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Oolong Tea for Weight Loss?

Chinese researchers claim that "the polyphenol compound in tea - especially Oolong tea - can help obese people battle the bulge."

The research was part of a 5 year study looking at genetic causes of obesity.

Oolong (or wulong) tea sits somewhere between green and black tea in terms of fermentation. Black tea is fermented, Green Tea is unfermented, Oolong is semi-fermented.

Unfortunately the above research does not appear (yet) in an English medical journal - so we cannot delve into the details.

There is, however, a large body of research surrounding tea, - in particular its anti-oxidant properties. The Oolong Tea website points to various studies showing a possible connection between tea drinking and fat metabolism.

Polyphenol is a type of antioxidant found in fruits and vegetables like blackberries, cherries, grapes, cabbage, broccoli, and celery, and other plant foods, including red wine, chocolate, tea, olive oil, and whole grains.

In many ways the health claims are similar to that of Green Tea - a healthy drink to be sure - but no miracle weight loss cure. I suspect that you would also need to be drinking considerable amounts of the tea to obtain any benefit, which flies in the face of tradition. Oolong tea is typically enjoyed slowly.

So it is unlikely we'll see an Oolong tea craze anytime soon, especially since Oolong tea accounts for less than 2% percent of the world's tea production; black tea (78%) and green tea (20%) are most the popular.

Also, black tea and green tea are consumed in many parts of the world, such as Western countries, the Middle East, South Asia, China, and Japan, where as Oolong tea is mostly limited to southeastern China.

But if you drink Oolong tea, your best bet is to drink tea without milk, and avoid all the ready-to-drink tea and sugar mixes that are available.

Image credit: Br3nda

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37 Comments

Michael

I just saw a Reuters video clip about a 200 pound boy whose parents may lose custody of him because of charges of neglect (because they let him gain so much weight). Among other things, they must be neglecting to feed him enough oolong tea.

ali

i love oolong, but i agree with you, it isn't a miracle weight loss drug at all. it just tastes good! :)

Quito

This is one of the articles the Oolong tea website points to, which is about the effect of the polyphenols. Of the flavonols in black and green tea (see this and this if it opens for you) there are better sources - the amount in one serving of tea is a bit less than what you get in one serving of broccoli, and coffee is brimming with different polyphenols, as are soybeans. This just emphasizes Jim's point above:

In many ways the health claims are similar to that of Green Tea - a healthy drink to be sure - but no miracle weight loss cure. I suspect that you would also need to be drinking considerable amounts of the tea to obtain any benefit.

In any case, the description of the series - rats being fed high-fat diets and putting on weight - on the Oolong Tea site is quite accurate (Shocking to a jaded person like me).

Crabby McSlacker

Actually, I just saw another study (black tea, though, not green or oolong) that said that having milk with tea didn't lessen the antioxidant levels in the bloodstream. Which was a relief to me, since I like my tea with milk. (It also gave some guidance on how long you need to brew tea for maximum antioxidant benefits).

Not sure how to do links down here, but the study's in the "tea as cancer-fighter" post on my blog from a couple days ago, if you want to click on my user name.

koco

I was reading on Oolong tea and ran across your blog (Crabby McsSlacker). I am not at all computer literiate so didnt know what a blog was and still dont(ha hA) but there was something saying "tea as a cancer fighter" well I clicked in and found your "blog" pretty amusing but I still didnt see anything on tea as cancer fighter can u help me with that and PLEASE explain to me what is a blog.Thanks

Loki

I looked into oolong and weight loss after seeing all the internet ads about drinking oolong tea and loosing 20 lbs in one month. Much of what these sites said took snippets of fact and turned them to their advantage.

For those that care, here is a well balanced article I found on Oolong Tea and Weight Loss:

http://www.teasetc.com/tea/article.asp?ID=1&Name=Oolong+Tea+and+Weight+Loss

I love oolong teas and incorporate them into a healthy life style - guess what? I'm losing weight!!

Eezie weezy

how many times u drink oolong tea per day to make you lose weight?

Lila

Umm...are all oolong tea work in weight lost...well...because oolong tea comes in different box designs...so I wanted to know if all oolong tea still works...

Michelle

"in particular it's anti-oxidant properties"

The possessive form of "it" is

ITS

No apostrophe! "It's" means it is. Now I don't know if I can trust the information provided by this writer since his intelligence is questionable. This error is as bad as the infamous "your so funny" mistake.

We are getting fatter and more stupid every day.

Quito

Michelle, are you new here? (If so, welcome!)

You missed the classic diet-blog misspelling in Loki's posting:

...about drinking oolong tea and loosing 20 lbs in one month...

God help me, after reading this blog for a few months, I find "loose weight" looks pretty good...

Jim

Michelle said:
"in particular it's anti-oxidant properties"[...]

Fixed. A shocking mistake. You should ask for a refund. Reply

Zhi Tea

And sometimes it's a good weight loss helper because it aids in relaxation after a good run. :)

I think we all understand that to effectively lose weight we need to eat right and exercise more. Many of the studies into Oolong the show weight loss effects are done with the tea being used in conjunction with other efforts. It isn't a some kind of wonder drug to lose 20lbs in a week.

I'm going to post a link here (moderator, you're welcome to remove it if you feel it necessary but I'm not trying to be spammy). We're offering free samples of Oolong tea on our site including shipping (to the US only though). You don't have to buy anything and you don't have to leave us your payment details (basically, you're not signing up for anything or agreeing to have more shipped to you). You can order it off our site at http://www.zhitea.com/TeaSampleProgram/ChooseSampleTea.aspx. You can only order one kind though. :)

Note: on the page there's a writeup about a free sample with every order. We're removing that but for now it's there - that's a different promotion and not what you're signing up for as you'll see while you're there. :)

rollingrok

i wonder why people are so septic about oolong tea?they keep on saying lies
i have been driking oolong tea for a month now...i have lost enough weight...i am so happy about that what ever people are saying...we can only find out the truth just by tryin oolong tea...not by reading lies

agvallejos

I used the tea for a period of 2.5 months and lost 18 pounds. Yes, during this time I also incorporated walking for 40 minutes and changed my eating habits. I didn't go on a strict diet...just watched what I ate and ate less. But I attribute my weight loss to drinking the 3-5 cups of oolang tea a day. It seemed to curve my appetite.

agvallejos

R Blaine

Iam very curious about this oolong tea, so I've ordered a so called free sample (just s/h). I
request an address to send b4 & after pictures. I am
230 lbs. if I even get to 200 by 1st of the year. I want to be a "Success Story". Oh I will play tennis
3 times a week as a part of the exercise program.
Most people just want to see some realistic "loss"
first, instead of "so extreme loss" you can't be-
lieve it. Well you get the picture-E-mail address!
Tuni

Tarnz

Hi I'm new to oolong tea and cant read the instructions on the box. From wot i have read on here u drink it twice a day(can u have more?). Can u add milk or is it better straight? How long do u leave it to stand b4 drinking it? Is it better in a tea bag or just the leaf?Is there anything else i need to know
Cheers Tarnz

texmexgal

You can get oolong tea at just about any decent grocery store, and health food stores. There's no need to pay more than about $4 for a normal size box of bags, priced like other teas at the supermarket. I got organic oolong bags for $4.29 at my nearby heatlh food store. At that price, who needs to find "samples" when we can enjoy a box for less than most places charge for shipping? Tea is extremely light (about an ounce per box), they're making profit just on the shipping. While oolong tea has awesome beneifts, please don't fall prey to the high priced schemes that online sellers try to sell you. Below is the link of the shop I bought mine at.

texmexgal

oops... it didnt show ...here it is... I spaced the words out to reduce spam potential.

www.the health hut.com

miss m

Do not, I repeat do not spend an arm and a leg on this Wu Yi crap. Go to an Asian grocery store, they are everywhere. I got my box yesterday, and it cost me $1.99! They even threw in a free tea cup! You are supposed to drink, technically, two cups a day. But I suspect other chronic dieters will be guzzling it all day the way they did the green tea craze when it first came on the scene. I just started yesterday, if this works at all, the miracle would be on me, because nothing ever works long term on me. So folks, miss m will let you know; scam or miracle....one word of warning, I have low blood sugar issues from time to time, and I noticed yesterday that once I drank it, it felt like I hadn't eaten for four hours in my stomach, as if though it had burned up my calories quickly, even though I was not that active yesterday, and I had a stable breakfast. However, after my lunch, I drank another cup, and felt like it had burned up those calories. And, I wasn't as hungry as usual. miss m

Mrd. Ged's in Alberta

I was wondering if you have kept up drinking the oolong tea you purchased and how you are doing with it. I would love to hear from you.

Thank you :)

I felt the same way as soon as I took my first 3 cups yesterday. My appetite was suppressed immediately and did eat less.

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