What is Oolong? Can It Make Your Skin More Youthful?

Asian women tend to have beautiful, flawless skin for many years. Aging seems to be on hold in many Asian regions. How do they achieve this? Would you not love to know about their many secrets such as oolong tea?

Asian women tend to live cleaner lives. They consume better diets and are generally exposed to less environmental toxins. These are few of the reasons behind their gorgeous, youthful skin.

Veggies, fruits, whole grains and lean proteins should all be on the menu for more youthful skin, but when it comes to environmental toxins such as car exhaust that we cannot escape, we need more. Asian women have drunk oolong tea for centuries and it is capable of slowing the aging process and producing more youthful skin.

Tea differs in its preparation, but it all comes from the same plant called camellia Sinensis. Some tea goes through a fermentation process and others do not which is what alters the flavor and color of tea.

Fermenting is the oxidation process that turns the leaves a darker shade. Whether tealeaves are fermented or not and for what length of time lends to the different flavors, aromas and coloring of the tea. Black tea is fermented the most whereas green tea is not fermented at all. Oolong tea is in between and has an interesting background.

Legend tells that oolong tea was created purely by accident. A man named Wu Liang was harvesting tea leaves and was interrupted by a passing deer. Wanting the deer for his family, he abandoned his freshly picked tea leaves to hunt the deer.

The harvested leaves sat in the sun for a few days before Wu Liang returned to find them partially oxidized (fermented). He could not waste the tealeaves, so he prepared them anyway and found them to have a wonderful flavor. The tea was called oolong and is now very popular.

The most beneficial teas to fight premature aging and restore a more youthful appearance are oolong, green and white teas. Oolong tea has the nicest flavor; so many people enjoy it over other tea varietals. Tea contains phytochemicals (antioxidants) that are highly beneficial to your overall health because they can fight aging and repair damage.

At the heart of aging lie free radicals. We are exposed to free radicals on a daily basis through UV rays and all of the chemicals and pollutants previously mentioned. Free radical molecules damage our skin (and all tissue) at the cellular level.

Aging makes it more difficult to fight free radical damage, and they are allowed to destroy cellular membranes and alter genetic material. We also cannot regenerate cells at the same rate as we did when we were younger.

Not only does this process affect our overall health, but it also damages our skin. We wind up with wrinkles and sagging skin. Our skin becomes more fragile.

The antioxidants in oolong tea can fight free radicals by stopping the oxidation process that takes place when free radicals steal the electron from healthy molecules in our bodies. Antioxidants are also imperative for repairing the damage already incurred and regenerating cells. Drinking oolong tea on a daily basis can improve you skin health. Healthy skin is beautiful skin!

Oolong tea is available in many forms, but wu yi is one of the best tasting at a moderate price.