Dr. Oz has covered the health benefits of tea on multiple occasions. From weight loss, to heart health, and cancer prevention, a cup of tea can attribute to a variety of health benefits. In a series of articles, we will cover some of Dr. Oz’s recommendations in greater depth and offer suggestions of which tea will best serve your needs.
Today, we will look at a post on doctoroz.com entitled Teas to Fight Disease. Specifically, we look at black teas and their roll in diabetes prevention:
Precose and Glyset: Naturally in Black Tea
Black tea contains a substance that mimics type 2 diabetes drugs Precose and Glyset. Black tea contains more of the substance, a polysaccharide compound, than either green or oolong tea, according to Haixia Chen and colleagues of Tianjin University, China. Their findings were reported in the Journal of Food and Science
Coarse tea has been used as a diabetes treatment in China and Japan. It's known that tea polysaccharides reduce blood sugar.
Chen and colleagues show that tea polysaccharides inhibit an enzyme called alpha-glucosidase, which turns starch into glucose. The diabetes drugs Precose and Glyset work by inhibiting this enzyme.
While black tea may help fight diabetes, it is not a substitute for a proper diet, or a medicated condition. However, black tea paired with a morning or afternoon meal is a pleasant and healthful addition.
Black Tea Recommendations:
There are many black teas to fill a variety of tastes. Here are a few recommendations.
Irish Breakfast: A rich, robust, fully rounded tea. Perfect for breakfast.
Angels Dream: Maple sweetness paired with blackberry pungency. A smooth and naturally sweet blend
Ancient Forest: Harvested from ancient trees on the protected land of Jingmai Mangjing’s Blue Mountains. 100% organic, hand-picked and sorted, this black tea brews a rich, earthy infusion with notes of cedar and honey.
Vanilla Chai: Notes of cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, contrasted by a voluptuous vanilla flavor. A robust and slightly spicy blend. Did you know that chai was originally blended for its medicinal qualities?
Earl Grey: A perennial favorite, flavored with bergamont.
Decaf English Breakfast: A full bodied black tea without the caffeine punch. Perfect for late afternoons and evenings.
Still not sure what you'd like? Check out our sampler section to try out a selection of our most popular black teas
Learn more about the health benefits of black tea
Explore our selection of black teas
Resources:
Institute of Food Technologists (2009, July 28). Black Tea May Fight Diabetes. ScienceDaily. Retrieved May 22, 2012, from http://www.sciencedaily.com /releases/2009/07/090728172604.htm
Teas To Fight Disease, from Dr. Oz http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/teas-fight-disease
