I posted during the summer about making sun tea, which I've continued to do almost daily. However, after reading the following information about tea in Anticancer—A New Way of Life, I'm revising the plan. The author, Dr. David Servan-Schreiber, discusses the anti-cancer properties of lots of foods, including tea, which has many. I'll continue to consume decaffeinated green tea, but will make it a different way.
Here are some notes from his section on tea as a cancer-fighter:
•Rich in polyphenols, including catechins, which reduce the growth of the new vessels needed for tumor growth and metasteses.
•Powerful antioxidant and detoxifier.
•Facilitates the death of cancer cells by apoptosis (death by suicide; programmed into every cell to prevent "anarchy" and uncontrolled duplication)
As to tea itself -- kinds and preparation:
•Black tea is fermented, a process that destroyes a large proportion of its polyphenols. Oolong tea is midway between black and green in terms of retaining polyphenols. Decaffeinated (as well as regular) green tea retains the highest amounts of polyphenols.
•Japanese green tea (sencha, gyokuro, matcha, etc.) is richer in EGCG (powerful catechin) than common Chinese green tea.
•Green tea must be steeped for at least five to eight minutes -- ideally ten minutes -- to release its catechins.
•Steeped green tea should be drunk within the hour. Do not store green tea after steeping as it loses its beneficial polyphenols after 1-2 hours.
It's this last point that is the bummer re: sun tea. It sits in the sun for "eight" hours, then in the refrigerator for a day or two -- quite longer than the ideal one-hour consumption time. The author doesn't comment on green sun tea and its polyphenol retention rate, but I've decided to err on the side of caution at this point and switch to steeped green tea. Sun tea in the summer is still great as a refreshing drink, with its lower levels of (bitter) tannic acid. But as a cancer fighter, it may not be as good.
Anybody read anything different -- especially re: sun tea? I'd like to know if you have. (By the way, I don't have cancer, except for the myriad cancer cells that are floating in all our bodies waiting to be destroyed by our immune system, but if I'm going to drink green tea I'd rather drink it the cancer-fighting way.)
Here are some notes from his section on tea as a cancer-fighter:
•Rich in polyphenols, including catechins, which reduce the growth of the new vessels needed for tumor growth and metasteses.
•Powerful antioxidant and detoxifier.
•Facilitates the death of cancer cells by apoptosis (death by suicide; programmed into every cell to prevent "anarchy" and uncontrolled duplication)
As to tea itself -- kinds and preparation:
•Black tea is fermented, a process that destroyes a large proportion of its polyphenols. Oolong tea is midway between black and green in terms of retaining polyphenols. Decaffeinated (as well as regular) green tea retains the highest amounts of polyphenols.
•Japanese green tea (sencha, gyokuro, matcha, etc.) is richer in EGCG (powerful catechin) than common Chinese green tea.
•Green tea must be steeped for at least five to eight minutes -- ideally ten minutes -- to release its catechins.
•Steeped green tea should be drunk within the hour. Do not store green tea after steeping as it loses its beneficial polyphenols after 1-2 hours.
It's this last point that is the bummer re: sun tea. It sits in the sun for "eight" hours, then in the refrigerator for a day or two -- quite longer than the ideal one-hour consumption time. The author doesn't comment on green sun tea and its polyphenol retention rate, but I've decided to err on the side of caution at this point and switch to steeped green tea. Sun tea in the summer is still great as a refreshing drink, with its lower levels of (bitter) tannic acid. But as a cancer fighter, it may not be as good.
Anybody read anything different -- especially re: sun tea? I'd like to know if you have. (By the way, I don't have cancer, except for the myriad cancer cells that are floating in all our bodies waiting to be destroyed by our immune system, but if I'm going to drink green tea I'd rather drink it the cancer-fighting way.)
Bookmark this post on Delicious
Posts
Yeah, that is a bummer. So, he doesn't mention sun tea specifically or any differences in loss or retention of cancer fighting properties? My interest is piqued regarding the different methods (steeping vs. sunning).
ReplyDeleteDid the author distinguish different methods for making decaf tea? Some studies have suggested that any decaf tea is significantly reduced in antioxidants/polyphenols. But I take it the jury is out and the method used has a very heavy influence. One method is to use ethyl acetate solvent which does heavily reduce but not eliminate polyphenols. Another method often referred to as effervescence uses water and carbondioxide and retains most of the polyphenols. So, for anyone looking to buy decaf it is useful to know how it was decaffeinated. Often the only way to know is to call the mfg (that sounds like fun).
One last note: The tea plant is one of the few edibles that will grow well in shady areas. They also produce suckers (or at least mine did) and so there is opportunity for long-term grove production by cutting and replanting suckers. But if anyone is interested in permaculture and has a shady spot they should look into purchasing some tea plants. Here is a website we have purchased from. I got my plant in the mail, with leaves, in a pot of soil, and it has done very well.
http://www.greenteaplants.com/
These folks are growing in the US (family business with 8 kids who work with mom and dad) so it's a nice way to make your tea purchase and support US tea business.
Daniel
Visit TeaRex in South End or go to the web site www.tearex.com for a wonderful local source for all kinds of teas including herbals (tisenes) and everything you need to know to make the most of them. Once you've had fresh tea from leaves (or berries) that you selected based on what you wanted from your tea, you'll never look at a tea bag the same way again. Just writing about this is enough to send me off to brew a cup. I'll pick a green tea this time in your honor.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all the input -- I checked the TeaRex site -- pretty cool. They didn't have an organic decaf tea, which seems to be hard to find. But I'd like to go buy and learn what I can. Southend is like a different continent to me -- but I'll plan a trip.
ReplyDelete