Archive for the ‘Immune System’ Category
The Cancer Fighting Polyphenols Found in Tea Leaves
The polyphenols are found in the camellia sinensis plants, which are crushed and then fermented into common teas, such as green tea, black tea and the oolong tea. These polyphenols have been extensively studied to determine the extent of their benefits.
The studies showed that they contain about 10 times the amount of antioxidants than what are found in our fruits and vegetables. The antioxidants are a powerful ally in the fight against ailments like cancer.
The ones found in the green and black teas are different than the antioxidants that are found in fruits and vegetables. Green and black teas contain flavonoids, such as the catechins, that can seek out and destroy chemicals that damage a body’s cells, and cause cancers to form.
Tea is also thought to defend against toxic chemicals that we see with inhaling tobacco smoke. They protect cells from these nasty enemies and prevent them from damaging our body’s cells.
Tea can defend against other ailments like blood clot formations, high cholesterol and it can possibly delay the onset of diseases like diabetes. Polyphenols are also known for their aid in weight loss programs and in the defense against halitosis and dental problems.
They can also improve skin conditions and they are possibly linked to aiding in the delay of Parkinson symptoms. The benefits don’t stop there, though. It’s reported that tea can help reduce your chances for skin cancer – and in some cases, by using the tea extract in lotion form, you may be able to block the damage from the sun.
Tea is known to slow the growth of already-formed tumors, it protects your bones from frailty, and even boosts your immune system so you can lessen your chances for colds, throat infections and flu symptoms.
With the results of these studies on the polyphenols, it’s recommended that you drink about 8-10 cups of green or black tea daily in order to reap from their health benefits.
Balance the cups with caffeinated and decaffeinated teas to prevent the side effects of caffeine. Some experts are considering these teas with powerful antioxidants to be healthier than drinking water.
Water doesn’t provide you with the polyphenols that the teas do, which offer us tons of health benefits as well as nutrients. By adding these teas to your health regimen daily, you can increase your chances of a healthier lifestyle and decrease your chances for contracting diseases, ailments and some types of modern-day cancers.
Health Benefits of Tea Throughout History
Tea starts its debut in the medicinal sense in the ancient times of China and Japan. Tea was popular – not only for the delightful taste it provided – but for offering health benefits as well.
It was commonly used for ailments such as headaches, depression-like symptoms, boosting energy for those who were fatigued, and even to aid in improving eyesight.
As the story goes, an emperor was presented with a cup of hot water that had turned brown from a leaf that had dropped into a pot of boiling water. He was pleased with the taste of it and from that point on, tea was born. It was also ground into a paste-like substance and was applied to reduce pain and inflammation as seen in rheumatoid arthritis.
It became popular with Buddhists as a means to stay awake for long periods of meditation. As the centuries came and went, tea evolved, but kept its medicinal purposes. Instead of drinking the tea to rid themselves of their ailments, our ancestors started to ground up the leaves and boiled them with food such as rice, ginger and milk.
Tea is also reported to have been used for things like normal aches and pains, digestion problems and as a means of boosting a body’s immune system to defend against any foreign bodies that enter our bodies.
It was an historic belief that tea also held religious properties that enabled those who drank it to elongate their life expectancy. Tea traveled to many different countries and its medicinal benefits came along with it.
Tea was used for everything from skin problems to joint pain to mood enhancers. It became the choice of treatment for the strange diseases and ailments that plagued citizens around the world.
In many cases, the tea helped decrease one’s chances of contracting these diseases and lessened their suffering once the disease took hold of their lives. Tea became popular and was used throughout medical history.
Its uses expanded to include spiritual healing. One would drink the tea for the purpose of obtaining peace and serenity for the mind to balance it with the body and achieve oneness with nature as they saw it.
Over the years, tea has found its way through many more countries and its uses became more apparent. It was used in the high societies as a sign of a distinguished person and people drank it for sheer enjoyment.
In recent years, the medicinal purposes have come more to light. Tea been linked to help decrease our chances for diseases and eliminate some problems like pain and bad breath.
Tea has been around for many centuries and its medicinal purposes have withstood the test of time as they continue to be used today. This shows how insightful our ancestors were centuries ago by the fact that today’s researchers can use advanced science to test theories that have long prevailed.

