Green Tea/Sun Tea

Ten-plus years ago, I honored my Southern sweet tea roots in the summertime by making gallons of sun tea: tea slow-brewed in gallon glass jars using the heat of the summer sun. (I have read you can make "sun tea" in the winter by putting it in a dark closet for five hours -- go figure.)

When I stopped consuming all things caffeinated I stopped brewing and drinking traditional ice tea as well (which also eliminated the cups of white sugar required). However, I made some organic, decaffeinated green tea yesterday afternoon that turned out very well. A couple of things coalesced to kick-start that effort. (Yes, I believe decaffeinated everything is better. Caffeine is addictive and has been linked to calcium loss in the body [Prescription for Nutritional Healing, p. 552].)

An email health tip from Dr. Robert Rowen (Second Opinion Newsletter) reminded me about the powerful antioxidant benefits of green tea, and Jennifer (who got the same email) and I were talking about it when I was in Columbia. Also, Daniel got on the sun tea thing a few weeks ago and has been making it, so that was a fresh reminder as well. I no longer have the gallon glass jars with the built-in spout (Jen found Daniel a nice one at Target -- my original ones had come from Wal-Mart), so I used a quart glass jar yesterday and it worked fine until I can get a new gallon size.

First, here's the copy from Dr. Rowen's June 13 newsletter on the benefits of green tea:

One in three Americans get cancer today. How would you like to reduce your chances of being the one? New research suggests you can do it simply by drinking my favorite beverage.

In a recent study, researchers followed 36,745 women using a questionnaire and blood samples. Among these women, there were 494 cases of gastric cancer. They compared these cases to a separate group of 494 women who didn't have the cancer. The scientists found one very telling factor in their cancer.

The researchers found that the blood levels of epicatechin-3-gallate (ECG) made a huge difference in risk. ECG is the most powerful polyphenol (phytochemical from plants) we've discovered. In this study, ECG blood levels of 9.3 ng/mL or greater conferred a 75% reduction in risk.

Your best source of ECG is green tea. My favorite beverage is just loaded with these polyphenols. Researchers continue to discover new uses for this drink. As you can see, it's a fantastic cancer fighter - and not just gastric cancer.

Researchers also found that it works wonders for prostate cancer. In another study, this one following 49,920 men (aged 40-69), green tea stopped the cancer from growing. Those who drank the most green tea (five cups or more) had a 47% lower risk of getting advanced prostate cancer than those who drank less than one cup.

So if you're looking for a great way to stop cancer before it starts, look no further than organic green tea. And you can drink as much of it as you want. The science supporting it just gets better and better.

Yours for better health and medical freedom,
Robert Jay Rowen, MD

Ref: Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2008 Feb; American Journal of Epidemiology, 2007; 167(1): 71-77.

Second, here is the only organic, decaffeinated green tea I've been able to find (flavored with peach -- very nice). I have ordered it in the past from Cook's Wares, but I believe I've also seen it at Earthfare in Charlotte.

I put two of these tea bags in a quart of PURE cool water and arranged an aluminum foil reflector as a backdrop to (hopefully) increase the heat. It sat in the driveway for about six hours yesterday:





After I brought it in and removed the tea bags, it had a lovely color:



The theoretical advantage to making sun tea is that the tea has a "smoother" taste as a result of not being exposed to boiling water. Fewer tannins (I don't know), i.e. tannic acid, are released into the tea which makes it less bitter. After you go to the trouble to make sun tea you'll be convinced it's better. You won't know that it's better, but you will believe it's better. :-)