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Oolong Tea's Health Benefits
Oolong Tea's Health Benefits
source: www.oolongtea.org
Oolong Tea's Health Promotion
Benefits
Teas contain a number of ingredients
that have an influence on the human body. The quantities and
percentages of these ingredients differ widely depending on
the extent of fermentation. As can be seen from the table below,
green tea contains a wealth of one ingredient called catechin
while black tea contains a lot of theaflavin. Oolong tea contains
a large quantity of polyphenol. According to research, it has
become clear that polyphenol is the ingredient that generates
the delicious flavor unique to oolong tea and also promotes
beauty and health.
| |
Green Tea
(Unfermented) |
Oolong Tea
(Semi-fermented) |
Black Tea
(Fermented) |
| Caffeine |
★★★ |
★★★ |
★★★ |
| Tannin |
★★★★ |
★★★★ |
★★★★ |
| |
Catechin |
★★★★ |
★★ |
★ |
| Polyphenol |
★ |
★★★★ |
★★★ |
| Teaflavin Tearubigin
|
★ |
★★ |
★★★★ |
| What Is Polyphenol? |
| In terms of chemistry, substances
that have more than two phenol-based hydroxyl groups within
a single molecule are generally called polyphenol, and there
are many such substances. Thus, polyphenol is a general term
for phenolic hydroxyl compounds and no single substance called
polyphenol exists. Polyphenol has a wide variety of chemical
substances with different effects and most varieties of polyphenol
that are highly topical these days are the group of substances
that have been known as tannin for a long time. |
 |
|
| Polyphenol Holds
the Secret to the Power of Tea. |
| Tea contains a large amount of polyphenols.
It has become clear that the health promotion benefit of tea
is the effect of polyphenols, namely tannin. |
| The Unique Characteristics
of Polyphenols Contained in Tea |
| Compared with those contained in
other plants, the polyphenols found in tea leaves consist of
many different kinds of small polyphenols, which are assumed
to give it its unique effects. |
| Oolong Tea Polyphenols |
|
Made in the semi-fermented process, oolong tea includes a
wide variety of polyphenolic compounds and these different
nutrients are probably integrated to bring great benefits
to our bodies. For example, they are effective in reducing
triglyceride and removing free radicals. Polyphenols have
depth and breadth, and there still remains much more that
we must find out about them. |
| Free Radicals and Polyphenols |
|
What are free radicals?
|
| Free radicals are substances that have become
oxidized in the body. They are generated within the body in
order to protect it from exogenous harmful factors. However,
they are also formed when we are exposed to ultra-violet rays
and stress, take in chemical food additives, smoke of tobacco,
or when we are involved in too much exercise. It has also become
clear that as we get older, the amount of free radicals within
the body increases naturally. |
 |
| Free radicals
are a serious enemy to health and beauty. |
| Free radicals oxidize the regular lipids within
the body to convert them into lipid peroxide. This can cause
adult diseases, such as arteriosclerosis and diabetes, as well
as dark spots and wrinkles on the skin. |
 |
| Free radicals damage the skin. |
| The skin is constantly exposed to free radicals
that are formed by many different external factors. If no countermeasures
are taken against free radicals, melanin pigmentation become
dark spots, lipids that should keep the skin fresh turn into
lipid peroxide, and the aging of the skin accelerates. Women
in particular fear the negative effects of free radicals. |
 |
| SOD controls the
effects of free radicals. |
|
The human body's system is equipped with a natural mechanism
to control the effects of free radicals and minimize their
damage. This is an enzyme called SOD (superoxide dismutase).
If this enzyme functions fully, it removes the free radicals
that are formed within the body. But SOD is stored within
the body and cannot be supplemented like other kinds of nutrition,
such as vitamins. In order to strengthen SOD, we need to enhance
its function by using something else. Polyphenol, which is
found in oolong tea, plays an important role in this regard.
|
 |
| The benefit of
polyphenol in oolong tea has been confirmed by clinical trials. |
| Polyphenol in oolong tea offers two
functions (as does SOD), one of which is to enhance the function
of enzymes and the other is to remove free radicals. In clinical
trials, we asked people to drink oolong tea that was produced
by infusing two packs of the tea in boiling water twice a day
for three months, and we then measured any changes in the function
of SOD before and after the intake of oolong tea. The results
can be summarized as follows: |
| 1. Continuous intake of oolong tea is effective
in enhancing the effect of SOD within the body. |
 |
| 2. It is very effective in delaying the appearance
of signs of aging, such as dark spots and wrinkles, by strengthening
the effect of copper-zinc-SOD, which acts favorably within the
cutaneous cells of the skin. |
 |
|
3. Oolong tea is also highly effective in improving both
spleen energy-weak and kidney energy-weak symptoms as diagnosed
in Chinese herbalism.
|
 |
 |
| The effectiveness of polyphenol in
oolong tea has been confirmed scientifically. |
| Oolong tea is
effective in preventing tooth decay and atopic dermatitis. |
| According to the Department of Dentistry,
Osaka University, consuming polyphenol found in oolong tea contributes
to the reduction of tooth decay significantly and is effective
in preventing the occurrence of such decay. The Department of
Dermatology, Shiga University of Medical Science carried out
research into its effect on atopic dermatitis and discovered
that 64% of sufferers of atopic dermatitis reported an improvement
in their skin condition. This indicates that oolong tea is very
effective regarding atopic dermatitis. |
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