Wu Long Tea - Is it Right for You?

Wu long tea (or Oolong) is a partially fermented tea from China. It comes from with Wuyi Mountains which is in China’s Fujian province. It is processed in between green tea, which is unfermented and black tea which is fermented. It has less body to it than Black tea but more than Green and possesses many of the best qualities of both.

While Wu-long tea has been around for a while, it has become popular in the last seven years as a result of scientific studies showing the health benefits. It has been shown that drinking Wu long tea can help improve your energy and increase your metabolism. As a result, many people looking to loose weight use Wu long to help them with their goals. It is often called the “Chinese Diet Tea”.

Wu Long tea is very high in antioxidants.  Antioxidants are believed to fight free radical damage due to oxidation in the body.  It is believed that free radicals speed the aging process and contribute to the advancement of many age related diseases.  Free radicals also contribute to physical signs of aging, like wrinkles. 

In one study, people who drank wu long oolong tea experienced a 50% reduction of free radicals within 15 days.  As such, it would seem that drinking wu long tea would help fight aging and improve your resistance against age related diseases.  It also may help improve that quality of your skin by protecting it from free radicals.

There are so many things out there that claim to help you lose weight.  The reality is that most of these weight loss aids are really just hype and have no research behind them.  What about Wu long tea?  Is there anything out there that supports it’s ability to help you loose weight?

Surprisingly, yes!  There is a fairly significant base of research that shows that drinking wu long slimming tea can help you control your weight.

In one study performed at Japan’s University of Tokushima School of Medicine, scientists discovered that wulong tea had twice the calorie burning impact that green tea has.  Because it has already been established scientifically that green tea can help increase the calories that you burn, this was a significant finding.

In another study published in the Journal of Medical Investigation it was further shown that women who drink wulong oolong tea right after they eat increased the calories burned by 10%.  The same study showed that green tea increased energy expenditure by just 4%.  Obviously both green tea and wu long tea can help you lose weight, but it does appear that wu long tea edges out green tea.

Another significant study was done in Japan and the Suntory Research Center.  Here it was found that drinking wu long tea prior to eating foods that are high in carbohydrates reduces the insulin spike that takes place after eating such foods.  This may help mitigate the fattening effects of carbohydrates in your diet.

Perhaps one of the most convincing quotes I have found about wu long tea was made by David Kennedy, the editor of both Muscle Media magazine and the book Body for Life.  He said:

"As the long-time Editor-in-Chief of Muscle Media magazine, I've extensively researched and studied the effects of various fat-loss agents, and Wu-Long is far and away the best there is. Myself, I've noticed amazing results from using Wu-Long. It's the only fat burner I believe in and use. Accept no cheap imitations!"