秋高气爽乌龙香

Oolong tea has a range of health benefits. 原文配图 ©

原文|Megan Metropulos from medicalnewstoday

乱译|中外物語

配图|原文或网络

今日主角| 乌龙茶 oolong tea

---

Health benefits of oolong tea

秋高气爽乌龙香，无由一碗身体壮。

There is a record of tea being used as a beverage in China since 2,000 B.C.E. Besides water, it is consumed more than any other drink around the world. The four main types of tea are black, green, white, and oolong.

中国人把茶当作饮料的历史已有上千年之久。而在世界范围内，只要有人喝水，就会有人饮茶；毫不夸张地说，迄今为止，还没有哪种饮料的受欢迎度明目张胆地超过茶。笼统地说，茶有红茶、绿茶、白茶和乌龙茶四大类。

All four varieties come from the Camellia sinensis plant. Herbal teas are not considered true tea because they do not come from the Camellia sinensis plant. Oolong tea accounts for only 2 percent of tea consumption around the world. Although less popular, oolong tea still has a variety of benefits.

追根溯源，四大类茶都来自于野生山茶。草药茶算不上真正的茶饮，只因它们不够“根正苗红”，不是来自于野生山茶属植物。全世界范围内常喝乌龙茶的人口并不多，只占总人口的2%。看上去乌龙茶不够受欢迎，但不能因此就忽略了它的价值。

What is oolong tea?

何谓乌龙茶？

Oolong tea is commonly consumed in China and Taiwan. In Asian countries, drinking tea is a large part of the culture and social gatherings. Friends and business associates often meet over tea.

乌龙茶在中国大陆和台湾省都很常见。饮茶是一种很妙的东方文化，它既可融入社交，令人酣畅淋漓，也可渗入贸易，使得生意兴隆。

Although all true tea comes from the same plant, the differences occur in the harvesting and processing. Oolong tea is partially fermented, while black tea is fully fermented. Tea can also differ in amounts and types of antioxidants. Green tea is high in a class of antioxidants known as catechins. Antioxidants in black tea are theaflavins and thearubigins. Oolong tea falls in the middle, regarding the antioxidant amounts.

从源头上来说，茶都来自于同一属植物，但终因采收和加工过程不同，使之成品千差万别。乌龙茶属于半发酵茶，而红茶则是全发酵茶。茶也因其含有不同标准的抗氧化成分而显出不同价值。绿茶的抗氧化成分——儿茶素——含量超高（儿茶素也称茶单宁[喜欢葡萄酒的朋友应该知道，单宁是酚类物质，有益于心脏血管疾病的预防；单宁的含量甚至可以决定红葡萄酒的口感]，据说有抑制肥胖的作用。常听人说喝茶有助减肥的核心成分就在于儿茶素。）而红茶中的抗氧化成分主要是茶黄素和茶红素。乌龙茶在抗氧化成分含量上介于绿茶和红茶之间。

Oolong tea and green tea contain similar amounts of caffeine, approximately 10 to 60 milligrams (mg) per 8-ounce cup. For comparison, coffee contains approximately 70 to 130 mg of caffeine per 8-ounce cup. Unsweetened brewed tea is considered a zero-calorie beverage. It contains no fat, carbohydrates, or protein.

乌龙茶和绿茶的咖啡因（也叫茶精，有兴奋剂的作用，所以很多人睡前饮茶就会失眠）含量相当；每8盎司杯（相当于约227毫升；1盎司等于29.27毫升）中含咖啡因10-60毫克。而等量的咖啡中含有70-130毫克咖啡因。茶饮不加糖是公认的健康饮品，或叫零卡路里饮品；茶本身不含脂肪、糖类或蛋白类物质。

Potential health benefits of oolong tea

乌龙茶的保健价值

There are a number of health benefits that are thought to derive from drinking oolong tea, as with other types of tea.

常饮乌龙茶能起到很好的保健作用。当然啦，其他茶饮也有保健作用，不可因一篇文章而变得“只见树木不见森林”。

Oolong has been shown to have protective effects on the heart. 原文图片©

Heart disease

先说预防心脏病

Researchers in China studied the relationship between drinking oolong tea and cholesterol levels, as high cholesterol levels can be associated with an increased risk for heart disease. They found that people who drank at least 10 ounces of oolong tea per week had lower risks of having high total cholesterol, triglyceride, and LDL or "bad" cholesterol levels. The same was also true of people who drank similar amounts of green and black teas. People who had been consuming oolong tea for the longest time had lower total cholesterol, triglyceride, and LDL cholesterol levels.

中国的医学研究者发现，乌龙茶对改变胆固醇含量的影响很大；因为胆固醇含量是诱发心脏疾病的重要因素之一，胆固醇含量过高可增加心脏病发病风险。每周饮用10盎司（约300毫升）乌龙茶，有助于降低胆固醇，甘油酸三脂和LDL(低密度胆固醇，或叫“坏”胆固醇，其含量越高，对人体健康越不利)含量过高的风险。常饮绿茶和红茶也能起到同样的保健作用。常饮乌龙茶的爱茶人，胆固醇、甘油酸三脂和LDL总含量低，已是不争的事实。

In another study, Japanese men and women were studied for the impact of consuming coffee, green tea, black tea, and oolong tea on their risk of heart disease. Researchers found that men who drank 1 or more cups of oolong tea per day had a lower risk of heart disease.

日本人则将研究对象分性别进行研究，发现在常饮咖啡、绿茶、红茶和乌龙茶的人群中，乌龙茶对男性大有裨益；男性常饮乌龙茶，有助于降低患心脏病的风险。

Weight loss

再说减肥“功效”

A study in mice showed that the animals receiving oolong tea extract while being fed a high fat, high sugar diet, gained less abdominal fat than mice on the same diet that did not receive the tea extract. Green tea and black tea extracts also resulted in less abdominal fat gain. The mice that received the green tea extract also consumed fewer calories. A study in overweight and obese Chinese adults looked at the effect of oolong tea consumption on body weight. Study participants drank 300 milliliters (mL) of oolong tea four times per day. After 6 weeks, more than half of the participants had lost more than 1 kilogram.

这一研究成果是在“小白鼠”身上实践得来——给白白胖胖的老鼠喂食乌龙茶提取物，结果解决了它们的“小肚腩”难题。绿茶和红茶提取物同样也能阻止小肚腩“暴长”。中国研究人员因此将这一成果实践到成年肥胖者身上，发现效果真是杠杠的。参与研究的肥胖症患者日饮四次乌龙茶300毫升，六周后奇迹出现了，过半数的胖子甩掉了1公斤多的肥肉！

Cancer

预防癌症

Researchers in Taiwan examined the association between drinking tea and the risk of head and neck or throat cancer. Each cup of oolong tea consumed per day equated to a 4 percent lower risk, but the result was not significant. Each cup of green tea consumed per day equated to a 6 percent lower risk for head and neck cancer, which was more significant. Another study in Chinese women found that drinking green, black, or oolong tea was linked to a decreased risk of ovarian cancer. However, according to the National Cancer Institute, there is not currently enough research to say for certain that drinking tea decreases cancer risk.

中国台湾的研究人员就饮茶对降低头部和颈部或喉癌患病风险进行了研究，发现日饮乌龙茶对降低癌症患病风险作用不是十分明显，而绿茶的效果则要更明显一些。另一项针对女性饮茶“防癌”的研究发现，女性常饮绿茶、红茶或乌龙茶，有助于降低患卵巢癌的风险。可是呢，国家癌症研究所的相关砖家对此拍了一砖，目前没有充分的研究证明饮茶有助于降低患癌风险。

Diabetes

预防糖尿病

Some studies have shown that drinking 3 or more cups of tea per day is associated with a lower risk of type 2 diabetes. However, studies specifically looking at oolong tea have had varied results. In one study, healthy men drank almost 6 cups per day of oolong tea. At different times, they drank oolong tea that contained supplemental antioxidants, which were in the form of catechins or polyphenols. Each of the teas was consumed for 5 days. Researchers found that drinking oolong tea did not improve blood sugar or insulin levels. Interestingly, one study found that working men who drank 2 or more cups of oolong tea per day had a higher risk of developing diabetes than men who consumed 1 cup of oolong tea per day or no oolong tea.

某些研究证明，日饮三杯或三杯以上茶，有助于降低患T-2糖尿病（type 2[T-2]糖尿病病因复杂，从基因遗传到后天因素无所不包，这种病在西方很常见，甚至有在青少年人群中蔓延的趋势，关键是要控制体重！少摄入糖！总归来说病因太专业了，江湖郎中解释不清楚。）当然，本文主角是乌龙茶，那么研究人员对乌龙茶的研究就更为具体。有一项研究似乎是“唱反调”的，常饮乌龙茶并不会提高血糖或胰岛素含量，但有些人喝了茶反倒出了毛病——2小杯就可能诱发糖尿病——简直有些说不过去。

Dental health

预防蛀牙

Fluoride is an element that is often added to drinking water, toothpaste, and mouthwash to help prevent dental cavities. Tea leaves naturally contain fluoride, so drinking oolong tea could help prevent cavities. Excess fluoride can be harmful, but drinking less than 1 liter of oolong tea per day is safe for most adults.

氟化物是预防蛀牙的主要物质，常用来加入饮用水、牙膏和漱口水中。茶叶中就含有天然的氟化物，因此说饮用乌龙茶（其他茶类也一样）可有效预防蛀牙。摄入过量氟化物反倒有害，但对成年人来说，日饮1升左右的乌龙茶，其中氟化物的含量不值得大惊小怪。

Other possible benefits:

好处多多，意犹未尽

While there is not enough current research to support the following benefits, drinking tea has also been associated with:

healthier gut bacteria；lower risk of Alzheimer's disease；lower risk of Parkinson's disease；natural defense from the sun's ultraviolet rays；stronger bones.

Studies that examined long-term consumption of oolong tea showed the greatest results. Although it is not a cure for any condition, drinking tea regularly appears to have numerous health benefits.

还有一些饮茶的好处，没有砖家拍板，但值得一看：

更加健康的肠道细菌；降低阿尔兹海默症患病风险；降低帕金森综合症患病风险；预防紫外线作用；强化骨骼。

常饮乌龙茶的益处多多，一两句话说不清楚，有些砖家拍板，有些砖家拍砖，意见不一，但总归来说，饮茶好处多，保不齐也有坏处。

Risks and considerations

茶虽好，可不要贪杯哟！

Although oolong tea contains less caffeine than coffee, people who are sensitive to caffeine should still limit their intake. Tea can decrease the amount of iron absorbed from plant foods. Also, some researchers found that young children who drank tea were more likely to have lower iron levels. It may, therefore, be better to drink tea outside of meals to limit its impact on iron absorption. When consumed together at meals, eating foods rich in vitamin C can increase the amount of iron absorbed from plant foods.

乌龙茶的咖啡因含量很低，但对咖啡因敏感的人群最好控制住自己。茶能够降低素食中铁元素的吸收，有些研究人员还发现，小朋友喝茶甚至会导致缺铁症状。用餐时尽量避免喝茶，非喝不可的话，尽量同富含维生素C的食物一起，这样就有助于铁元素的吸收了。

Takeaway message

友情提醒矫情者

Tea is a healthy beverage that has been consumed by people around the world for centuries. Oolong tea is a lesser known variety that may also provide health benefits. However, from some of the research reviewed above, drinking green tea may offer the most health advantages. Bottled tea contains smaller amounts of beneficial polyphenols and may have excessive amounts of added sugar. If buying bottled teas, it may be better to look for ones that are unsweetened or to brew tea at home and sweeten it with a small amount of honey. Oolong tea should be steeped for as long as possible to increase flavonoids, and people can consume 2-3 cups per day.

众所周知，茶是健康饮品，西方人饮茶的习惯至今也有好几个世纪了。乌龙茶虽然名气不大，但常饮有益健康是不争的事实。世间万物，阴阳两面，有好就有坏，不可以偏概全，也不可一头扎入乌龙茶中不可自拔。市面上常见的瓶装乌龙茶饮品，其有效成分肯定比原味乌龙茶差了很多，而且还要注意是否含糖等等；含有少量蜂蜜的乌龙茶饮品倒是无关紧要。乌龙茶是耐泡茶，沸水冲泡以增加类黄酮成分，建议日饮2-3杯为好。

Too much oolong can affect the absorption of iron into the blood. 原文配图

结语：茶虽是“百饮之宗”，但在中国，我们不鼓励小朋友喝茶！酒喝多了脸红，茶喝多了脸黄——你越来越“黄”，不能怨茶，就怨你贪杯。

大家看乌龙茶的英文名就知道，这是地道的中国货。乌龙茶需用沸水冲泡，喝完泡好的再续水泡新茶才不会影响口感；头泡叫“洗茶”或“醒茶”，不但自己不能喝，更不能倒给客人喝——这是常识，有说法也有讲究，此处不啰嗦。中国人养生顺应“天意”，乌龙茶等青茶是半发酵茶，因顺应“天时”而很适合秋季饮用，降火解困，除油解腻。中国最好的乌龙茶是铁观音和大红袍，原产地中国福建，后传入台湾岛，因此善饮乌龙茶者，非闽人和台湾岛人莫属。鬼佬常说中国人有强烈的民族意识和“大中华思想”，因此原文中把台湾岛说得好像是个什么神奇的区域似的，我有点嫌弃的意思；我就是有这种意识和思想的中国人——甭管台湾岛跟我八竿子打着打不着。姥姥（京腔儿），台湾岛再怎么嘚瑟，它始终跟大陆是打断了骨头连着筋的！台湾岛的高山乌龙茶，说到底还是福建岩茶的延伸。这篇文字原文是洋人的，一看就不大懂茶，只是为乌龙茶做了个简单的小广告，我们不对此品头论足；洋人不懂，我们不怪。这也难怪，中国是茶的故乡，这是地球人都知道的事实。别看岛国人茶道整得三迷五道的，再怎么说成是岛国文化，它毕竟没有《茶经》可拿出来炫耀！但我们需要感谢岛国人，茶道的传承和发扬，得亏了人家。茶道现在也是世界的，不分民族和种族，洋人都知道tea ceremony是个啥玩意儿。

此处推荐几本跟茶有关的著作，感兴趣的朋友可自行一看。《茶经》绕不过去，虽然专业还文言，但这是“根儿”——茶者，南方之嘉木也......野者上，园者次......不知道这些无所谓，关键你不能白喝茶，喝得有文化叫“品”或“饮”，喝得没文化叫“灌”或“牛饮”，茶人和水奴之间有区别，境界完全不同。让人不爽的是，现在多数茶叶都是“园者”，却卖得死贵，一般人真喝不起。《茶事遍路》，日籍华人大师代表作，内容饱满，看起来不枯燥。《南方有嘉木》，王旭峰老师著作，有头有尾，茅盾文学奖获奖作品；还有《茶语者》，其实也好看。日本评论家冈仓天心《茶之书》，据说原著是英文写成的，狠夸东方思想。当然，中国古今大家的“茶诗”、“茶语”和“茶事”简直不胜枚举，在此只是炫耀一番我个人喜欢的作品。百度一搜，疏而不漏。自行嘚瑟去吧！

这不是结束，只是个开始。