There’s nothing quite like waking up and enjoying a hot cup of tea! While you may be used to drinking standard English breakfast, changing this habit could help improve your health. Drinking jasmine tea could offer a whole range of wellness benefits. Here’s what you need to know about the healthy drink and why you should try it.
What is Jasmine Tea?
Lately, there’s been a lot of hype surrounding this drink, but what is jasmine tea? The warming beverage is just what it says on the tin. It’s a tea made from a combination of real tea leaves and jasmine blossom.
Once the tea has been brewed, the tea has an unmistakable rich, sweet scent. The origin of the drink is unknown, although the tea has been a popular part of Chinese culture for around 5,000 years.[1] These days, jasmine tea is gaining the attention of the Western world as it offers a range of health advantages.
Different varieties of jasmine tea
One of the most important things that you should know about jasmine tea is that it may come in a range of different varieties. Since the drink is a mixture of tea leaves and the flower, the proportions of each ingredient could vary drastically from drink to drink. For that reason, those who are completely new to the drink may wish to try a range of teas.
Of course, you can buy the leaves loose. If you do so, they will need to be put in a bag or strained after the tea is made. You may also come across “jasmine pearls”. These are rolled tea leaves and blossom, which create a pearl-like shape. When you put these in the boiling water, they open up which creates quite an interesting aesthetic to the drink.
How does jasmine tea taste?
Next, let’s talk about how jasmine tea tastes. Before you give this latest health drink a whirl, you might want to know what you should expect from it. Of course, you should note that the flavor of the tea will depend greatly on what the base leaf is — green tea, white tea, and black tea each have differently defined tastes.
However, in general, you should expect a fragrant, delicate taste from most jasmine tea drinks that you try. The flower has a definite perfume-like scent and this is carried throughout the flavor of the drink itself. Needless to say, the longer that you leave the beverage to brew, the stronger the overall taste will be.
Jasmine Green Tea Vs. Other Bases
Typically, when you see jasmine tea, it will be an infusion of jasmine blossoms and green tea. This combination is known as jasmine green tea and is likely to be the type of beverage most people will have tried before now. This mixture tends to work well as the green tea leaves also offer a wealth of health benefits for those who drink the tea. However, it’s worth noting that not all jasmine teas are made using a green tea base.
You may find that some jasmine tea brands are an infusion of the blossom and black or white tea. Each of these leaves offers its own flavor which may, in turn, alter the way in which the drink tastes. With that in mind, before you opt for a certain type of tea from a health food store, be sure to read the label as thoroughly as possible. Doing so will give you a clear idea of what you’re buying and help you understand how it will taste.
8 Jasmine Tea Benefits
Now that you fully understand what jasmine tea is, it’s time to talk about why you should be drinking it. There’s a reason that this drink has been growing in popularity in recent years. There are numerous jasmine tea benefits that you can reap by drinking it. Let’s take a moment to look at some of the most prominent advantages this drink can offer.
1. Rich in antioxidants
Your body needs antioxidants to maintain peak health. To understand why, you first need to know what free radicals are. These are molecules in the body, which are unstable. As a result of this, they may cause harm or damage to the body.[2] Antioxidants are the first line of defense when it comes to fighting these molecules and ensuring you stay healthy.
The simplest way in which you can boost your antioxidant intake is to adapt your diet. While loads of foods — including blueberries, nuts, and beans — are rich in antioxidants, you shouldn’t overlook what you drink as well. Jasmine tea could be one of the greatest sources of antioxidants. The jasmine plant has a wealth of healthful antioxidants known as catechins.[3] That could help to increase your antioxidant consumption.
What’s more, if the drink is jasmine green tea, it will have extra antioxidizing qualities. Research from the HSS Public Access Journal shows that this type of tea boasts numerous antioxidizing properties.[4] Perhaps most notably, the study found that these antioxidants may help to prevent certain chronic diseases including cancer.
2. Relieves stress levels
Are you feeling stressed out? While many of us disregard feelings of stress and worry, they could be doing unthinkable harm to your general health. Sudden bouts of stress have been linked to heart disease and attacks, according to research published in the Lancet Journal.[5] You may not be able to get rid of your stresses completely. However, you can learn to manage them one day at a time.
Rather surprisingly, one of the quickest ways to lower your overall stress levels could be to brew a cup of jasmine tea. One study from Kyoto University suggests that the fragrant scent of the jasmine flower could have a positive and beneficial effect on people.[6] The research suggests that simply smelling this odor can help to elicit calm feelings in people while also lowering their heart rate. The next time you make yourself a cup of this relaxing drink, take a moment to simply sit and take in the scent of it. You won’t regret it!
3. Helps skin rejuvenation
Should you choose a jasmine green tea, there’s one health benefit that you need to know about. Research from the Medical College Of Georgia suggests that drinking green tea could lead to skin rejuvenation.[7] The reason is that green tea contains high levels of the polyphenol, EGCG. The study found that skin cells grew more rapidly when exposed to this aspect of the tea, which could mean that it promotes skin rejuvenation.
The landmark research could help experts come up with brand new treatments for wounds and skin ailments. The ability to speed up the growth of skin cells may mean that dermatologists can encourage the skin to heal itself faster than ever before. That means that drinking jasmine green tea could have a strikingly positive effect on your skin.
4. Lowers stroke risk
Strokes kill around 140,000 Americans every year.[8] That means that the health condition is responsible for around one in every 20 deaths in the country. Risk factors include high blood pressure, obesity, and smoking when it comes to strokes.[9] Targeting these problems as they arise is one way in which you can lower your risk of this health condition. However, there are other small lifestyle changes you can make which may also help decrease your chances of having a stroke at some point during your life.
Research from the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences suggests that there is a link between drinking tea on a regular basis and a lower risk of stroke.[10] The researchers looked at a range of tea drinks, including jasmine tea, green tea, and black tea. The results found that those who drank tea frequently were less likely to have a stroke. That could mean that this dietary habit contributes to an overall lower risk of the condition.
5. Could boost heart health
Keeping your heart as healthy as it can be should be one of your main priorities. Heart disease is responsible for one in four deaths in America.[11] It should come as no surprise that a range of lifestyle issues will have an impact on your heart health. Your diet, your genetics, weight, and age will all contribute to your risk level. Taking care of your health, staying active, and adjusting your diet could be some of the ways in which you protect yourself from this devastating health condition.
Drinking jasmine green tea on a regular basis may be one of the practices that you should adopt. Research suggests that the anti‐inflammatory catechins that are found in jasmine tea could prevent LDL-oxidation, which causes unhealthy cholesterol in your arteries.[12] This build-up in the veins could be one of the major contributing factors when it comes to heart disease and, indeed, cases of heart attacks. That means that sipping on some jasmine tea could help lower your chances of being affected by the issue.
6. Protects against bacterial illnesses
External bacteria can cause illness and infections in the body. While it is safe and normal to have certain forms of bacteria living in the body, specific types of them can ultimately be harmful. For that reason, it’s important that we do all we can to protect ourselves from any damaging bacterial infections or illnesses.
One of the most interesting jasmine tea benefits is that it can offer some antibiotic and antibacterial advantages. Research published in the Indian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences suggests that jasmine essential oil — which is sometimes found in jasmine tea — could fight against bacteria such as E. Coli.[13] The results mean that drinking jasmine tea could help you to protect yourself against a whole range of infections.
7. Supports weight loss
Trying to shed some extra pounds? Being overweight can contribute to a range of worrying illnesses including high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, fatty liver disease, kidney disease, and certain types of cancer.[14] When you’re hoping to get in shape, it can often feel like an uphill battle. Of course, using portion control and exercising regularly will help you along the way. However, you should also consider adding things to your current diet to help support your weight loss journey.
Drinking green tea could help to speed up your metabolic rate, according to a study from the Amala Cancer Research Center and the NPO International Laboratory of Biochemistry.[15] The faster your metabolism is, the more calories your body burns on a daily basis. That means that losing weight should be easier than before since your body is using up the food you eat in the form of energy. Put simply, drinking green tea, or a variation such as jasmine green tea, could help you to slim down by burning extra calories.
8. Gives you extra energy
Do you need a boost of energy each morning? While your natural response may be to reach for a cup of strong coffee, drinking jasmine tea could work as well. Since the tea leaves that are mixed with the jasmine blossom are usually green, black, or white, they contain a level of caffeine. That means that each one of these types of tea could give you a jolt of much-needed energy when you drink them on a regular basis.
Plus, if you happen to drink jasmine green tea, you may find that there are even more energy-boosting properties. Research from the American Physiology Society found that the drink can help to increase energy while also increasing participants’ exercise endurance performance by 8-24%.[16] That could mean that drinking some green tea before you hit the gym will help you keep working out for longer than ever before.
Jasmine Tea Caffeine: How Much Does It Have?
Worried about consuming too much caffeine? Extremely high doses of caffeine — i.e. more than 1,000 mg per day — have been linked to an increase in anxiety and sleep impairment.[17] While drinking moderate levels of caffeinated beverages should be present no problem to your general health, you should keep an eye on how much you consume. For that reason, you may be wondering about the average jasmine tea caffeine levels.
As we have already discussed, the concentration and type of true tea may vary depending on the type of jasmine tea you buy. That means that each tea brand may carry a different dosage of caffeine within it, making it hard to give a definitive answer here. However, what we can look at is how much caffeine each type of tea has in it on average.
An eight-ounce cup of black tea contains around 47 mg of caffeine, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest.[18] The same report suggests that green tea contains a little less caffeine coming in at around 29 mg per eight-ounce cup.[19]
We should take into consideration that there is likely to be less caffeine in jasmine tea since the drink is not made from pure tea leaves. As the leaves are mixed with flowers and blossoms, the drink will have lower caffeine potency levels overall.
Needless to say, it is safe to drink a handful of cups of jasmine tea every day, should you wish to do so. In order to consume the previously mentioned “extremely high doses”, you would need to drink more than 20 cups of extra strong tea per day.
Did you know that green tea contains less caffeine than black tea?[20]
How to Brew the Perfect Cup of Jasmine Tea
Ready to give jasmine tea a whirl? If you’re ready to start reaping the numerous benefits of this type of tea, you might be wondering how to brew it. When you’ve chosen the type of jasmine tea you’d prefer, it’s time to get moving. Here’s what you need to know about how you can make the perfect cup and enjoy it in no time.
- Heat your water As a general guide, you should aim for a temperature of no more than 176°F. The easiest way to hit this mark is to boil the kettle. Pour the water into a cup and leave it to cool for around 20-30 seconds. You can use a thermometer to check the temperature is right.
- Add your jasmine tea Next, you should add your jasmine tea to the water and stir well. At this point, you may want to put the leaves into a strainer or disposable tea bag. Failing that, you can always strain the water after the drink has steeped.
- Steep for a couple of minutes If you leave this drink to steep for too long, you could find that the taste is hard to handle and not as delicate as it should be. For that reason, once you have added the hot water, leave it to brew for a couple of minutes before straining it to drink.
- Remove the tea leaves You need to remove the jasmine tea from the water. If you have used a capsule strainer or a disposable bag, you can simply take them out of the cup. On the other hand, if the leaves are loose, you will need to remove them by using a larger strainer and pouring the water into another cup. Simple!
Conclusion
What are you waiting for? These are many great reasons to enjoy a hot cup of jasmine tea and the drink is super easy to make. Now that you’ve got all the details, why not give it a go for yourself? Start by looking for various tea brands online and choose one that appeals to your taste. You never know, you might just love it.
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References
- [1] https://books.google.co.in/books?id=h7xoq2rn0wEC&pg=PA101&dq=jasmine+tea&hl=en&sa=X&ei=uXl-UfvlGs7orQeiloG4CA#v=onepage&q=jasmine%20tea&f=false
- [2] https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/09/070908001613.htm
- [3] https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1742-6596/1025/1/012066
- [4] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3679539
- [5] https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(16)31714-7/fulltext
- [6] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15976995
- [7] https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/04/030425071800.htm
- [8] https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/66/wr/mm6635e1.htm
- [9] https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/66/wr/mm6635e1.htm
- [10] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15555387
- [11] https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/facts.htm
- [12] https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/beverage/health-benefits-of-jasmine-tea.html
- [13] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2792499/
- [14] https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/weight-management/health-risks-overweight
- [15] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2855614
- [16] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15563575
- [17] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12204388
- [18] https://cspinet.org/eating-healthy/ingredients-of-concern/caffeine-chart
- [19] https://cspinet.org/eating-healthy/ingredients-of-concern/caffeine-chart
- [20] https://cspinet.org/eating-healthy/ingredients-of-concern/caffeine-chart
