Drink Your Greens to Your Good Health

At Pluck Tea, we love our greens.  Fruity, minty, flowery, or straight up – we have a green tea perfect for every palate. But, green tea isn’t just about filling our day with flavour… it’s about providing our body with an additional health boost.

Whether you like it hot or cold, green tea is one of the healthiest beverages that you can drink.  Each leaf is brimming with four types of catechins: epigallocatechin, epicatechin-3-gallate, and EGCG – each with their own host of health benefits. When you steep these leaves in hot water these catechizes are released, infusing it with antioxidants.

When harvested, green tea leaves are pan fired or steamed to prevent fermentation.  It’s this steaming process that preserves the natural polyphenols in the leaf.  But that’s not all, green tea contains brain boosting L-theanine, which is believed to help boost GABA, dopamine and serotonin levels. Studies have linked L-theanine consumption to increased mental focus, attention and reaction time. In addition, drinking tea has been associated with lowering the risk of degenerative brain diseases like Alzheimers and dementia.

 Did you Know? Green Tea Has Been Linked To:

• Improved dental health, including reducing sensitivity, plaque build-up and bad breath
• An increase in bone density and protection against fractures
• Fighting off free radicals, disease and reducing overall cell damage
• Improved cardiovascular health, including helping to lower blood pressure
• Slowing down the natural aging process of the brain
• Increased focus and a better sleep
• Helping to maintain a healthy weight

Maximize the Benefits with Matcha

If you really want to kick it up a notch, add matcha to your diet.  With matcha, all of the incredible properties of green tea are ingested, instead of steeped, boosting the number of catechins in your diet.   Brew it straight up, or add a scoop to yogurt, smoothie or even a bowl of rice for a simple way to add more greens to your diet.

Brewing Tip (Beware of Burnt Leaves):

Do you find green tea a bit too bitter? It may not be the tea, but instead, the way that you’re brewing it.  Boiling water can burn these delicate leaves, killing off their natural sweetness, and leaving you with a pot full of bitter leaves.

For optimal flavour, add hot (not boiling water) to your green tea leaves. Japanese and Spring green teas are best brewed with slightly cooler temperatures (160-170 degrees F), while Chinese greens steep well around the (170-180).