Tea polyphenols are the most important components in tea, because they have the most significant impact on the quality of the tea brew.

Versatile Flavors of Tea Polyphenols

The flavor of tea brew is determined by its internal components, among which tea polyphenols are the most abundant. Tea polyphenols are not a single substance; they are composed of thirty to forty different monomers. Among them, catechins are the most abundant. Catechin monomers are astringent, giving the tea brew a puckering sensation. However, they are very prone to oxidation and polymerization: when catechins oxidize into theaflavins, the astringency weakens; when further oxidized into thearubigins, the tea brew becomes sweet; and when oxidized into theabrownins, the flavor becomes less distinct but the tea brew becomes more mellow. When drinking tea, especially black tea, you can roughly judge the flavor of the tea brew by its color and the selection of tea leaves.

"Mistress" Scavenger

It is often said that drinking tea can delay aging because tea polyphenols can scavenge free radicals. So, what are free radicals? To give a simple example, free radicals are like "mistresses." Electrons need to pair up to be stable; when a pair of electrons is split into two "single" electrons, they become free radicals. Free radicals are highly active, going around flirting and seeking a partner to become stable. In this process, normal cells in our body can be damaged, leading to problems such as tumors, cardiovascular diseases, and aging. Tea polyphenols can combine with free radicals before they cause harm and be excreted from the body, thus achieving the effect of eliminating free radicals. This is also why tea is called the "panacea for all diseases."