The so-called new tea refers to the tea leaves processed from the first few batches of fresh leaves picked from tea trees in the spring of the current year. To pursue tenderness, some tea farmers start picking tea before the Qingming Festival, which is called Mingqian tea; tea picked before the Rain Water solar term is called Yuqian tea. Some consumers take pleasure in tasting new tea and rush to buy Mingqian and Yuqian tea. In fact, the view that "the fresher the tea, the better" is a misunderstanding. Not all teas are better when fresher; Pu'er tea and dark tea improve with age, while green tea is typically sought after for its freshness, but even green tea does not need to be consumed immediately after picking.

Overly fresh tea is not suitable for drinking. Many people believe that the fresher the tea, the better, and that tea leaves just picked from the tree are the best. Actually, this understanding is incorrect.

From a nutritional perspective, the freshest tea may not necessarily have the best nutritional content. This is because so-called new tea refers to leaves picked less than a month ago. These leaves have not been stored for a period, so some substances that may have adverse effects on the body, such as polyphenols, alcohols, and aldehydes, have not been fully oxidized. Drinking new tea for an extended period may lead to uncomfortable reactions like diarrhea and bloating. Overly fresh tea is even worse for patients, such as those with gastric acid deficiency or elderly patients with chronic gastric ulcers. These individuals are particularly unsuited to drinking new tea. New tea can irritate their gastric mucosa, cause gastrointestinal discomfort, and even worsen their condition.

The freshest tea leaves may not have the best nutritional content because leaves picked less than a month ago have not been stored for a period and contain substances that can adversely affect the body, such as polyphenols, alcohols, and aldehydes, which have not been fully oxidized. Drinking new tea for a long time may cause adverse reactions like diarrhea and bloating. Overly fresh tea is even worse for patients, such as those with gastric acid deficiency or elderly patients with chronic gastric ulcers, who are particularly unsuited to drinking new tea. New tea can irritate their gastric mucosa, cause gastrointestinal discomfort, and even worsen their condition. Experts believe that generally, new tea bought by consumers should be stored for at least half a month before drinking.