What is Green Tea ? Scientific name of tea plant is Camellia sinensis. All tea’s are brewed from the leaves of the same plant, whether it is Black, Brown or Green. What makes the tea black, brown or green depends on the way the tea leaves are processed and other additives added.The Tea leaves utilized for making green tea are subjected to a minimum of processing so that the green tea leaves can retain most of the useful nutrients and health benefits.

Due to various health benefits, people in China and Japan were using green tea since the time immemorial. For the last several years the importance of the green tea is realized all over the World and its consumption is increasing day by day.

Soon after picking tea leaves they are subjected to heat, often by steaming. After heating or steaming the leaves are dried. After drying, they are either packed and sold as green tea or sometimes the dried leaves are subjected to further minor processing. In case of other teas, the picked leaves are dried by withering a process in which the leaves are rolled and cut which promotes oxidation.

Due to this Oxidation, most of the useful nutrients are lost from tea. Then the leaves are further dried to prevent Oxidation. After drying and curing the leaves are packed and sold. The tea prepared from such tea leaves will be  black. As Black tea is widely used in the Western Hemisphere , milk is added in some Asian countries, where the tea looks Brown. This type of tea is mostly used in the Indian Sub-Continent.

Since most of the nutrients and antioxidants are lacking in Black and Brown teas, the health benefits are minimum. However when compared, black tea is proved to be more beneficial over tea where milk is added.

Health point of view, Green tea is the best, since most of the essential nutrients as well as antioxidants are still retained in the Green Tea. As several studies have indicated that green tea contains powerful antioxidants, which boost health and immunity when consumed in moderation.

There are several specific health benefits attributed to green tea, like anti aging, anti cancer, Weight Loss and may help in preventing or reducing the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Some studies also indicate that green tea consumption is helpful for osteoarthritis patients.