Oolong tea has many excellent health benefits
Oolong tea makes an excellent addition to any low calorie breakfast, as part of a broader intermittent fast diet. While other types of teas are widely known, Oolong is sometimes overlooked, despite having a host of health benefits.
What is Oolong Tea?
Oolong tea is different from both black tea and green tea. In fact, Oolong tea is in a class of it’s own. The way that Oolong turns out, more like black tea or more like green tea, largely depends on the tea master that is working with the tea.
During the tea making process, Oolong is allowed to partially oxidize. By being shaped, bruised, dried in the sun, cooled, and then rolled, roasted, and oxidized more, Oolong is given a unique flavor all it’s own. This process varies from tea master to tea master, but Oolong is usually allowed to oxidize slightly longer than green tea but slightly shorter than black tea.
Oolong Tea Benefits
Oolong tea has a number of great health benefits. From weight loss management and reducing cholesterol levels to managing stress and supporting healthy bones, Oolong tea is a powerhouse of health. We took the time to list out a few of the great health benefits of Oolong tea below and Oolong tea is good for:
- Weight Management – Oolong tea contains a polyphenol compound that has been shown to control metabolism and reduce obesity. This compound has been shown to activate certain enzymes in the body that make fat work for you leading to an overall reduction in weight and a healthier lifestyle.
- Cardiovascular Benefits – Oolong tea has been thought to reduce cholesterol levels which can reduce the risk of heart attacks. There has even been research that has shown that people who drink 1 to 6 cups of Oolong tea a day have a significantly lower risk of contracting cardiovascular diseases.
- Healthy Skin – Drinking Oolong tea has also been shown to help people with eczema as well as help reduce breakouts of acne in people with acne-prone skin. In fact, those people who suffered from regular eczema outbreaks saw a 54% reduction in outbreaks over a 6 month period when they started drinking 1 to 6 cups of Oolong tea a day.
- Combats Free Radicals – Other skin benefits that Oolong delivers to the body include combating free radicals. Free radicals can accelerate the process of aging that the skin naturally goes through by turning skin lipids into lipid peroxide. This can lead to wrinkles and dark spots. The polyphenols in Oolong help reverse this process by eliminating free radicals from the body and slowing down the aging of the skin.
- Lowering Risk of Cancer – Oolong tea is particularly high in antioxidants. Because of this, drinking it regularly can significantly impact your risk of developing cancer. It has been suggested that by drinking Oolong tea and supplying your body with all the antioxidants it delivers, that Oolong can help you reduce your risk of contracting cancer in many forms.
- Diabetes Prevention – While it may be surprising, drinking Oolong tea regularly can help prevent diabetes. It has been shown to reduce blood glucose levels and perhaps even cure diabetes naturally. Drinking Oolong tea regularly is a good way to prevent diabetes and make sure that you are doing all you can to combat contracting the disease.
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Healthy Bones – Another great benefits of drinking Oolong tea is helping your bones get stronger. The antioxidants present in Oolong have been thought to protect against tooth decay, strengthen bone structure and density, fight osteoporosis, and help with bone density. Making the consumption of Oolong tea a regular part of your life can help you prevent bone loss as you get older.
- Managing Stress – Oolong has long been thought to be a great way to manage stress levels. The natural polyphenols and L-theanine found in Oolong can actually help block the stress receptors in the brain helping you become more focused and have a more positive mindset without succumbing to stress.
- Preventing Hair Loss – Oolong tea can also help prevent the loss of hair. The antioxidants present can help make your hair less likely to fall out by making it stronger. While drinking Oolong is a great way to get these antioxidants into your body and working for you, an Oolong tea hair rinse can be a great thing to add to your normal hair care routine. This rinse can also help make your hair healthier and shinier.
- Decreases Inflammation – Inflammation of all kinds has long been proven to be the root cause of a variety of ailments and health issues. Oolong has been shown to be a natural inflammation reducer by targeting specific inflammation genes and signals and either suppressing them or reducing them significantly.
Oolong Tea: Final Thoughts
All of these health benefits make Oolong tea a compelling and powerful treatment for a variety of ailments and common health struggles. From helping with weight loss to decreasing the risk of certain cancers, Oolong tea is a great thing to add to your normal routine.
While these are all good things, there are a few side effects of Oolong that are important to mention. Oolong tea is very high in caffeine and in excess, caffeine can be very dangerous. While every person reacts to caffeine differently, in large amounts it can cause anxiousness, sleeplessness, diarrhea, nausea, and more. It can also sometimes make health conditions like heart disorders, irritable bowel syndrome and anxiety to be more serious and cause more damage. For this reason, it is advised that you limit your consumption of Oolong to between one and three cups a day until you learn how your body processes caffeine.
Lastly, if you have an iron deficiency or a history of iron deficiency in your family, you should limit your consumption of Oolong tea. In some cases, tea has been shown to slow or even totally stop the absorption of iron into the body. This can lead to serious health concerns later in life. For this reason, it is recommended that you consult with your doctor before adopting a daily habit of drinking Oolong.
Oolong tea is a great way to deliver a ton of benefits to your body, from stress management and weight loss to protecting your heart, Oolong is a powerful tool in keeping you healthy and happy. Consider adding it to your routine as part of a healthy lifestyle.
