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Tea Frequently Asked Questions
  • What do you mean by "steep the tea"? The verbs to brew, to steep, and to infuse all refer to the process of adding hot water to tea leaves or tea bags and allowing them to sit for a few minutes - in other words, making an infusion.
  • What's that thingy you put the tea leaves in? I like to call them infusers because that term describes what they do. Different types of infusers include tea balls, brew baskets, and paper or cotton filters.
  • What about a strainer? A strainer is not an infuser. You put a strainer over your cup to strain brewed tea through. If you use a strainer, you don't need to use an infuser; likewise, if you use an infuser, you don't need to use a strainer. They both ultimately serve to keep tea leaves out of your cup. An infuser does it during brewing, while the strainer does it during pouring.
  • How big is a tea cup? A tea cup is considered to be 6 fluid ounces, like a coffee cup. So when we say to use 1 tsp. of leaves per cup, if your cup is 8 ounces, you may need to use a bit more leaves to get a full strength cup.
  • How long do I steep (or brew) the tea? This can vary significantly from tea to tea, but there are rules of thumb. In general, black tea needs to brew 3-5 minutes for best flavor. They will often get bitter if you let them brew more than 6 or 7 minutes. Green tea often needs only 1 minute, but 2-3 minutes is not unusual. Oolongs typically need 2-3 minutes. Herbals need 5-10 minutes, and they generally don't get bitter, so you can let them brew as long as you like. Keep in mind that finely cut teas, whether black, green, or herbal, require shorter brewing times than large leaf teas.
  • How can I get my tea to taste stronger (or weaker)? The best way to control the strength of your tea is the alter the amount of tea leaves you use rather than changing the brew time. People will often try to let their tea brew a long time to get a strong cup, only to find it tastes bitter. To get the best flavor, you should brew the tea according to the directions (or according to your own experiments). Then if you find the tea is too strong, try using 1/2 the amount of tea leaves called for; if too weak, try twice the amount of tea leaves.
  • Boiling water or steaming water? Freshly boiled water is appropriate for black and herbal teas; steaming (sub-boiling) is best for green, oolong, and white teas. We always put this our package directions, too, so read those carefully.

Tea and Health

You may have heard about a recent report that tea contains dangerous amounts of fluoride. The American Journal of Medicine chronicled the diagnostic experiences of a middle aged woman who was complaining of pain in her spine. Ultimately, it was discovered that the patient had high levels of fluoride in her urine, which led to the discovery that she was consuming between one and two gallons of double strength instant tea a day during her entire adult life. Based on this information, Washington University in St. Louis tested several brands of instant tea (and iced tea mixes) available in the marketplace and discovered relatively high levels of fluoride in the samples ranging between 1.0 and 6.5 parts per million. In response to this report, the Tea Association of the USA issued a position statement, which follows in its entirety. In a nutshell, this patient was consuming extremely large amounts of instant tea and simply overindulged in a good thing.

Tea Council of the USA
Statement Regarding Research Conducted at Washington University on Skeletal Fluorosis and Instant Tea
Issued January 26, 2005
  • Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis published a study this week in the American Journal of Medicine based on a case study of a woman with skeletal fluorosis that resulted from her consuming between 37-74 mg of fluoride per day for most of her adult life. It was determined that the fluoride came from fluoridated drinking water and one to two gallons of instant tea prepared at a concentration of twice what the directions recommend (equivalent to up to four gallons per day). Following are comments from the Tea Council of the USA in response to this paper:
  • The average 8-ounce serving of instant tea contains 0.78 mg of fluoride. The Environmental Protection Agency has stated that, in drinking water, up to 1 mg per 8-ounce serving is a safe level for adults.
  • To put the study into perspective, the researchers state that, based on the EPA guidelines, it would take at least 20 milligrams of fluoride per day every day for 20 years to produce skeletal fluorosis.
  • Based on the preponderance of evidence from research as well as the position of leading U.S. health organizations, the Tea Council of the USA feels confident in assuring that, when consumed as part of a healthy diet, tea poses no health risks, and likely even provides health benefits.
  • A multitude of research studies suggest that drinking tea can be included as part of a healthy diet and may contribute to overall health. Studies have found that tea drinkers have a reduced risk of certain chronic diseases, including heart disease and some types of cancer.
  • The primary source of fluoride in the diet is fluoridated water, according to the American Dietetic Association. The level of fluoride in brewed or powdered teas varies with the fluoride content of the water. Additionally, brewed tea and commercially prepared foods, such as poultry products, seafood and powdered cereals, can also supply varying amounts of fluoride to the diet.
  • The USDA has a database on the fluoride content of Foods and Beverages: http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/Data/Fluoride/fluoride.xls


Tea and Health News provided by: TheTeaTable.com

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