Many university studies and research on the health benefits of oolong tea reveal the brew's potential to improve the health of your teeth, reverse signs of aging, facilitate weight loss and promote overall wellness.

While all teas possess similar beneficial properties including teaflavin tearubigin, catechin, polyphenals, and caffeine that provide benefits to the human body, the quantities and percentages differ depending on the extent of oxidation during production.

While all teas possess similar beneficial properties including teaflavin tearubigin, catechin, polyphenals, and caffeine that provide benefits to the human body, the quantities and percentages differ depending on the extent of oxidation during production.

However, even for adults, whose teeth are fully formed, oolong teas fluoride is a great way to protect your teeth. The fluoride found in tea has been shown to inhibit and reduce the growth of glucosyltransferase. This substance helps the plaque that naturally forms to adhere to our teeth. Another study in Japan, specifically the Dentistry Department of Osaka University has found out that regular intake of oolong tea causes the teeth to become strong thereby preventing the decaying of teeth and halting the plaque build-up as well as reducing the growth of glucosyltransferase.

For many centuries in China, tea was an ingredient in immortality potions favored by the Taoists. Still today, perhaps as an echo of those beliefs, claims are made that tea drinking helps one to live to a ripe old age.

While it is not the magic fountain of youth, there are some of its benefits which can be said to contribute to longevity ( strengthening the immune system, stimulation of bodily functions,reducing the chance of heart disease and improving stomach functions).

This is extremely beneficial for younger children, who need larger amounts of fluoride in order for tooth enamel to harden properly. When teeth harden properly in our youth, it protects us from cavities throughout our lives.

Therefore the health benefits of oolong tea, which is semi-fermented, vary from those offered by black tea with its extensive oxidation process and green tea with its limited processing. There are now numerous research studies that point to the health benefits of oolong tea and regular consumption.

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When you scan all the tea choices at the food market and particularly when you look for tea online, it is incredibly obvious how standard tea has became. But when you look at the labels of many of those teas you may find the terms herbal tea or tisane. Have you ever questioned what the difference was between tea, herbal tea and tisane?

True tea is made from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant. True teas include black, oolong, green and white tea. The list may seem longer because there are different varieties of these teas and sometimes they are flavored by adding other plants, spices or oils to them.

Flavored teas include Earl Grey, which is black tea with bergamot, and Jasmine, which is usually green tea with jasmine flowers. Other varieties of teas include Darjeeling and Ceylon, which are black teas and Gunpowder and Sencha, which are green teas. These, of course, are only a few of the different varieties available.

Herbal tea and tisane are one in the same. They are created from dried flowers, leaves or roots that aren't from the Camellia sinensis shrub. It seems almost any flower or that is steeped in hot water is referred to as tea; although in some countries the label tea is legally restricted to drinks made with the true tea shrub.

Some common herbal teas include chamomile, peppermint and rooibos. Of course this is a very short list of the commonly available herbal teas.

Whether it is a real tea or an herbal tea most "teas" appear to have health benefits. Real teas, like oolong and green, have been included in more research studies and appear to offer the biggest health gain, although herbal teas have shown beneficial too.

The herbal tea that seems to be showing the most studied benefit seems to be rooibos. It has a high level of antioxidants, somewhat similar to green tea, but because it isn't made with tea leaves it doesn't contain the caffeine. In recent studies rooibos, also known as red tea, has shown liver protecting abilities as well.

From my own personal experience I can always count on peppermint tea to comfort a stomach ache. I have a friend who will make a mix of ginger, cinnamon and hibiscus to help her when she isn't feeling well.

But I love the flavor of true teas, and all the reported health benefits provide a good reason to enjoy more of them. With all the varieties and different qualities available it's a lot of fun to experiment and try finding your favorites.

Besides the question of tea or tisane you may also ask tea bag or loose leaf? Tea bags are great for convenience and the triangular tea bags are great for convenience with a little better flavor; but to truly enjoy the flavor a quality loose leaf tea is the best. The loose tea allows water to circulate around the leaves better to help draw out the flavor.

It's easy to understand why tea is so popular. Besides its interesting history and health benefits it's a tasty calorie-free beverage that comes in a wide range of flavors.

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As tea becomes more and more popular cooks are beginning to use it more too, as a way to add a new flavor to dishes. A similar thing happened with coffee when Starbucks helped the already well-liked beverage become even more popular.

Tea goes well with food so it feels like a natural step to start utilizing it as a flavor-enhancer, the same way we utilize herbs and spices. And there are other great reasons for the enhanced interest in cooking involving tea.

With all the known health benefits of tea any additional way to get it into your diet is beneficial. Another advantage of seasoning with tea is that it is an effective technique to add or enhance the flavor of a dish without adding undesirable elements like fat, calories or sodium, that sometimes are a part of other flavor enhancers.

Although cooking with tea might appear to be a new trend, it has actually been around virtually as long as the beverage itself. The Chinese have been utilising black tea to smoke and simmer dishes for centuries. The Japanese have been enjoying a dish which is prepared by pouring green tea over rice before serving. And the British have been using tea to flavor tea cakes and to stew dried fruit for years

Popular cooks have been expanding these uses of tea and finding that even small additions are able to lend a richness to dishes without overwhelming the true flavor of the dish. For example try adding a tablespoon of English Breakfast to a dressing, or a Jasmine teabag or two to rice while it is cooking.

Cooking with tea doesn't have to be limited to the appetizer or main course. Tea can also lend a complex taste to dessert. Rich black teas like Darjeeling have deep tones that help strengthen the flavor of chocolate desserts. Green teas are able to add a zing to creamy desserts while they also tend to calm the tart flavor of a citrus sorbet. While fragrant teas like chai are able to impart a pleasant flavor to rich items like frosting or cheesecake.

You can get creative when cooking with tea. It can be used as a spice by adding tea leaves to a pepper grinder; you may want to try adding white pepper, or another spice of choice along with the tea in the pepper grinder. It can also be used as a marinade. But if you're not sure where to start, or if you want a little guidance, check out one of the many cookbooks that specialize in cooking with tea.

If you're just beginning to use tea in your cooking it may help if you think of the tea as another ingredient or a spice, instead of a beverage, and go with your instincts. Also remember all the forms of tea -- you can utilize tea leaves, brewed tea, tea bags or if you enjoy green tea you can use green tea powder to sprinkle on things like fruit. There are also all the varieties to select from -- Earl Grey, Darjeeling, Matcha, Bancha -- to name a few.

So break out those pans and try giving some old recipes a new twist.

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