Hello everyone!
As I said in my subject heading I haven't ever really drank a lot of green tea. I'm a Southern (US) man so I grew up drinking sweet iced tea (the brown kind with a ton of sugar).
I've had some surgeries here and there (kidney stones, microfracture knee surgery, hernia, skin cancer) but haven't ever really given a lot of thought to my actual health and what I could do to take care of myself inside. I've always been active (tennis, baseball, pickleball, running, etc.) so I figured that pretty much took care of me being a healthy human.
Until last October 22nd when they found a DVT Bloodclot in my leg running from mid thigh down to mid calf. That day I was put on blood thinners and my thoughts of ignoring my health quickly vanished.
So all of that to say I recently read about all the incredible benefits of drinking green tea...especially the point that said it could help prevent cardiovascular disease!!! All the other benefits are incredible as well (help memory, lower risk of cancer, antioxidants, etc.), but taking care of my cardiovascular system really hit home (both father and grandfather died from heart attacks and me having a blood clot that could have went straight to my heart and lungs) - I'm only 52 but it started me thinking.
So, yesterday I bought the first green tea I could find at a local store: Bigelow Decaf Green Tea bags. Now I'm sure this isn't the best way (for the taste or the benefits) to drink green tea, so I'm turning to you for help.
What is the best way to purchase (tea bag? tea leaves? powder? other?) and make green tea so that I reap all of the benefits?
Again, I'm completely new to green tea and its benefits so if you can be as specific as possible (type to purchase, name brands, links, where to purchase, how to brew, etc.) I would GREATLY appreciate it!
Are there other teas I should consider drinking as well? I just chose green tea because it seems to be the most readily available in my area.
Thank you for your time and any help you can provide! I am truly looking forward to this new journey!
TripleB
Re: Green Tea Newbie...
Well, to start I would recommend loose tea leaves or powder. If you're in it for health benefits I think green is a good choice, but post fermented teas are quite good for that as well (esp for help with cholesterol management.)TripleB wrote: Hello everyone!
As I said in my subject heading I haven't ever really drank a lot of green tea. I'm a Southern (US) man so I grew up drinking sweet iced tea (the brown kind with a ton of sugar).
I've had some surgeries here and there (kidney stones, microfracture knee surgery, hernia, skin cancer) but haven't ever really given a lot of thought to my actual health and what I could do to take care of myself inside. I've always been active (tennis, baseball, pickleball, running, etc.) so I figured that pretty much took care of me being a healthy human.
Until last October 22nd when they found a DVT Bloodclot in my leg running from mid thigh down to mid calf. That day I was put on blood thinners and my thoughts of ignoring my health quickly vanished.
So all of that to say I recently read about all the incredible benefits of drinking green tea...especially the point that said it could help prevent cardiovascular disease!!! All the other benefits are incredible as well (help memory, lower risk of cancer, antioxidants, etc.), but taking care of my cardiovascular system really hit home (both father and grandfather died from heart attacks and me having a blood clot that could have went straight to my heart and lungs) - I'm only 52 but it started me thinking.
So, yesterday I bought the first green tea I could find at a local store: Bigelow Decaf Green Tea bags. Now I'm sure this isn't the best way (for the taste or the benefits) to drink green tea, so I'm turning to you for help.
What is the best way to purchase (tea bag? tea leaves? powder? other?) and make green tea so that I reap all of the benefits?
Again, I'm completely new to green tea and its benefits so if you can be as specific as possible (type to purchase, name brands, links, where to purchase, how to brew, etc.) I would GREATLY appreciate it!
Are there other teas I should consider drinking as well? I just chose green tea because it seems to be the most readily available in my area.
Thank you for your time and any help you can provide! I am truly looking forward to this new journey!
TripleB
Any nice tea shops in your area? If not, buying online might be your best choice. I buy a lot of tea online because there's better quality to be had than what people in my city would pay for.
Albino cultivars of the tea plant seem to be higher in the compounds which are healthy, the most famous of those is called Anji Bai Cha from China. It's a fantastic green tea, one of my favorites. It's a bit expensive though.
The water you're using has potential to change what you're able to pull out of the tea leaves. If you want to drink tea for health reasons you should avoid having too much mineral content in the water. If you want it to taste better use a water with a mineral content. A lot of healthy stuff in tea isn't soluble in water though so you'd have to eat the leaves to get those vitamins. Fortunately powdered tea is a thing. The problem with it is that good stuff is expensive, and you need a couple utensils to make it palatable.
Somehow I kind of recommend you start by drinking matcha (green tea powder). It's healthy, deeply cultural, gives you something to practice, the flavor is great when you're drinking good ones. It's also easy to tell the differences in quality.
You do need some implements... I like to buy matcha from this website when I am deal hunting. It's a great place to start. I'll link you to everything I think you should buy. I am under the impression you have some expendable income.
https://yunomi.life/collections/ceremon ... nial-grade
https://yunomi.life/collections/ceremon ... -grade-30g
https://yunomi.life/collections/ceremon ... nial-grade
You would need a bowl... You might already have something appropriate to use for now, this would be a purchase you'd probably want to make eventually though.
https://yunomi.life/collections/matcha-bowls
and you would need a whisk...
https://yunomi.life/collections/bamboo-whisks-scoops
I don't think you need the scoop (chashaku), you can use a spoon to measure, but the chashaku is the 'proper' way to do it.
I don't want to write much more until you give some feedback.