Tea is a beverage with a history of thousands of years. Today, tea has become one of the most popular beverages in the world, widely consumed and enjoyed. Tea is a very healthy beverage that not only has many nutritional components, but also has many medical values.
Types of Tea
There are many different types of tea consumed throughout the world. Here are some common varieties:
Green Tea
Green tea is made from the new leaves or buds of the tea tree that are not fermented and dried. It retains the natural substances of fresh leaves, such as tea polyphenols, catechins, chlorophyll, caffeine, amino acids, vitamins and other nutrients.
Black Tea
Black tea is fully fermented and not like green tea. During the processing of black tea, the composition of fresh leaves changes greatly, tea polyphenols are reduced by more than 90%.
White Tea
White tea belongs to micro-fermented tea. It uses sunlight and wind to control the degree of dryness and humidity of the tea leaves, forming a fresh and refreshing quality. White tea can also be stored for a long time.
Yellow Tea
Yellow tea is also a micro-fermented tea, and the addition of roasting to the production process is an important step in forming the quality characteristics of yellow tea. The yellowish tea soup is a distinctive feature of yellow tea.
Health Benefits of Tea
Tea not only tastes great, but it also has many health benefits. Here are some key health benefits of tea:
1. Antioxidant: Studies have shown that green tea has many times the antioxidant activity of many fruits and vegetables. Tea extracts also have stronger antioxidant activity than vitamin C and vitamin E. Therefore, drinking tea can prevent aging and cancer caused by oxidative damage and enhance immune function.
2. Anti-Senile Dementia: According to the latest research, regular consumption of tea can reduce the risk of cognitive decline in the elderly. People over the age of 70 who drink more than two cups of tea a day have a much lower probability of suffering from Alzheimer's disease.
3. Anti-Cancer: One of the health benefits of tea is its ability to prevent cancer, including lung cancer, esophageal cancer, liver cancer, colon cancer, and others. Green tea has the best anti-cancer effect because it is rich in catechins.
Growing Conditions for Tea
The conditions under which tea is grown are one of the most important factors in determining its quality and taste. Below are details about the growing conditions for tea.
Climatic Conditions: Tea trees thrive in warm and humid climates and usually grow in mountainous areas with an altitude of 600 meters to 2000 meters.
The temperature should be between 10°C and 30°C, and the average annual precipitation should be between 1000 mm and 2000 mm. These conditions promote the healthy growth of the tea plant and improve the quality of the tea leaves.
Soil Condition: Tea trees grow in well-drained, acidic soils that are rich in organic matter. Tea tastes better in acidic soil because it promotes the formation of acidic substances in the tea.
At the same time, soil fertility is also an important factor in the growth of tea trees. The soil should be rich in nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium.
Altitude: The altitude of tea tree planting is an important factor in determining tea quality. Generally speaking, the higher the altitude, the better the quality of the tea. This is due to cooler temperatures, higher rainfall, and longer hours of sunshine at higher altitudes.
