Deadly Typhoo
Really – it is capable of killing you. Its easy to miss facts like this when so many articles and magazines are telling you that tea is tantamount to the elixir of life. Unfortunately not so for Typhoo tea.
But first some background…
Typhoo was a brand established and ‘raised’ in the UK form 1903. It was a Birmingham based grocer John Sumner Jr. who decided to introduce a tea made of leaf fannings due to its supposed ‘calming affect’.
Little did John Sumner Jr. realise that 105 years later in a town just south of Birmingham a gentleman tea fanatic would be drinking a cup of his brew – thinking it was the much superior Yorkshire – only to discover it was the inferior Typhoo. At that moment a shocked breath caused a mere drop of Typhoo to enter the lungs of said gent and cause a coughing fit the likes of which no one had ever seen.
Typhoo, my dear readers, is the most fatal of the teas and must be avoided at all costs!
facts, health
facts, health, introducing
Its a tiresome myth that I oft hear peddled by the organic lobbyists that bleach in teabags health risks are many and horrifying. I’ve heard everything from burned throats to cancerous growths. Stomach ulcers and sudden and painful death.
Although it’s true that most tea bags go through a process of bleaching during their manufacture they do not retain any bleach in the tea bag when it comes to brewing your next cup of tea.
Far worse than bleach in teabags health risks is the sorry state of your taste buds upon their assault by the papery tainted aroma of your tea. Green tea especially suffers from being bagged due to its delicate taste and you’ll often find cheaper teas will put floor sweepings and other low quality leaf crud into their bags.
That isn’t to say all bagged tea is bad – I myself drink bagged tea 50% of the time. Sheer convinience demands it in my busy life. At the office I drink Yorkshire tea by the bag and quite adequate it is too. If you’re to get bagged tea then make sure its a quality tea. For the office I’d recommend Clipper Fairtrade or Yorkshire.
Technorati Tags: tea bag, tea, health
health, methods
health, method, tea
As promised now the new blog is up I’ve started to add new sections and pages to the site. I started by busting some myths about tea tree oil and then put together a list of Royal tea breaks.
Technorati Tags: tea tree oil, tea breaks, tea health
news
health, holidays, tea, tea breaks, tea tree oil
Green teas health benefits are well documented but its sometimes hard to remember exactly what it can do to help your health so here’s 7 of the top reasons to drink green tea:
- Cut Cancer Risk – Tea’s cancer fighting properties have been much touted and it’s all about the polyphenols in tea which help fight cancerous cells. Especially in the mouth, throat and stomach.
- Clear the Skin – Tea has amazing antibacterial and antiviral properties and a wet bunch of brewed tea leaves or a used tea bag on a cut, graze or infection can do wonders. I’ve even had it recommended by my doctor as an aid to conjunctivitis recovery!
- Protect Memory – The free radicals that cause the brain to develop diseases like Parkinsons and Alzheimers can be fended off by teas powerful anti-oxidants. Again – polyphenols!
- Protect Skin – Not only is tea put in skin products for its anti-bacterial properties but its also been found to be useful in protecting against UV light triggered skin cancer.
- Immortality – Well not quite 100%-live-forever but it has been shown on numerous occassions that it fights age-related illnesses such as furry arteries, heart disease, free radical damage and much more.
- Lose Weight – Green tea gives your metabolism a boost meaning it helps you to keep your ideal weight.
- Lower Blood Pressure – People who regularly drink tea have been shown to be 50% less likely to develop hypertension.
Teavana:
ChocoNut Green Tea
health
green tea, health
A new study performed in Singapore and published in the US Journal of Clinical Nutrition has found tea to be an excellent protector of cognitive ability.
This study shows great potential for the aging populations of the world to help protect against age-related neuro-degenerative problems. So add this new study to the raft of others that show tea to be a great health booster.
Original story here.
health
health
It may sound like I’m about to reel off a satirical nonsense to play on teas many health benefits but I assure you its absolutely true!! Tea has been found to fight one of the most deadly bacteriums on the planet – Anthrax.
Scientists in the Welsh School of Pharmacy at Cardiff University(UK) and University of Maryland(US) have found tea to inhibit the actions of anthrax.
Though once again – as has been the case before – the addition of milk to tea seems to completely remove all of its anti-anthrax properties.
I foresee a surge in tea drinking among military personnel wanting to stave off the possibility of anthrax attack. Though I’m not sure I’d want to risk trying it out in the field!
health
health
The BBC recently ran a story saying that tea could be used as a cure for diabetes in the future. Thats not to mean everyone should stop taking their insulin shots but they do say that some of the theoflavins in tea behave in a similar way to insulin and could pave the way to alternative treatments!
The list of tea health benefits just keeps on growing!
health
health
I’m always on the look out for information like this – as a big fan of black tea I’ve always been weary of the constant good press of green tea over its black cousin. I’ve always believed there’s a place for both in a healthy diet.
So I was very happy to read a recent newsletter from the UK Tea Council stating: “Black tea has the same effect on endothelial function as green tea”.
It goes on to say:
British Journal of Nutrition has shown that black tea improves endothelial function to the same degree as green tea despite having a lower catechin concentration.
In laymans terms? Black tea is just as effective an antioxidant as green tea!
For women during pregnancy then its best to go for the green tea as this contains less caffeine overall and its been shown caffeine can be a risk in larger quantities.
Good news for black tea fans!
health
black tea, green tea, health
It’s a regular question here at WoT and elsewhere on the old interweb – How is tea decaffeinated?
Well here’s the answer and I think you’ll be quite suprised.
Tea can be decaffeinated in a number of ways although all require use of powerful solvents – even the so-called “natural” method.
1. Ethyl Acetate
Often claimed to be a natural decaffeination process as this solvent occurs naturally in the environment although I’m sure you can tell from the name that being natural doesn’t necessarily mean ‘nice’ and ‘friendly’. So the tea leaves are washed in this solvent which dissolves the caffeine in the leaves and flushes it out. When caffeine is seperated from its carrier – in this case tea – it forms a solid white bitter-tasting powder.
2. Methyline Chloride
The tea is first softened in heated water to loosen the bonds before being washed with this solvent which binds to the caffeine and draws it out of the leaves. However, this initial water processing can cause the loss of many of the flavours and oils so the leaves are re-washed in this solvent to re-introduce those oils.
In Conclusion
I don’t care if you’re heart is on its last legs – you can’t possibly justify doing this to tea. Washing it in anything besides water ready for a drink is tantamount to heresy. So please, please, please go caffeinated – go natural!
facts, myths
health, science
If you’re a resident of the UK you’ll have heard of the ‘5 portions of fruit or veg’ campaign oft trumpeted by the government. Well now the tea council of the UK has got in on the act by unleashing the Tea 4 Health campaign!
By drinking 4 or more cups of tea per day its believed to have numerous health benefits. You can sign up for updates and news from the Tea Council as part of this campaigns aim to educate the masses on the great benefits of regular tea drinking.
health, news
health, news, websites
