known to be the best.

To tell if they are authentic, smell it. It comes in spherical pellets and the smell is strong with a touch of bitterness and fragrance of burnt wood. This is to seal in the nutrients as the old classics says.

Have fun drinking tea the traditional way. Buy a small tea pot set and drink it. This is called Kung Fu Cha. Yes...kung fu tea as it is an art.
:cool: :D ;

Which Shaolin is authentic. North or South.
As Sifu would say...there is no permanence and there should not be any discrimination.
The point is therefore, who cares.
The more Shaolin there are, the better. Be civilized and chivalrous in your behaviour. As martial artists, we are supposed to not forget that we learn this art to help others and ourselves in times of need...not be a thug!!!
Amitabha.

Budokan
03-12-2001, 02:24 PM
Wouldn't a saturated fat have a single bond between carbons (C-C) because of the 3 hydrogens hanging off each end; therefore "saturated" with hydrogens...and an unsaturated would be a double bond (C=C) with two hydrogens attatched to each carbon? I'm pretty sure I'm remembering my chemistry correctly...but it's early in the morning and I may be mistaken.

K. Mark Hoover

Godzilla
03-12-2001, 06:04 PM
There is more info here on drinking tea for health and pleasure.

Godzilla

dunbarj01
03-12-2001, 11:12 PM
Budokan,

You're quite right. I did mean to say that saturated fats have fewer C=C bonds. Apologies for the confusion folks.

monkey mind
03-13-2001, 05:19 AM
I don't know too much about hanging hydrogens, but I do know that black tea is fermented, as well as being fully dried.

Martial Joe
03-14-2001, 12:08 AM
Is that a good thing?

dunbarj01
03-14-2001, 12:23 AM
No not at all. It just means that it has completed the full production process and that produces the qualitites that black tea has. Oolong tea uses the same process of fermentation but this is stopped half way through the process to produce a different flavour.

neijiachuan
03-14-2001, 02:03 AM
The caffeine in green tea frees fatty acids so that you burn fat more easily. And the polyphenols (antioxidant compounds) appear to work with caffeine to increase calorie burn. If you have high blood pressure, it's best you don't drink green tea before your workouts.

neijiachuan

Martial Joe
03-14-2001, 06:30 AM
I thought green tea didnt have any caffine in it.I thought black teas did...

dunbarj01
03-14-2001, 07:03 AM
Green Tea has about 10-15% of the caffiene in coffee. Oolong has about 25-30% and black tea can vary from maybe 50-70%. The level of caffiene in green tea is pretty low but it is there. It's not completely caffiene free though.

Martial Joe
03-14-2001, 07:00 PM
So if you burn callaries on green tea because of the cafine...wouldnt you burn more on black tea because of the higher amount?

dunbarj01
03-14-2001, 11:42 PM
Hi MJ,

Yes you would burn more calories with black tea and even more with strong black coffee. Caffiene effects an enzyme that mobilises fat called fatty acid carboxylase. As you exercise, the enzyme activity increases. When doing prolonged exercise, you're using mostly fats as the energy source at about the 1 hour mark - prior to that it's mostly carbohydrates and some fat. I think this is what marathon runners call "hitting the wall". Drinking caffiene before exercise means that you reach this stage much earlier. You're sort of forcing your body to use its reserves much quicker than it normally would.

joedoe
03-15-2001, 01:24 AM
I have read that too much caffeine can impede liver function, which can be really bad as the liver is integral to the process of eliminating fats from the body.

However, I don't think the occasional cup of tea is going to do this to you :)

Guns don't kill people, I kill people

dunbarj01
03-15-2001, 03:33 AM
That may be more due to the diuretic effects of caffiene.

Martial Joe
03-15-2001, 04:05 AM
Like soda and stuff right?...I drink tea almost everyday.

kwang
03-15-2001, 06:22 AM
I wouldn't worry about caffien too much unless your intake is A LOT, or ifyou have heart problems or something :oP

Kwang

dunbarj01
03-15-2001, 06:37 AM
A lot of caffiene would be about 12 cups of coffee. Your fingers would be tingling at this point. Drinking tea daily is not a health hazard. I think enjoying tea 2-3 times a day is harmless especially if its green tea.

monkey mind
03-19-2001, 06:47 PM
Hey everybody,

There's a good article on the health effects of tea, green tea in particular, in the Science Times section of today's NY Times. I'm not sure if they post the entire paper on the web, but you can probably find the article at http://www.nytimes.com.