February 2000
If you are a committed tea drinker try organic tea and organic biodynamic green tea, so that at least you have fewer chemicals going into your body. And the same applies to all foods available. Try the organic version. Taste the difference. And notice the change in your health. Importantly help save the earth from being destroyed with chemicals
ONE OF THE EARLIEST memories of my childhood is of my grandma, parents and two younger brothers huddled over a pot of tea, pouring, chatting, sipping, and relishing the brew. I longed to join them but the smell of tea nauseated me. And somehow without partaking of the tea ceremony I didn’t feel a part of the family. I felt the odd one out, which also prompted me to do things differently. But that is another story.
I realised later that it was my somewhat weak kidneys which put me off even the aroma of tea. Luckily for me my instincts have always directed me to live within my body’s capacity. And that is also what I try and teach others in my role as a nutritionist. Don’t just read this and that and ingest according to what a book or dietician tells you. Eat and drink according to your body’s urges, although within the framework of natural foods. The things not within this framework are most importantly refined and processed foods.
Coming back to tea. Suddenly there seems to be a lot of talk about green tea and its curing properties. You may wonder how something that contains tannic acid, theobr-omine and caffeine is being promoted as a cure. But green tea is different: it is non- fermented tea. Damage to the leaf before processing is avoided. Thermal treatment (either roasting or sweating) of raw tea as soon as possible to stop the enzyme oxidative process is essential in the manufacture of green tea. Green tea is the young leaf of tea and has numerous benefits without any of the negative effects of tea. The green tea polyphenols are the most important tea leaf components because of their ability to scavenge free radicals. Hence their curative properties.
GREEN TEA IS ALSO BENEFICIAL for your teeth. It contains fluoride in the natural form which prevents mottling and tooth decay. Green tea has pharmacological properties and is highly successful in treating severe abdominal, intestinal, cerebral haemorrhages as well as senile fragility of the capillaries. It prevents the formation of stones in the urinary bladder, liver and kidneys. Green tea is also known to help in treating nephritis, chronic hepatitis, hypertension and induced leukaemia.
And of course if the green tea is organically and/or biodynamically grown so much the better. Organic means grown without chemical fertilisers (minimum of three years on that land) and without pesticides. Biodynamically means grown not only without chemical fertilisers and pesticides but also according to certain principles that further enhance the value of the crop.
Although, today I know of these benefits I am still unable to form the habit of drinking tea. But the moment of reckoning between tea and me came when I first tasted organic (not green) tea. That is regular tea but grown organically. The aroma did not nauseate me and the taste was not of the tea that I had known.
So what happened? I realised that although even now tea did not tempt me and was definitely not for me, what had made me feel sick of tea all these years was not so much the tea itself but the pesticides sprayed on it. I know now that the majority of people who drink tea have got used to the chemicals in it that they assume that is the natural taste of tea. Taste some organic or biodynamic tea to know the difference. If you don’t you’ll get the caffeine but you’ll miss out on the true taste of tea. And you don’t need to be a tea-taster to realise this.
I’M NOT PROMOTING TEA to non-tea drinkers. Only making you aware of the difference. The bottom line as always is to be equanomous and balanced about all one does in life. Moderation is the key: Please note that Lipton’s Green Label is not green tea. It is only a brand name for regular tea. Inspite of not being a tea or coffee drinker I decided to write this piece on tea because I know the importance attached to tea in most people’s lives. Rudyard Kipling expressed it best when he wrote:
“We had a kettle, we let it leak;
Our not replacing it made it worse,
We haven’t had any tea for a week…
The bottom is out of the Universe!”
So if you are a committed tea drinker try organic tea and organic biodynamic green tea, so that at least you have fewer chemicals going into your body. And the same applies to all foods available. Try the organic version. Taste the difference. And notice the change in your health. Importantly help save the earth from being destroyed with chemicals. Keep it alive for the next generation. Because we don’t inherit the earth from our ancestors. We borrow it from our children.
