At dawn, drinking a cup of hot tea while I scan for hot news from the morning newspaper has become an integral part of my life. Both go hand in hand and I really cannot think of tea without the morning paper or vice versa. I suppose most of us have such strong liking for tea, at least in this part of Asia where drinking tea is most common.

A visit to Munnar Hill Station provided me the much needed respite from the tropical climate of Kerala, in the south of India. Also the misty hill tops and its slopes layered with ever green tea plantation left a lasting impression on me.

After visiting the Kanan Deven Tea Museum where the entire process of tea making was demonstrated to visitors, it helped me enrich my knowledge about tea. This includes the cumbersome process of growing and manufacturing tea and most importantly the health benefits derived from drinking tea. Since then I have become an ardent tea drinker.

The tea plant has a life span of nearly 100 years. If allowed to grow freely it can attain a height of 12 to 15 meters. But it is pruned to knee height to facilitate easy plucking. The scientific name of tea is Camellia sinensis which was named after a Moravian Jesuit Rev. George Joseph Camellus (1661-1706).

He first wrote about these wonder plants of Asian origin. Tea is classified into three major types -- Camellia sinensis (the Chinese variety), Camellia assamica (the Indian Assam variety) and Camellia assamica, sub species lasiocalyx (the Cambodian variety).

The word tea originated from T’e in Amoy or Fukien dialect and ‘Cha’ from Cantonese dialect in China. Some believe that it was derived from Sanskrit.

The legends say that Emperor Shen Nung, known as a divine healer and an expert in botanical and agro-practice, discovered tea by accident. He had kept a boiling water kettle in the open underneath a tree and few of its leaves fell into the kettle, thereby giving the boiling water both colour and a unique flavor. Shen Nung realized the therapeutic values of these magical tea leaves and later propagated its usage.

Japanese legend ascribes tea origin to an Indian hermit called Bodhidharma or Daruma (as he is known in Japan). Once this avowed ascetic fell asleep while he was meditating and this enraged him. He tore off his eyelids and threw them away in disgust. Out of the discarded eyelids grew a plant. Later, it was found that the leaves possess a property that wards off sleep and drowsiness.

Tea is produced in 35 countries, of which India is one of the largest producers in the world. India accounts for 28 percent of tea production followed by China (26 percent), Sri Lanka (9 percent) and Kenya (9 percent).

Tea cultivation was first introduced by the British-owned East India Company in Assam in India as early as 1778. Later it spread to other regions as well in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Himachal Pradesh.

Tea is a rich source of flavonals, which are a building blocks of antioxidants, and hence has many health benefits. Drinking green tea is good in controlling cardiovascular disease and cancer and has a role in dental health as well as on renal function and antimicrobial effects.

According to the UK tea council’s latest research, drinking tea helps maintain a healthy lifestyle because of its antioxidants, hydrating properties, caffeine and fluoride found means that you never feel guilty about reaching for the teapot.

How about toasting to one's health with a cup of tea?

                                                                                                                -  Rajen Nair

                                                                                                          (Published in OhMyNews)