Wu Yi Mountain Tea
Wuyi Mountain is one of the most popular tourist attractions located in Fujian province. It is also one of the most famous tea growing regions in China, putting Fujian province on the map as a famous tea producer. The production of Fujian tea has a time-honored history. According to the written record found at the moment, it has a history lasting well over 1,600 years. Quite a bit off from the claimed 4,000 years that you might read about else where.
The earliest written record of tea production in Fujian is kept on a stone tablet at the Lian Hua Feng (Lotus Peak) in Nan'an County. The name of the tablet is "Lian Hua Cha Jin" (Lotus Flower Tea Book) inscribed in 376 A.D. In the Tang dynasty, tea sage Lu Yu in his book "Tea Classics" noted: Tea is grown south of the Five--Ridge Mountains, in Fuzhou, Jianzhou, Shaozhou and Xiangzhou.'
Fujian Province holds an important position in China producing all five categories of tea including black, green tea, oolong tea, white, and scented tea. With the exception of green tea ,all the others were pioneered in Fujian province. Lapsang Souchong (black) and white tea are Fujian Province's unique specialities.The world famous Fujian Oolong tea has been introduced to some other regions. Scented tea, especially jasmine tea, benefits from the good natural environment, producing high quality flowers and suitable tea leaves. There are 336 varieties of tea trees in Fujian province, ranking first throughout China.
As you can see, there are many, many varieties of tea available. Oolong tea has many different types, and most of which offer the same health and weight loss benefits. So there's no sense in believing that the heavily marketed "Wu Yi Tea" is 'THE' special tea that offers health and weight loss benefits. After all, it is one of the many types of Oolong tea available. Really, it doesn't make much sense to over spend on these hyped wuyi tea bags when you can purchase many varieties of loose leaf Oolong tea at a much cheaper cost!
Health Benefit of Oolong Tea
We've established that Wuyi tea is just one of the varieties of Oolong tea - so there really isn't anything exceptionally special about it, other than that it is over hyped and over priced Oolong tea. Because of its many health and weight loss benefits, Oolong tea has been gaining popularity in the west. There are numerous studies demonstrating the health benefits and weight loss effects of Oolong tea. Studies have found Oolong tea to have antioxidant boosting effects [1], and Oolong tea also increases energy expenditure after consumption [2].
Oolong tea increases energy metabolism in Japanese females.
Komatsu T, Nakamori M, Komatsu K, Hosoda K, Okamura M, Toyama K, Ishikura Y, Sakai T, Kunii D, Yamamoto S.
Department of Applied Nutrition, The University of Tokushima School of Medicine, Tokushima, Japan.
This study evaluated the effect of Oolong tea on energy expenditure compared to green tea. Eleven healthy Japanese females consumed 3 treatments in a crossover design. They consumed, water, Oolong tea, and green tea. Their energy expenditure at rest and after consuming the beverage (for 2 hours) was measured.
This study found that the energy expenditure increased by 10% after consuming Oolong tea compared to 4% increase after consuming green tea. They concluded that Oolong increased energy expenditure, and it increased energy expenditure more than green tea did.
Oolong tea increases metabolic rate and fat oxidation in men.
Rumpler W, Seale J, Clevidence B, Judd J, Wiley E, Yamamoto S, Komatsu T, Sawaki T, Ishikura Y, Hosoda K.
Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA.
This was a randomized cross over study designed to measure the impact of tea on energy expenditure in humans. Twelve male subjects consumed each of 4 treatments including water, full strength tea, half strength tea, and water containing 270mg of caffeine. The subjects consumed each treatment for 3 days, and on day 3, energy expenditure was measured. The study found that energy expenditure increased by 3.4%, and found that fat oxidation was 12% higher compared to the water treatment. [3]
There are plenty of studies like these that demonstrate the many health and weight loss benefits of Oolong tea, so I won't bore you by listing them all here. The bottom line is that there is no need to buy into the hype of these "WuYi Tea" marketers, and end up over paying for something that you can buy elsewhere for a fraction of the cost that still conveys the same benefits. Take a look at the websites selling Wu Yi tea offering 14 day risk free trials. Sounds great right? No so fast... After the trial period, you're automatically enrolled in their monthly refill program, and will pay over $30 for a monthly refill. Search around, and you'll easily find many horror stories of upset consumers who kept receiving refills even after they cancelled, and others who had to cancel their credit cards to stop the recurring monthly billings. Save yourself some headaches and money, and simply buy loose leaf Oolong tea.
The taste of Wuyi tea, or should I say Oolong tea, is somewhat of an acquired taste. No matter what these websites selling Wuyi tea is telling you, the chances are that if you've never tasted Oolong tea or other Chinese tea before, you'll probably need a little time to get used to the taste. Drink it enough, and you might come to appreciate the unique taste of different varieties of Chinese tea.
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