LOVE ANGELES

Tea Noosh: Bringing Friends and Family Together

One of my New Year's Resolutions was to transition from drinking coffee to drinking tea. I realized that for me, the overall benefits of tea outwieghed my habitual morning cup o' joe. Perhaps you've been aware of the higher frequency of articles on tea that we have been publishing in the recent months - largely spelling out the potent health benefits of char, a British slang word used for tea originating in the 19th Century. When I received a call from my uncle Mo the other day regarding the premier of his new Tea company, it really didn't surprise me... although you can imagine how excited I became!

Mo Bahani started Tea Noosh out of his dual passion for traveling the far reaches of the world and spending quality time with friends, at home, on a regular basis.

Catering to both wholesalers and individual retail customers alike, Tea Noosh is soon likely to become a household name, and appropriately so, as there is nothing more pleasing to my Uncle Mo than for him to know that his vision of quality and affordable teas is being shared and enjoyed by family and friends all around the world.

In Mo's words, "Traditionally, tea has always brought people of all backgrounds together in a spirit of Friendship. Friends and neighbors have long gathered over tea to share in a culture of social hospitality. I believe it is precisely this aspect that makes tea so extraordinarily unique.

"As a child, one of my fondest memories was when I would help my father combine varieties of Tea to produce delicious and exotic blends. In those days my father would purchase tea according to their aroma and taste and I found myself years later using these same guidelines as I pursued his legacy in this tradition of collective friendship. I spent years traveling the world as far as China and India in search of the perfect combinations of exotic tea, all the while striving to find blends that not only tasted magnificently but also aided the mind and the body. My search finally ended in Sri Lanka where I decided to create Teanoosh. Teanoosh in produced from the finest tea leaves the region of Sri Lanka has to offer. It is currently exported throughout the world and already celebrated in the countries of Italy, Germany and Dubai. Teanoosh is well on its way of becoming world acclaimed for its rich combination of remarkable taste and enchanting aroma."

For more information and to order Tea Noosh online, visit www.TeaNoosh.com

Gypsy Tea Steeped in Health and Fun

Source: Woman Entrepreneur - Old-world tradition sparked the product and the name. Best business practices made the company successful.

Zhena Muzyka gets a kick out of formulating exotic new tea flavors from fair-trade teas sourced from around the world. "It's what keeps my creative juices flowing," says the founder of the multimillion-dollar Gypsy Tea, a company that also has a strong commitment toward being green.

Her latest offering is cocktail teas without alcohol. The flavors are pina colada, berry belini and mojito mint. "They're delicious; they're full of health and they're fun flavors," she says. "They reminded me of a vacation in Cabo [San Lucas, Mexico]. A lot of people can't afford to go on vacation in Cabo right now, but they can afford a $6 tin of organic tea."

Muzyka has come a long way from nine years ago, when she created tea lattes from an espresso catering cart at a friend's antiques shop in Ojai, Calif. That initial foray into entrepreneurship arose out of necessity, when her son was born with nephritis, a kidney disease. "He needed operations, and the insurance wasn't going to cover them. I had to come up with a job where I could have him with me because he had special needs," she says.

Herbal medicine was a hobby for Muzyka, whose gypsy grandmother tended a huge garden. "Everything came out of the garden: our food, our herbs, our flowers." Her great-grandmother, a full-blooded gypsy, made blackberry cordials, jams and wines. "So I was steeped in it at an early age," Muzyka says.

Then, when she was 20, Muzyka went to Peru and studied herbal medicine with ethnobotanists. "I found a deep passion for the healing aspects of herbs and spices, and flowers and teas, and I decided that would be a part of my life somehow," she says, adding, "I just got thrown into it a little faster" than anticipated.

Her career aspirations were to be a full-time writer. She had even written 740 pages of a book about her gypsy grandparents before she segued into her tea empire. Nowadays, however, she couldn't be happier. Three operations later, 9-year-old Sage is a healthy youngster who loves soccer, video games and reading. "He reads at a seventh-grade level," Muzyka adds. She got married last year--pluckers from one of her fair-trade tea gardens in Sri Lanka hosted the wedding--and her husband is her vice president of business development.

"It's the most 'worth it' thing I've ever done," Muzyka says of Gypsy Tea. "Knowing that we're sincerely making a difference for people and helping them out of poverty--while providing a delicious cup of tea for consumers here--is pretty satisfying."

Muzyka shifted to fair-trade teas after she received her first chest of loose-leaf tea. "I pried open the lid and looked inside, and there was more tea than I'd ever seen in my life. I thought, 'who plucked this?' That set me on my journey to discovering what fair trade meant for the workers in the fields. It's the difference between life and death in some cases." Infant mortality rates in non-fair-trade fields are as high as 70 percent, she learned. In fair-trade gardens, workers are guaranteed health care, clean water, maternity leave, child care and education. "I decided that was going to be the mission of this company," she says.

Muzyka purchased her original espresso cart with money she borrowed from her parents and her brother, and she quickly developed a loyal following. But when Sage outgrew the baby carrier six months later, Muzyka realized she needed to expand her horizons.

At that point, Muzyka hadn't begun making her own teas; she was buying from 10 other tea companies. But as she sampled their wares, she realized no one was doing organic, fair trade--or fun--teas. "No one had tea combinations that were interesting and unique. No one was using essential oils--which have medicinal benefits--in their teas," she says. Her unique approach to blending and sourcing teas, coupled with her background and heritage, spurred her to what would become Gypsy Tea. "I realized if I tied that all together, I had a unique brand," she says.

She started wholesaling to restaurants and buying bulk tea from a broker who was importing it. She began shopping her unique blends to chefs and spas, and teaching them how to use loose-leaf teas. "I got the yellow pages out," she says. She looked up cafes and coffee houses, figuring they would be more apt to prepare loose-leaf teas. Next she went to upscale restaurants, and then spas.

"I cold called everybody," she says. "I dropped off samples and camped out on porches. I always had Sage with me." Today she cold calls resorts to grow the business. "When things get slower, you still have to do the same things you did in the beginning," she says. "The stakes just get higher."

She has changed her tactics in the past year. Instead of putting products in new stores, Gypsy Tea has focused on growing sales among customers it already has. "We got to dig deeper with customers we already have and create stronger relationships and give them more attention, too, when times are hard. That's been a good strategy for us. In the long run, it will be more profitable, as well."

Working with her chief innovation officer, Muzyka also created new tea categories, such as the tropical teas. Instead of another English breakfast or another Earl Grey, she created Pink Tea for Women's Health. It's a mixture of freeze-dried berries and strong green tea designed for breast, heart and ovarian health. Next came a biodynamic line, which requires a higher level of organic certification while also carrying the lowest carbon footprint possible.

In order to grow, she's created different products lines for different kinds of stores. The smaller, natural products stores don't want the same product that's in the grocery stores. So the biodynamic line is limited to Whole Foods and Cost Plus World Market. The tropical line is limited to Central Market and a few upscale stores. Pink is in Whole Foods and upscale stores. A new hospitality line is strictly for high-end resorts. "That will never be found in a grocery store," she says. Continue reading at Woman Entrepreneur...

White Tea vs. Green Tea

Source: White Tea Central - By now, a lot of people around the world have heard of green tea and its high content of antioxidants. More and more health-conscious people are making the enjoyment of green tea a part of their daily routine. It's easy to understand why - green tea contains antioxidants in high concentrations, it tastes good and it has a low content of caffeine. The popularity of green tea is rapidly growing.

But there is another wave of tea on the horizon, and this time it's white. White tea is tea leaves that are picked before they open fully, when the buds are still covered in fine, white hairs. That, of course, is why it's called "white" tea.

When discussing white tea vs green tea, it is important to realize that they both come from the same plant, the tea plant Camellia sinensis. The main difference between the two types of tea is that the white tea leaves are harvested at a younger age than the green tea leaves. They both undergo very little processing. White tea is not fermented at all, while green tea is partly fermented. By contrast, black tea is fully fermented. Because they are so gently treated, white tea and green tea retain their content of beneficial antioxidants.

Antioxidants

However, studies have shown that the young, white tea leaves retain antioxidants in higher concentrations than green tea does. Studies have shown that white tea has a concentration of antioxidants that is three times higher than in green tea. Essentially, white tea contains the same concentrations of antioxidants as the young and fresh tea leaf buds that are still attached to the bush. This makes white tea the tea with the highest antioxidant content, which for many is the main reason for drinking white tea. For comparison, one cup of white tea contains approximately twelve (12) times as much antioxidants as fresh orange juice.

Flavor

For many, the taste of the tea is important, and not everyone is a fan of the often "grassy" aftertaste associated with green tea. White tea has a much gentler and subtler taste, smooth and silky and almost sweet. The appearance of correctly brewed white tea has been described as a pale gold, not unlike a young white wine.

Caffeine

White tea contains less caffeine than green tea, about 15 mg per serving compared to the 20 mg for green tea. If caffeine tends to make you jittery, white tea may be the better choice.

Price

Because white tea is hand plucked from special bushes, during only a few days of early spring, and treated in such a delicate manner, it is much more scarce than other types of tea. That means that it is also more expensive, up to three times as expensive as green tea for the best qualities. On the other hand, less white tea is needed to get a fresh and strong infusion of antioxidants that strengthens the immune system and the body. Only a spoonful of white tea buds is enough to brew about one quart (one liter) of white tea - several times.

In our experience, Adagio Teas offer the best selection and the lowest prices on white tea. As the largest online tea vendor, they order in large quantities and are able to get excellent prices. We particularly recommend their white tea sampler pack.

Without question, drinking green tea daily is an excellent habit which will go a long way towards getting the antioxidants you need in your system. But you can do one better, and get ahead of the masses in making the healthy enjoyment of white tea a part of your daily ritual. The choice is yours.

Green Tea Can Help

Source: Reuters Health - "Elderly men and women who sip on several cups of green tea a day may be less likely to have the blues, hint findings of a study from Japan.

Dr. Kaijun Niu, at Tohoku University Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering in Sendai, and colleagues found men and women aged 70 and older who drank four or more, versus one or fewer, cups of green tea daily were 44 percent less likely to have symptoms of depression.

Several prior studies have linked green tea consumption to reduced levels of psychological distress. This led Niu and colleagues to look at associations between drinking green tea and symptoms of depression in 1,058 relatively healthy elderly individuals.

About 34 percent of the men and 39 percent of the women had symptoms of depression, according to a report in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. These symptoms were severe in about 20 percent of the men and in about 24 percent of the women.

Overall, 488 participants said they drank four or more cups of green tea a day, 284 said they downed two to three cups daily and the remaining 286 reported having one or fewer cups daily.

According to the investigators, the apparent protective effect of greater green tea consumption on symptoms of depression did not fade after they factored in social and economic status, gender, diet, history of medical problems, use of antidepressant medications, smoking, and physical activity.

By contrast, there was no association between consumption of black or oolong tea, or coffee, and lower symptoms of depression.

A green tea component, the amino acid theanine, which is thought to have a tranquilizing effect on the brain, may explain the "potentially beneficial effect" shown in the current study, Niu noted in an email to Reuters Health.

However, further studies are necessary to confirm whether greater green tea intake actually has antidepressant effects. Therefore, Niu shied away from recommending greater green tea intake to minimize depression among the elderly.

SOURCE: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, December 2009

What Soft Drinks are Doing to Your Body

Yahoo Health - "Soda, pop, cola, soft drink - whatever you call it, it is one of the worst beverages that you could be drinking for your health. As the debate for whether to put a tax on the sale of soft drinks continues, you should know how they affect your body so that you can make an informed choice on your own.

Soft drinks are hard on your health

Soft drinks contain little to no vitamins or other essential nutrients. However, it is what they do contain that is the problem: caffeine, carbonation, simple sugars — or worse, sugar substitutes — and often food additives such as artificial coloring, flavoring, and preservatives.

A lot of research has found that consumption of soft drinks in high quantity, especially by children, is responsible for many health problems that include tooth decay, nutritional depletion, obesity, type-2 diabetes, and heart disease.

Why the sugar in soft drinks isn’t so sweet

Most soft drinks contain a high amount of simple sugars. The USDA recommendation of sugar consumption for a 2,000-calorie diet is a daily allotment of 10 teaspoons of added sugars. Many soft drinks contain more than this amount!

Just why is too much sugar so unhealthy? Well, to start, let's talk about what happens to you as sugar enters your body. When you drink sodas that are packed with simple sugars, the pancreas is called upon to produce and release insulin, a hormone that empties the sugar in your blood stream into all the tissues and cells for usage. The result of overindulging in simple sugar is raised insulin levels. Raised blood insulin levels beyond the norm can lead to depression of the immune system, which in turn weakens your ability to fight disease.

Something else to consider is that most of the excess sugar ends up being stored as fat in your body, which results in weight gain and elevates risk for heart disease and cancer. One study found that when subjects were given refined sugar, their white blood cell count decreased significantly for several hours afterwards. Another study discovered that rats fed a high-sugar diet had a substantially elevated rate of breast cancer when compared to rats on a regular diet.

The health effects of diet soda

You may come to the conclusion that diet or sugar-free soda is a better choice. However, one study discovered that drinking one or more soft drinks a day — and it didn’t matter whether it was diet or regular — led to a 30% greater chance of weight gain around the belly.

Diet soda is filled with artificial sweeteners such as aspartame, sucralose, or saccharin. These artificial sweeteners pose a threat to your health. Saccharin, for instance, has been found to be carcinogenic, and studies have found that it produced bladder cancer in rats.

Aspartame, commonly known as nutrasweet, is a chemical that stimulates the brain to think the food is sweet. It breaks down into acpartic acid, phenylalanine, and methanol at a temperature of 86 degrees. (Remember, your stomach is somewhere around 98 degrees.) An article put out by the University of Texas found that aspartame has been linked to obesity. The process of stimulating the brain causes more cravings for sweets and leads to carbohydrate loading.

Carbonation depletes calcium

Beverages with bubbles contain phosphoric acid, which can severely deplete the blood calcium levels; calcium is a key component of the bone matrix. With less concentration of calcium over a long time, it can lower deposition rates so that bone mass and density suffer. This means that drinking sodas and carbonated water increases your risk of osteoporosis.

Add in the caffeine usually present in soft drinks, and you are in for even more trouble. Caffeine can deplete the body’s calcium, in addition to stimulating your central nervous system and contributing to stress, a racing mind, and insomnia.

Skip the soda and go for:

Fresh water: Water is a vital beverage for good health. Each and every cell needs water to perform its essential functions. Since studies show that tap water is filled with contaminants, antibiotics, and a number of other unhealthy substances, consider investing in a quality carbon-based filter for your tap water. To find out more about a high-performance filtration system, click here.

On the go? Try using a stainless steel thermos or glass bottle, filled with filtered water. Enhance the flavor of your water with a refreshing infusion of basil, mint leaves, and a drop of honey.

Fruit Juice: If you are a juice drinker, try watering down your juice to cut back on the sugar content. Buy a jar of organic 100% juice, especially cranberry, acai, pomegranate, and then dilute three parts filtered water to one part juice. You will get a subtle sweet taste and the benefit of antioxidants. After a couple of weeks, you will no longer miss the sweetness of sugary concentrated juices.

Tea: Tea gently lifts your energy and has numerous health benefits. Black, green, white, and oolong teas all contain antioxidant polyphenols. In fact, tea ranks as high or higher than many fruits and vegetables on the ORAC scale, the score that measures antioxidant potential of plant-based foods.

Herbal tea does not have the same antioxidant properties, though it is still a great beverage choice with other health benefits, such as inducing calming and relaxing effects.

If tea doesn’t satisfy your sweet tooth, try adding cinnamon or a little honey, which has important health benefits that refined sugar lacks. For a selection of healthy teas that promote total body wellness, click here. Drink up!

I hope you find the ways and means to avoid soft drinks. I invite you to visit often and share your own personal health and longevity tips with me.

May you live long, live strong, and live happy!

--Dr. Mao

Order Dr. Mao's new book Second Spring: Hundreds of Natural Secrets for Women to Revitalize and Regenerate at Any Age.