Tea is one of the most popular beverages among Chinese people, with its presence felt in almost every household. The popularity of tea is evident in teahouses, tea shops, and cups of tea carried around by individuals—highlighting the widespread appreciation for this natural and nutritious drink.
You may be aware of the health benefits of tea, but you might not know that drinking tea should also be tailored to individual constitutions. Therefore, it's important to choose the right type of tea based on your personal constitution, as failing to do so could counteract any health benefits.
Six Common Misconceptions About Drinking Tea
Ignoring Constitution When Choosing Tea
There are numerous types of tea, which can generally be categorized into non-fermented, semi-fermented, and fermented teas. Each type has a different suitable population.
Drinking tea without considering your constitution could lead to certain adverse effects:
- Green Tea: Rich in tea polyphenols and Caffeine, it can stimulate the stomach. People with weak digestive systems should limit their intake of green tea, especially avoiding drinking it on an empty stomach, as it may cause symptoms of “tea intoxication.” For such individuals, warming teas like Black Tea or adding milk and brown sugar to the tea may be more suitable.
- Flower Tea: Suitable for women, particularly those experiencing menstruation or menopause. Drinking flower tea can alleviate irritability.
- Oolong Tea (such as Tieguanyin, Wuyi Rock Tea): Has beneficial effects in lowering blood lipids and aiding Digestion. It can also be consumed during late nights to provide a boost and relieve fatigue.
Drinking the Same Type of Tea All Year Round
If you want to use tea for health benefits, you shouldn't drink the same type of tea throughout the year. Instead, you should choose tea according to the season.
- Autumn: Oolong tea is more suitable due to its moderate nature, neither too cold nor too hot. It helps eliminate residual heat from the body and has moisturizing properties for the skin, throat, and helps quench thirst while clearing internal heat.
- Winter: Warm-natured black tea is recommended. Its sweet and warm properties help nourish yang energy, contain rich proteins and sugars that enhance resistance to cold, and aid digestion.
- Spring: Flower tea (such as jasmine tea) is suitable. Flower teas have a sweet and cool nature and a fragrant, dispersing quality. They help eliminate cold from the body and promote the rising of yang energy, leaving you feeling refreshed.
- Summer: Green tea is appropriate. Due to its cold nature, it effectively cools the body, quenches thirst, and aids in digestion.
Brewing Tea Leaves for an Entire Day
On one hand, the flavor diminishes after multiple brews. On the other hand, prolonged steeping in hot water causes the oxidation and degradation of nutrients such as vitamins, tea polyphenols, and flavonoids, significantly reducing the health benefits.
Suggestion: Use a small teapot or a tea cup with a filter to separate the leaves from the water. Generally, tea leaves should be brewed 4-5 times or until they lose their flavor.
Not Rinsing Old Tea
Aged teas, especially Pu'er tea cakes, often have a stronger aroma the older they are. These teas typically require a quick rinse with boiling water (10-20 seconds), and the first infusion should be discarded. This not only cleanses the tea, removing surface impurities, but also warms the tea, helping to release its aroma.
Some people are reluctant to discard the first infusion, but the taste is often not good, making this practice counterproductive.
Not Cleaning Tea Scale
Tea scale is formed through the oxidation of tea polyphenols and metal elements in tea rust, creating a metal chelate compound. Although there is no research confirming the specific health risks of tea scale, from a hygiene perspective, it is recommended to clean it off regularly. Toothpaste or saltwater can easily remove tea scale.
Always Brewing Tea with Boiling Water and Drinking While Hot
Not all types of tea need to be brewed with boiling water:
- Black Tea, Black Tea, and Oolong Tea: Best brewed with freshly boiled water, resulting in a more intense aroma.
- Green Tea: Should be brewed with water at 80°C to 85°C, for 2-3 minutes, and consumed immediately after brewing. Green tea is delicate, and using boiling water can destroy the polyphenols, causing the tea to turn yellow and lose its fragrance.
Note: It is not recommended to drink tea while it is still very hot, as it can scald the stomach lining and mouth. Allow the tea to cool slightly before drinking.
Eight Types of Tea You Should Avoid Drinking
Not all tea consumption is beneficial to health, and some types of tea or improper methods of drinking can actually harm health. It's best to avoid them.
- Strong Tea: Contains large amounts of caffeine and theobromine, which strongly stimulate the digestive system. Drinking strong tea can cause insomnia, headaches, and even vomiting in some cases. Long-term consumption can harm bones. American scientists found that people who drink five cups of strong tea daily have a 70% higher risk of hip fractures compared to those who don't drink strong tea. Those who drink more than seven cups daily have a relative risk over 80%.
- Moldy Tea: Moldy tea occurs when contaminated by fungi such as Aspergillus and Penicillium. The tea brewed from moldy tea lacks aroma and can harm human health, potentially leading to dizziness, Diarrhea, or organ damage. Moldy tea usually has visible white mold spots on the surface and emits a damp, musty smell, especially noticeable upon brewing. Tea should be stored in a dry place to prevent mold.
- Cross-flavored Tea: Tea contains terpenoids, which are porous and readily absorb foreign odors. If stored with other fragrant items for a period, it can easily absorb their odors. Some odors may contain toxins, such as paint and camphor odors, which can harm human health. Tea should be stored separately from items with strong odors to prevent cross-contamination. Different grades and varieties of tea should also be stored separately.
- Oversteeped Tea: Oversteeping can result in dark-colored tea with poor taste, losing its drinking value. The nutritional content, such as vitamins and amino acids, decreases due to oxidation, greatly reducing the nutritional value of the tea. Additionally, the longer the tea sits, the more likely it becomes contaminated by microorganisms, posing a health risk.
- Raw Tea: Raw tea refers to green tea that is dried directly after being heated without undergoing rolling. It retains many of the components present in fresh leaves and has a strong raw grassy flavor. Drinking raw tea can severely irritate the stomach lining, causing stomach pain in the elderly. Younger individuals may experience discomfort, commonly referred to as “scraping the stomach.” It is recommended to roast raw tea in an oil-free iron pan over low heat to eliminate the raw grassy flavor and develop a light chestnut aroma before drinking.
- Very Hot Tea: Although tea is typically brewed with boiling water, it should not be drunk while it is still very hot. Drinking very hot tea can scald the oral cavity and esophageal mucosa, causing ulcers. Over