OOLONG (Wu-Long) TEA

The name "oolong" comes from the Chinese for "black dragon."

Processing Oolong Tea: the raw leaves are sun-wilted and then bruised, which exposes their juices to the air, so the leaves oxidize and start to turn brown like a cut fruit. They are allowed to oxidize only partially, giving them a rich, floral flavor. The tea is then dried fully; locking in the rich flavors that oolong tea is known to offer. Oolong's unique drying process creates a tea that has many metabolic stimulating attributes.

Oolongs range from bright green and slightly fermented to dark-leafed and hearty. The greener varieties are less fermented. Oolong tea therefore comes in a wide range of tastes and aromas from teas very close in taste to green tea to those very close to black tea.

The health benefits of oolong include both antibacterial and antiviral properties; it has also been found to boost metabolism and the immune system. Oolong tea burns over 157% more fat than Green Tea - and therefore has become the most popular tea to accelerate weight loss. Drinking two cups of Oolong tea every day not only helps shed stubborn pounds by boosting your metabolism, but also blocks the fattening effects of carbohydrates. Oolong tea contains a large quantity of polyphenols which:

» promote strong, healthy teeth; Oolong tea's polyphenolic compounds could be useful for controlling dental caries.
» prevent eczema, allergies; two catechin derivatives (C-1 and C-2) with potent anti-allergic activity were isolated from Taiwanese oolong tea.
» help clarify your skin, giving it a healthy, radiant glow; Japanese researchers reported that patients with a form of eczema improved after drinking a liter of oolong tea daily
» strengthen your immune system; Oolong tea's polyphenols strongly inhibited the enzyme activities of some types of streptococci
» help with Diabetes & Weight loss; Oolong tea may be an effective adjunct to oral hypoglycemic agents in the treatment of type 2 diabetes; Consumption of oolong tea stimulates both EE and fat oxidation in normal weight men
» help fight Cancer; Oolong tea extract has a chemo-preventive action against hepatocarcinogenesis.