BENEFICIAL EFFECTS OF GREEN TEA

Beneficial Effects of Green Tea

Beneficial Effects of Green Tea

Literature Review

Tea is one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world, next only to water and well ahead of coffee, beer, wine and carbonated soft drinks. It can be categorized into three kinds, counting on the grade of fermentation, i.e. green (unfermented), oolong (partially fermented) and very dark (fermented) tea. The period fermentation is often utilized incorrectly in tea processing. The more correct period should be oxidation, which means exposure to air while drying without any additives throughout the process. Another pattern of tea is white tea which is made from new growth buds and juvenile departs that have been cooked with steam to inactivate polyphenol oxidation and then dried.(Webster, 2007) The buds may be protected from sunlight to avert formation of chlorophyll. Of the, 2.5 million metric tons of dried tea manufactured, only 20% is green tea and less than 2% is oolong tea. Green tea is consumed as a well liked beverage worldwide, particularly in Asian nations like ceramic, Korea and Japan. There is barely any other nourishment or drink described to have as numerous health advantages as green tea.(Anderson, 2009) The Ancient Chinese Proverb 'Better to be deprived of food for three days, than tea for one' indicates the importance of tea in the day-to-day life of Chinese. The Chinese have renowned about the medicinal advantages of green tea since ancient times, utilizing it to heal everything from headaches to depression. In her book 'Green Tea: The Natural Secret for a Healthier Life', Taylor stated that green tea has been used as a medicine in China for at least 4000 years.(Brown, 2009)

The chemical composition of green tea varies with weather, season, horticultural practices and position of the leaf on the harvested shoot. The major constituents of interest are the polyphenols. The foremost polyphenols in green tea are flavonoids. The four major flavonoids in green tea are the catechins, epicatechin (EC), epigallocatechin (EGC), epicatechin gallate (ECG) and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) (Figure 1). Epigallocatechin gallate is examined as the most important hardworking component. The leaf bud and first leaves are most wealthy in EGCG. The usual concentration of total polyphenols in dried green tea leaves is 8-12%. Other mixtures of interest in dehydrated green tea departs include Gallic unpleasant, quercetin, kaempferol, myricetin, caffeic unpleasant and chlorogenic acid. (Webster, 2007)

Residents in Asia tend to consume large quantities of tea compared to those in the Western Hemisphere. It has been observed that in areas of the world where individuals consume large amounts of tea on a regular basis, there seems to be a reduced incidence of some cancers. Teas are categorized based on the amount of processing, and they are generally classified into categories of green and black tea. Green tea is the least processed and has the least amount of oxidation of the leaves. Black tea, on the other hand, is the most oxidized (fermented) and processed, and has a very pleasant ...