“Tea” refers to the aromatic drink prepared from the cured Camellia sinensis leaves with hot or boiling water. It is the common name for the Camellia sinensis plant itself.

Second only to water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world. It has a cooling, slightly bitter, astringent flavor which many people enjoy. The term herbal tea usually refers to infusions of fruit or herbs but not actual tea!

Health effects:-

The possible beneficial effects of tea consumption in the prevention of cancer and cardiovascular diseases have been demonstrated in animal models and suggested by certain studies.

If such beneficial effects do exist in humans, they are likely to be mild and depend on many other lifestyle-related factors.

Ingestion of large amounts of tea may cause nutritional and other problems because of the caffeine content and the strong binding activities of tea polyphenols.

In 2010, researchers found that people who consumed tea had significantly less cognitive decline than non-tea drinkers. Several of the potential health benefits proposed for tea are that Tea leaves contain more than 700 chemicals, including flavanoides, amino acids, vitamin C,E and K.and poly saccharides.

Tea plays an important role in improving beneficial intestinal micro flora, as well as providing immunity against intestinal disorders and in protecting cell membranes from damage.

Tea also prevents dental caries due to the presence of fluorine.It can normalize the blood pressure, prevent coronary heart diseases and diabetes.

Tea is germicidal against various human pathogenic bacteria. Both green and black tea infusions contain a number of antioxidants.
Consumption of some forms of tea has the potential to result in acute liver damage in some individuals.

Several herbal and dietary supplements have been linked to liver damage, caused in part or completely by the presence of green tea extract in these supplements. The risk is thought to be quite small.