Antioxidants Article

Antioxidants in Tea

Give your inside a work out the way you work your outside. You can get that from Tea.

There is a lot of talk lately how antioxidants are instrumental in protecting the body from Free Radicals (molecules that damage cells). The Antioxidants that are in tea are flavonoids and they can help. Despite their name, antioxidants don't work against oxygen. They work against a chemical reaction called oxidation, the same process that turns bananas black, rusts metal and makes oil rancid. Oxidation is the interaction between oxygen molecules and the substances they come in contact with. When that substance happens to be living tissue, damage and disease can occur

Whether you like your tea brewed hot or chilled over ice, tea that is made from real tea leaves can give you more than great taste. Similar to fruits and vegetables, brewed teas contain natural antioxidants that are called flavonoids. Scientists are suggesting that antioxidants can help protect the body from damage done to the cells by Free Radicals and are thereby beneficial to your health. These free radicals which are molecules that occur naturally in our environment are also produced in our bodies. The free radicals in our bodies can damage the cells of our bodies. We can see some of this damage in the form of aging. However it is also believed that the development of many chronic diseases including heart disease and cancer can be attributed to the chronic damage done to our cells by free radicals. Just by drinking one cup of brewed black or green tea you can get 150 - 200 mg of flavonoids.

Many scientific studies are currently focused on teas potential health benefits with new research being advanced daily. In a position paper by The American Dietetic Association on Functional Foods, black and green tea was included as a functional food. The paper stated that the health benefits of drinking black or green tea include possible reduced risk for coronary heart disease, as well as gastric, esophageal and skin cancers (see also Green Tea Extract for more on cancer). Tea and tea flavonoids have also been shown to help strengthen the body's immune system, protect teeth by inhibiting plaque bacteria, potentially fight free radicals produced during strenuous exercise, and possibly increase calories burned during everyday activities.

In yet another study conducted by a UCLA Cancer Research team, it was found that consuming the flavonoids found in Green Tea and Black Tea may protect smokers from Lung Cancer.

While this emerging research is promising, scientest say that more studies on the role of tea and tea antioxidants must be completed before drawing any conclusions about contributions to health and wellness. I however, believe that I have all the evidence I need. Is there no doubting that you should all get more Tea In Your Life.