Bancha Green Tea (Camellia sinensis) 1 lb

This is Starwest's nitrogen-flushed double wall silverfoil pack. Bancha is a strong Japanese steamed green tea harvested throughout late spring and summer. 'Bancha' means 'common tea' and is a reference to the coarser grades and heavier late season crop from which this full-flavoured tea is made. Bancha is made from larger leaves than are usually available for sencha grades. Bancha is regarded as the 'second flush' of sencha. Bancha usually lacks the delicate sweetness of quality sencha. Nevertheless bancha is respected because of the tea's well-defined character vivid yellow colors and refreshing deep flavors. Bancha green tea is considered a meal-time tea. Green tea should be steeped in very hot but not boiling water. Boiling water will scorch the delicate flavor rendering it bitter. Green tea comes mainly from China Japan Taiwan and to a lesser degree India. The critical difference between green and black tea is that green tea leaves are not allowed to ferment. Green tea is instead steamed rolled and fired. Green tea is the natural dried leaves of the tea plant Camellia sinensis. Black tea is oxidized green tea. The phrase 'Black Tea' is also used as a generic name for all Camelia sinensis teas. The major Black Tea types from the traditional black tea evergeen (Camellia sinensis) classified according to processing method include: fermented or black tea producing an amber-coloured full-flavoured beverage without bitterness; semi-fermented or oolong producing a slightly bitter light brownish-green liquid; and unfermented or green tea resulting in a mild slightly bitter pale greenish-yellow beverage. Tea contains only four calories per cup when consumed without added ingredients but is a source of several B-complex vitamins including B2 and nicotinic acid. Caffeine is responsible for tea's stimulating effect. Flavor is produced by volatile oils and astringency and color by tannin. Black teas are classified by geographical origin and the size of the processed leaf. Traditional operations result in larger leafy grades and smaller broken grades. The leafy grades are flowery pekoe (FP) orange pekoe (OP) pekoe (P) pekoe souchong (PS) and souchong (S). BOP=Broken Orange pekoe; FOP=Flowery Orange Pekoe; TGFOP-Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe; FTGFOP=Finest Tippy Golden Flowery Orange Pekoe. Green tea is not graded similar to black tea but classified according to age style of the leaf and manufacture e.g. Gunpowder Pan-fired Young Hysson Bancha etc. Since green tea unlike black and oolong tea is not fermented the active constituents remain unaltered in the herb. Green tea is bioflavonoid-rich proven useful for fighting free radical damage in the human body. It has a high content of polyphenols which are a class of bioflavonoids. Green tea's best studied polyphenol is Epigallocatechin Gallate. Epigallocatechin Gallate (EGCG) protects against digestive and respiratory infections. A solution of 1 mcg per ml of EGCG heavily inhibited influenza virus in vitro. Green tea is beneficial in reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease as it exerts antioxidant activity lowers cholesterol and reduces platelet aggregation (stickiness). Green tea extract is very good for the arteries and heart. Additional studies have demonstrated enhanced liver function and immune system function secondary to these polyphenols. EGCG helps block the cancer-promoting actions of carcinogens ultraviolet light and metastasis from an original site in the skin stomach small intestine liver or lung. Higher quantities (0.5% to 1% of diet) were protective against high total and LDL-cholesterol levels on a cholesterol promoting diet in rats. EGCG also reduces platelet aggregation about as much as aspirin or Ginkgo Biloba extract. Clincial Science: http://www.thorne.com/greentea.html: Inhibition of mammary gland carcinogenesis by green tea catechins and other naturally occurring antioxidants in female Sprague-Dawley rats... Cancer Lett 83:149-156; 1994. Scavenging action of green tea extracts on singlet oxygen and preventive effect on lipid peroxidation Chung Kuo I Hsueh Ko Hsueh Yuan Hsueh Pao 15:354-359; 1993. Inhibitory effects of black tea green tea decaffeinated black tea and decaffeinated green tea on ultraviolet B light-induced skin carcinogenesis in 7 12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene-initiated SKH-1 mice. Cancer Res 54:3428-3435; 1994. A potent thromboxane formation inhibitor in green tea leaves. A decreased level of cholesterol was observed in rats consuming unprocessed tea extract. This decrease could be linked to the decrease in thromboxane levels as observed. Prostaglandins Leukot Essent Fatty Acids 40:281-283; 1990. Reduced risk of esophageal cancer associated with green tea consumption. J Natl Cancer Inst 86:855-858; 1994. Inhibitory effect of tea catechins on collagenase activity. A major purpose of this study was to examine inhibitory effect of the catechin derivatives from Japanese green tea Camellia sinensis on collagenase activity. J Periodontol 64:630-636; 1993. Green tea consumption and serum lipid profiles: a cross-sectional study in northern Kyushu Japan. Adjusted mean concentrations of total cholesterol were 8 mg/dl lower in men drinking nine cups or more per day than in those consuming zero to two cups per day. Prev Med 21:526-531; 1992. Anticarcinogenic effects of (-)-epigallocatechin gallate. BACKGROUND. Our research objective is to develop nontoxic cancer chemopreventive agents and to apply these agents in treating humans. Prev Med 21:503-509; 1992. Protective activity of tea and catechins against Bordetella pertussis Kansenshogaku Zasshi 66:599-605; 1992. Tea components: antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic effects. Prev Med 21:351-360; 1992. Anticaries effects of polyphenolic compounds from Japanese green tea. Caries Res 25:438-443; 1991. Monoamine metabolites iron induced seizures and the anticonvulsant effect of tannins. Epigallocatechin (EGC) and (-)-epigallocatechin-3-O-gallate (EGCG) isolated from green tea leaves have been reported to prevent or diminish the occurrence of epileptic discharges induced by iron ions and to inhibit catechol-O-methyltransferase. Neurochem Res 17:585-590; 1992. Radioprotective effects of (-)-epigallocatechin 3-O-gallate (green-tea tannin) in mice. Life Sci 50:147-152; 1992. Platelet aggregation inhibitors in hot water extract of green tea. Chem Pharm Bull (Tokyo) 38:790-793; 1990. Antibacterial and bactericidal activities of Japanese green tea We found that extracts of Japanese green tea leaves inhibited the growth of various bacteria causing diarrheal diseases. All tea samples tested showed antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus S. epidermidis Vibrio cholerae O1 V. cholerae non O1. V. parahaemolyticus V. mimicus Campylobacter jejuni and Plesiomonas shigelloides. Nippon Saikingaku Zasshi 44:669-672; 1989. Antimicrobial and microbicidal activities of tea and catechins against Mycoplasma Kansenshogaku Zasshi 66:606-611; 1992.