“Ounce for ounce, herbs and spices have more antioxidants than any other food group.”
- Dr. Michael Greger
The universe consists of a variety of frequencies with which to attune, in order to uplift our soul, help our overall health and leave us feeling energized during the day. We look to answer the age old question of whether or not tea has antioxidants, what adding masala spices does to it. A cup of tea is not just good for the mind and soul, but it contains useful nutrients such as vitamin C that helps improve our body’s function and facilitate brain stimulation. With these nutrients as our ally our chakras and aura will tune to their highest frequency. There are many kinds of teas and chais that contain natural antioxidants which feature significant benefits for our health. These include green and other teas and chais infused with ginger and rooibus, which are not only delicious, but contain attributes that help us attain optimal levels of well-being. Spices such as cinnamon, cloves and turmeric, prevalent in several teas and chais, are all excellent sources of antioxidants. Compounds that have potent antioxidant properties such as theaflavins, thearubigins, polyphenols and catechins also feature heavily in many teas and chais and offer us essential nutrients that ward off disease and increase our overall health. When we choose to nourish our bodies well and increase our ability to maintain strong cell growth and function, we are also offering our mind and soul the chance to tune into the vibrations we need to reset and recharge all 7 of our chakras.
The top 5 teas for health (medicalnewstoday.com)
How Can Antioxidants Work For Us?
Antioxidants act as an all-purpose tonic for our health, doing a lot of work behind the scenes to keep us healthy. They help to lessen the oxidization process in our bodies and ensure that our cells are functioning properly by preventing the production of free radicals. If left unchecked free radicals, which are oxygen containing molecules that accumulate mostly when our body breaks down food, will build up to the point where they can cause disease such as various cancers and effect vital organs including the heart. Antioxidants play the role of a deterrent, one that lessens harmful free radical damage which seeks to erode our health, creating a premature aging process. A good example of an antioxidant that works to strengthen blood vessels and aid in our bodies healing process is ascorbic acid or vitamin C. Vitamin C is found in teas such as green tea and is an essential nutrient in developing healthy tissues in our body. To ensure that the health benefits of vitamin C within green tea are properly utilized try a cold brew, in which the benefits of ascorbic acid are not lost, like they are when green tea is heated. This is perfect for the summer months ahead, as the weather gets progressively hotter. Antioxidants show their usefulness by working to counteract our body’s natural aging process and slow down its erosion that breaks down our cells and tissues. They are useful as a preventative measure and the fact that antioxidants are prevalent in several teas, including chai makes them any ally in the quest for good health.
Try our small batch release Strawberry Summer Breeze for a boost of vitamin C in a delicious blend of fruit flavours. It features ingredients such as strawberry, kiwi, hibiscus and rosehip. It’s refreshing after taste is a perfect cool down in this hot summer. Strawberry Summer Breeze – Chai Ghai
Antioxidants | The Nutrition Source | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
What Kinds of Teas Contain Antioxidants?
As we can see many teas and chais contain antioxidants that work to neutralize free radicals, which is a great benefit that drinking tea offers to us. There are also other teas that also feature antioxidants, such as green and matcha, as well as a number of ginger, rooibus and black based teas. Both green and black teas contain high amounts of theaflavins, thearubigins, polyphenols and catechins. Theaflavins are types of thearubigins, which are both antioxidant polyphenols. They are extracted when flavonoids are condensed, during oxidization of the tea leaves that work to draw out the enzymes and thus enhance their health benefits. Polyphenols occur naturally in plants and can be found in all natural types of sustenance that makes up our diet. The fruits, herbs and spices that tea contains are rich in polyphenols. For example, cardamom found in many of our chais has phenolic compounds and flavonoids that make it rich in antioxidant properties and thus good for digestion, among its other benefits. Catechins also fall under the flavonoid category and are typically found in fruits and vegetables. Catechins work to improve blood flow between our brain and other vital organs. This helps to regulate blood pressure and reduce weight that causes stress on these organs. The catechins found in tea and chai offer disease preventing measures and ensure that catechins are compounds that our bodies can ill afford to do without.
Are There Antioxidants in Chai?
Chai with ginger and rooibus are also loaded with antioxidants that further thwart stress, which when left unchecked can cause irreparable damage to our bodies DNA. Chai Ghai’s own Belly Dancer blend boasts high levels of antioxidants in its ingredients including ginger and rooibus. Many of our other chai’s including Om, Kama Sutra, Vanilla and Mummyji’s Masala feature ginger, as well as another antioxidant rich spice; cloves. These chais along with Open Hearted, Masala Chai and Green Aura Matcha are all very high in antioxidants. All Products – Chai Ghai We tailor our teas and chais to help boost your metabolism and digestion, as they are not only a great accompaniment to a healthy meal, but also act as a refreshing and nutritious boost by stimulating both the immune system and increasing brain function. Chai infused with Masala spices gives it the edge over coffee since the spices coupled with the black tea act as a powerful one-two punch in eradicating free radicals and fostering overall well-being.
Antioxidants in Green and Black Tea (webmd.com)
Role of green tea as an antioxidant in periodontal disease: The Asian paradox - PMC (nih.gov)
For further information on the benefits of rooibus check out our previous Chai Guide.
3 Reasons Why Rooibos is Disrupting the Tea Industry – Chai Ghai
How to Prepare Tea so it Retains the Maximum Amount of Antioxidants
Milk has long been a familiar complement to many flavours of tea and it is interesting to see the kinds of reactions it creates in tea or chai when they are mixed together. The nutrients found in milk and in most teas and chais feature high levels of antioxidants. With this knowledge at hand, it becomes important to know whether or not preparing tea or chai so that it retains all of the antioxidants found naturally in them is possible. Some studies suggest that brewing tea or chai for longer will increase how our bodies absorb the antioxidants in them, even taking into account adding milk as an accompaniment. Brewing tea for a longer period is a process that can also increase the flavours inherent in each tea and would be an example of something to do to improve your tea drinking experience. In this case the addition of milk would do nothing to lessen the antioxidant levels found naturally in the tea or chai. Other studies show that specifically mixing milk with black tea will not decrease the healthy aspects that either provides for us. When brewing chai infused with Masala spices, longer brew times will not only allow the tannins from the black tea, such as theaflavins and thearubigins to become more concentrated, but also improve the nutritional value and antioxidant levels of the cloves, ginger and other spices. These spices work to fight free radicals in our body, so getting the most out of them offers us the maximum benefits to our overall health.
What Are the Benefits of Drinking Tea with Milk? (healthline.com)
For a refreshing, cool option during the summer months, our Iced Chai Latte recipe will leave you feeling revitalized and invigorated. It is easy to make and the steps are clearly laid out in our Chai Guide: How to make an Iced Chai Latte – Chai Ghai
“A cup of tea is a cup of peace.”
- Ken Cohen
With all of the information we now have available to us it is easier to learn how antioxidants found in tea and chai work to improve our health. Antioxidants can affect all facets of our being and can be thought of as an important ally when searching for different methods for good health. The antioxidants found in the fruits, herbs and spices that many teas and chais contain make them great options to counteract free radical damage and improve our overall health. Many teas and chais feature the compounds theaflavins, thearubigins, polyphenols and catechins that further offer us useful antioxidant and antiviral properties. These benefits lessen the risk of many diseases including some cancers by working to expunge free radicals from our bodies. With all of the advantages to our mind, body and soul that antioxidants in tea and chai provide, it is easy to see why drinking them is so popular. Drinking tea and chai can be a peaceful experience that soothes our senses and recharges our chakras, leaving us with more energy and a clearer aura.
