If you are looking for a beverage that can provide you with multiple health benefits, you can opt for pu-erh tea. It is not that other forms of tea are unhealthy or not equipped with sufficient health advantages. You can also benefit a lot from iced tea and other such variants. But pu-erh (Yunnan Toucha) is especially known for its curative and preventative properties. In fact, its cultivation started way back in the Han Dynasty and its origin can be said to be in China's Yunnan Province.

Let us now have a detailed look at its manufacturing process. The best pu-erh tea is made from a special kind of leaf which is known as broad leaf or da ye. It can be found in old wild tea trees, which are first picked and then put through a delicate maturation process. This process culminates in the creation of maocha which is nothing but 'rough tea'. This maocha is then made to go through either of the two processes. In one, it is pressed immediately into tea cakes, after which it is categorized as green/raw pu-erh while in another, it undergoes an artificial process of aging for thirty to forty days where each day, the leaves are spun, water splashed over them, covered with cloth and finally left for fermenting. Once fermentation is done, the process of drying and pressing into cakes takes place, followed by classification as black/cooked pu-erh. This process gives you an idea of how healthy the final product can be.

Let us now take a look at how your health can be benefited by the best pu-erh tea. Firstly, it can be effective in reducing cholesterol, protecting connective tissue, lowering blood pressure and attacking free radicals inside the body. One of the studies done to compare the effects of oolong, black, green and black/cooked pu-erh teas on cholesterol clearly point to this fact. The research was done on rats and a noticeable increase of good cholesterol known as HDL-C and a decrease of bad cholesterol namely LDL-C was witnessed in the rats that were fed pu-erh. Interestingly, the rats which were given the other variants, had erratic decreases in both cholesterol types. This basically indicates that this wonder beverage enables you to have the best of both worlds. On one hand, it increases the cholesterol that is needed and on the other, reduces the one that is harmful.

Secondly, it is capable of inhibiting internal dampness. It is basically a condition in which internal energy builds up since the spleen is unable to convert the energy received by it from the stomach. The best pu-erh tea has the ability to revitalize and stimulate the activity of the stomach and spleen. Other benefits include weight loss, promotion of blood circulation, improved eyesight, toxin removal from the body and relief from dysentery.

Thus, if you still stuck on iced tea, it is time to give it a break and try this immensely beneficial variant instead. Or else you can have both alternately.