Each type of tea has different benefits. When drinking tea, it's important to understand its effects and choose according to your needs to promote health. Additionally, some teas should not be consumed together, so extra caution is required.
Green tea and goji berries can each be brewed with hot water separately, offering significant health benefits. However, many people combine them for convenience, which is not advisable. Mixing green tea and goji berries causes them to interact, diminishing their medicinal properties and rendering the drink ineffective.
Green tea contains high levels of tannic acid, which has a binding and adsorbing effect. It can adsorb trace elements from goji berries, forming substances that are difficult for the body to absorb. Even in small quantities, such as in popular eight-treasure tea blends, combining green tea and goji berries is not ideal for frequent consumption.
Goji berries are sweet and neutral in nature. In traditional Chinese medicine, they are used to treat liver and kidney deficiencies, dizziness, blurred vision, fatigue, dry cough, diabetes, and nocturnal emissions. Goji berries are highly effective in boosting vitality and reducing fatigue. However, due to their strong warming properties, individuals with high blood pressure, excessive irritability, or those who consume large amounts of meat (leading to flushed faces) should avoid them. On the other hand, people with weak constitutions, frequent colds, or poor immunity can benefit from daily consumption.
Green tea (e.g., West Lake Longjing, Biluochun) is a non-fermented bud tea with tender leaves. Therefore, the brewing temperature should not be too high, ideally between 70–90°C. The recommended tea-to-water ratio is 1/5 to 1/8 of the container's volume. The first infusion, called "opening the aroma," is for rinsing the tea and warming the cup and should not be consumed. The second infusion should steep for 30 seconds, the third for 40 seconds, and so on. Generally, green tea can be brewed 3–5 times. It has a refreshing taste and offers benefits such as clearing heat, reducing internal heat, sharpening the mind, improving vision, and protecting against computer radiation.
Given their properties, green tea and goji berries are not suitable for brewing together. Green tea has a cooling effect, helping to clear heat and improve alertness, while goji berries strongly warm the body.