It is advisable to note that both whitetea and greentea come from the same tea bush, namely Camellia sinensis. Whitetea is usually made from the buds or young leaves of the Camellia sinensis bush; the buds are plucked before they open and still have fine white hairs on them, while greentea comes from mature leaves. The Whitetea is made with drying of the buds and young leaves by either placing them in the sun or steaming, while greentea that is slightly fermented.
It is significant to understand that as whitetea is made of young buds and leaves it requires more careful handling than greentea; so whitetea happens to be more expensive. It is still more significant to know that good quality whitetea is brewed to a temperature below 80 degree Celsius to avoid having a bitter taste and the slightly grassy taste. It is also significant to understand that whitetea can be brewed many times without any loss of flavor.
Discussing whether whitetea or greentea is better it would be right to discuss the various health benefits of whitetea and greentea. White ea, the specialty of the Chinese province of Fujian comes in various varieties like silver needle, life eyebrow, Darjeeling white, Ceylon white, African white, white peony, tribute, and Assam white. This tea has been found to be a good preventive for heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and different forms of cancer. Whitetea has also been found to impede the breakdown of elastin and collagen; this helps to delay visible effects of aging such as developing a sagging skin and wrinkles. It is still more significant to find that whitetea helps prevents diseases because of its antioxidant, collagenase, anti-elastase and anti-inflammatory properties.
Next discussing the health effects of green tea also from China it is to be understood that this tea is also well known for its health benefits. Research has shown that the daily intake of greentea helps to reduce the risk of heart disease in addition to helping fight Parkinson diseases and Alzheimer’s disease. It is also very significant to note that there is a direct link between the consumption of greentea and reduced incidence of breast cancer.
Both white tea and greentea have their own health benefits; white tea is better in some aspects while greentea is in others. Comparing both the variety of teas it is found that white tea leaves have a greater concentration of antioxidants than greentea; the level of antioxidant of white tea is 12 times that of orange juice. This makes white tea a better choice. It has also been found that the level of caffeine in white tea is much lower than that of greentea; so if you are allergic to caffeine it is better to drink white tea.
It is difficult to make a clear cut choice about whether white or green tea is better, though white tea has a slight edge over green tea. However it is found that white tea is not plentiful and is more expensive than green tea; so it would be best to drink green tea and splurge on white tea occasionally.
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