Tea and health | About Chinese tea | Others about tea | Chinese Tea manufacturing |
caffeine and tannin in tea |
How strong is a cup of tea? Some
people drink a cup of tea to go to sleep, others to keep awake. Some drink
tea to calm their nerves, others for a lift. How can the same beverage
possess such opposing qualities? Precisely because tea -- unlike coffee
-- can produce both these effects upon the body, it is viewed as a wonder
drink. Here is how it works. Once boiling water is poured onto tea leaves, in the first two minutes all the caffeine in the leaves is drawn out. At this point tea is at its most stimulating. Only during the next minute win tannin gradually be drawn out of the tea leaves. This will not only cancel out the effects of the caffeine but after five minutes will actually make a relaxing, calming tea. Graphically it can be shown thus:
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