Wu-Yi Tea Review (ambee)

ambee | Aug 7, 2009 |

2 Comments | Rating: 1

Pin It

Pros

Pros:

It's tea - a great beverage in itself
It's teeming with anti oxidants
It's not going to have a negative effect. Unless you drink it by the bucket load.

Cons

Cons:

Is it worth paying extra just because it's 'claimed' to aid weight loss
Far too much hype
There simply isn't enough evidence to support the claims

Full Review

Wu-yi Tea

Wu-yi tea is still thought to be some form of miracle weight loss method. From what I can tell, thousands upon thousands of people still buy into the idea that a few cups a day will dramatically shift unwanted weight.

Fact. Or fiction?

Wu-yi tea is high in anti-oxidants. But - no one's buying it for it's free radical fighting properties. They're buying it because they want to drop several dress sizes. Sad. But true. The weight loss industry is big business and everyone loves a miracle 'claim': get rich quick, loose weight fast, easy access to ready cash - you get the picture.

Unfortunately, most if not all such claims are hardly credible, when you go beneath the surface. They're just a banner that catches the eye of desperate people. Is that ethical? No. But it is business. And there's no such thing as a business that doesn't make money. Therefore in some cases, ethics don't come into it. But cold hard cash does.

So what, exactly, is wu-yi tea? Let's get all its names together: wu-long, wulong, oolong, wu-yi. All have one thing in common: they're all oolong tea: which is made by processing the leaves of the Camellia Sinensis plant. The name 'wu-yi' derives from an area in which the plant s grown - and simply means 'cliff'. It has absolutely no magical connotations, other than in the mind of the buyer.

I came across one claim stating that the polyphenols found within the tea cause fat to be broken down. Polyphenols (in tea) are otherwise known as antioxidants. The highest level of antioxidants are found in white tea - note not in wu-yi tea. This because of the process by which white tea is produced. A study conducted by the Universtity of Birmingham in the UK did in fact show that there is some metabolic difference when consuming oolong tea over a placebo version. However - some.

If you drink water and up your exercise output whilst lowering your food intake, you will lose weight. Simple fact.

Curiously, all the claims made by the sellers/distributors of wu-yi tea never seem to publicly use the following words to precede any/all of its supposed benefits: It will.

What you'll find is 'might' or 'may' or even 'has been known to'. For instance wu-yi tea:

Might assist weight loss
Has been known to aid an overall feeling of wellbeing
May boost the immune system

And so on. Hardly cold hard facts then.

In Closing

As far as I can tell, if you're going by the anti-oxidant slant, then you're better off drinking white tea. Far less processed which means it contains more anti-oxidants. Pure math. And if they're what's supposed to aid weight loss, then why not just drink white tea instead? I'm of the opinion that wu-yi tea is not so much a miracle weight loss cure for long suffering yo-yo dieters - than it's just plain old good to drink.

It's tea. Why wouldn't it be?