At that time, the Chinese people have been using tea as treatment for everything from headaches to depression.
Recently, given tea's growing popularity, its healthy properties seem to be grabbing media headlines once again. New scientific studies touting the healthy properties of tea seem to be everywhere.
Probably the single factor that has most contributed to the growing popularity tea is its healthful reputation.
There is no other drink in the world like tea. What other elixir is simultaneously relaxing energizing?
The basis for all the buzz about tea's healthy properties are polyphenols. Phenols are basically a chemical compound that are found in many plants, including tea. Get a whole bunch of phenols together, and you've got polyphenols.
The thing that makes polyphenols so healthy is that they are thought to be powerful antioxidants. Polyphenols are best known for being effective antioxidants, and the polyphenol in tea are no exception.
Antioxidants are basically chemicals that reduce oxidative damage to cells. Medical researchers have found a high correlation between oxidative damage and the occurrence of disease.
Their research suggests that consumption of antioxidant-rich foods reduces damage to cells and biochemical from free radicals. That's something that most scientists agree upon.
Teas that are least oxidized (mainly green and whites) retain more polyphenols than those that are fully oxidized.
In particular, green and white teas contain high amounts of the polyphenol epigallocatechin gallate, which has potent anti-inflammatory properties and is thought to boost the body’s ability to use fat as an energy source.
When the modern researchers finally studied tea, they confirmed what the Chinese s had said for centuries: that tea holds within it a special health-preserving and revitalizing power.
The Health Benefits of Tea