What Are the Benefits of Eating Tea Leaves?

Green tea is the one most widely consumed for health purposes. Photo Credit Medioimages/Photodisc/Photodisc/Getty Images

White tea, green tea, black tea and oolong tea are all processed from the same tea leaves. White and green tea are less processed than black and oolong tea, allowing them to retain more health benefits. Green tea has been studied extensively for its health effects, since it's been used traditionally as medicine in China and India. You can consume tea leaves by taking them in capsules or tablets, or adding matcha, which is powdered green tea, to smoothies or other foods and beverages.

They Are Rich in Antioxidants

No matter how green tea leaves are consumed, whether brewed, in powdered form or in capsules, the evidence stands that tea is a very potent source of antioxidants. Most significantly, the catechins found most abundantly in green tea are the antioxidants that give tea leaves their health-boosting punch. According to Harvard Health Publications, catechins have been found to be more powerful in reversing cell damage than vitamins C and E. Antioxidants have been linked to reduced risks of developing some diseases.

They May Promote Heart Health

According to a review of current medical literature on tea's role in preventing heart disease published in "The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews" in 2013, the antioxidants in both green tea and black tea have been found to lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels in various human studies. In a study published in the "Archives of Internal Medicine" in 2004, researchers compared tea consumption and hypertension cases in populations in Taiwan. They found that people who consumed green tea or oolong tea daily had significantly reduced risks of high blood pressure, compared to those who did not.

Boosts Energy and May Help with Weight Loss

Although you can find caffeine-free tea, tea leaves contain caffeine naturally. According to the National Institutes of Health, caffeine stimulates your brain and nervous system, which relieves fatigue temporarily. Green tea supplements are often promoted as weight-loss supplements. Although there's no "magic pill" for weight loss, eating tea leaves could potentially aid in your weight-loss efforts. In a study published in "Physiology and Behavior" in 2006, 46 women on low-calorie diets who took green tea supplements experienced reduced fat mass and small amounts of weight loss after 12 weeks.

Precautions and Warnings

Check with your doctor before eating tea leaves if you have a medical condition or you are taking any medications. Avoid tea leaves if you're pregnant or breast-feeding, or if you have high blood pressure, kidney or liver issues, or anxiety. Too much caffeine can cause side effects and even overdose. If you drink coffee or other caffeinated beverages, make sure your daily caffeine intake doesn't exceed the upper safety limit of 300 milligrams per day. One tablespoon of matcha contains about 50 milligrams of caffeine, so you'd need around 6 tablespoons of powdered tea leaves to reach the upper safety limit, assuming that you did not consume caffeine from any other sources. Side effects of caffeine may include difficulty sleeping, dizziness, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, headache and irritability.

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Effect of laminated structure design on the mechanical properties of bamboo-wood hybrid laminated veneer lumber

Published Date

First online: 27 July 2016

Title

Effect of laminated structure design on the mechanical properties of bamboo-wood hybrid laminated veneer lumber

• Author

• Fuming Chen
• , Jianchao Deng
• , Xingjun Li
• , Ge Wang 
• , Lee M. Smith
• , Sheldon Q. Shi

Abstract

The effects of veneer orientation and loading direction on the mechanical properties of bamboo-bundle/poplar veneer laminated veneer lumber (BWLVL) were investigated by a statistical analysis method. Eight types of laminated structure were designed for the BWLVL aiming to explore the feasibility of manufacturing high-performance bamboo-based composites. A specific type of bamboo species named Cizhu bamboo (Neosinocalamus affinis) with a thickness of 6 mm and diameter of 65 mm was used. The wood veneers were from fast-growing poplar tree (Populus ussuriensis Kom.) in China. The bamboo bundles were obtained by a mechanical process. They were then formed into uniform veneers using a one-piece veneer technology. Bamboo bundle and poplar veneer were immersed in water-soluble phenol formaldehyde (PF) resin with low molecular weight for 7 min and dried to MC of 8–12 % under the ambient environment. All specimens were prepared through hand lay-up using compressing molding method. The density and mechanical properties including modulus of elasticity (MOE), modulus of rupture (MOR), and shearing strength (SS) of samples were characterized under loading parallel and perpendicular to the glue line. The results indicated that as the contribution of bamboo bundle increased in laminated structure, especially laminated on the surface layers, the MOE, MOR and SS increased. A lay-up BBPBPBB (B-bamboo, P-poplar) had the highest properties due to the cooperation of bamboo bundle and poplar veneer. A higher value of MOE and MOR was found for the perpendicular loading test than that for the parallel test, while a slightly higher SS was observed parallel to the glue line compared with perpendicular loading. Any lay-up within the homogeneous group can be used to replace others for obtaining the same mechanical properties in applications. These findings suggested that the laminated structure with high stiffness laid-up on the surface layers could improve the performance of natural fiber reinforced composites.

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For further details log on website :
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00107-016-1080-8

From woody biomass waste to biocoke: influence of the proportion of different tree components

Author

J. Solar, 

A. Hernandez, 

A. Lopez-Urionabarrenechea, 

I. de Marco, 

A. Adrados, 

B. M. Caballero, 

N. Gastelu

Abstract

This paper assesses the feasibility of producing a metallurgical quality charcoal (biocoke) through slow high temperature pyrolysis of woody biomass. The samples used for the experiments were different types of olive wood biomass from southern Spain as well as eucalyptus trunks from Uruguay. The experiments were conducted in a two-step process: a pyrolysis semi-batch reaction at 750 °C and 3 °C/min heating rate, followed by a second step of thermal treatment at 900 °C of the pyrolysis vapours. The type of raw material used plays an important role with respect to the amount and quality of the different pyrolysis products. With the operating conditions used, high solid (24–26 wt%) and gas yields (43–54 wt%) were obtained. The solids obtained (biocoke) fulfil the requirements of good metallurgical reducers. However, leaves and bark are detrimental to biocoke quality and should be avoided. Pyrolysis gases are rich in CO and hydrogen, whereas pyrolysis liquids are mainly composed of water.

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For further details log on website :
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00107-016-1089-z