Is Wu Long or Wu Yi Tea YOUR Fountain of Youth?

Did you know that merely drinking a few delicious mugs of tea per day can boost the quality of your skin and fight premature aging? Wu yi tea has been drunk for centuries in the Asian world and thankfully, it is finally catching on in the Western world. Its age-fighting capabilities are remarkable! It may be YOUR answer to maintaining youthful skin!

Wu long and wu yi tea varietals have become all the rage in both the weight loss and age-fighting arenas. Both teas are highly beneficial in improving overall health, but is one better than the other? To answer this question, let us look at the origin of tea.

All tea comes from the plant Camellia sinensis, but the time that the leaves are picked and then the way in which the tea is fermented determines the tea variety. Black tea, green tea, white tea and oolong tea are the four main varieties of tea.

White tea and green tea are unfermented and considered highly nutritious, yet they have a bit of a bitter, grassy flavor. White tealeaves are picked prior to the opening of the bud making it a bit milder. Black tea is fermented for a long time and thus, it is not as nutritious as green tea; however, the flavor is more agreeable to our Western palates.

Oolong tea, on the other hand, is both pleasant tasting and highly nutritious. This is because they are fermented for a short time. There are two main varietals of oolong tea: wu long and wu yi. The wu long tealeaves are picked during the first growth cycle of the tea plant, which is then allowed to go through several more growth cycles.

Tea salespeople would have you believe that this makes a huge impact on the flavor and quality of the tea, but wu yi and wu long tea are similarly flavored AND they both are capable of promoting youthful, healthy looking, radiant skin! The main difference? Price! Wu long is more expensive.

In a way, choosing between wu yi and wu long tea is like choosing between a $20 bottle of red wine and a $50 bottle. Will the $50 be so good that it is worth the extra $30? Probably not. Personally, I would rather save the money by buying wu yi tea because the taste differences are not that remarkable. At the same time, you are not likely to find wu yi tea next to the cheap, econo-sized teas at the market. These could be compared to the $5 bottles of Shiraz.

Oolong tea, whether it is wu yi or wu long, contains powerful antioxidants that fight free radical damage and thus help slow down the process of aging. The signs of aging can be seen in your face when free radicals take their toll on skin health at the cellular level. Collagen breaks down and soon, fine lines begin to appear as well as sagging, fragile skin. Wu yi tea can reverse this and help create more youthful, glowing skin!

Antioxidants in wu yi tea are necessary for skin cell replenishment. Wu yi tea has a lovely aroma and flavor that calms the mind.

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.