A Tea Affair

Kombucha, pronounced (come-boo-chuh), is a fermented black or green tea beverage that is slightly acidic, sweet, and carbonated . Some find it refreshing. Read the ingredient label and you will find it contains tea, sugar or other sweetener, bacteria, and yeast . It is considered a probiotic -- live bacteria and yeasts that are thought to keep your gut healthy. Locally we would most often find them in yogurts or dietary supplements. Consumerlab.com analyzed several popular brands of Kombucha and found they contained 1.0 to 1.3 billion viable cells in 8 ounces — a bit lower than found in most supplements . Of course, tea is known to have powerful antioxidant activity. Put the yeast and bacteria together, feed it with some sugar and you get a “tea fungus.” The tea fungus resembles the top of a mushroom, which explains why it is sometimes referred to as “mushroom tea .” As the tea ferments, the yeast (most often saccharomyces) breaks down the sugar and converts it ...

Drinking This Tea May Inhibit Breast Cancer Cell Growth, Says Study Oolong tea extracts may have components that could inhibit the growth of breast cancer, along with other health benefits . Oolong is a type of Chinese tea that is known to be immensely beneficial for heart, brain and diabetes management . The the study, published in the journal Anticancer Research, suggested that the Chinese tea happened to stop the growth of breast cancer cells and the extract hampered the DNA of the cancer cells, while also inhibiting the growth and progression of tumours . The scientists also compared effects green tea and black tea. Green tea was also found to be effective. However , black and dark tea had little effect on the cells, noted the study. From our results, oolong tea, much like green tea, plays a role in inhibiting breast cancer cell growth, proliferation and tumour progression, said one of the researchers from St. Louis University in Missouri . Just like gr...