(By Medical Research Center News Service, 04/06/2007) TCM Advisory -- Pu'er is a large leafed tea from the Yunnan province in China and has been famous as a medicinal tea; however, Yunnan province is highly occurred earthquake area, it was very difficult to make Pu'er tea and deliver to the market town in the ancient time. The earliest records of Pu'er tea date back to the Tang Dynasty (618AD-906AD) when it was the favorite tea of the nobleman of this time. Pu'er tea over the centuries has been used as a form of currency in China and an important international trading item. was at one time very well known in northern Canada among the northern native people, who were trading across the Bering Strait.

Pu'er tea derives its name from the market town of Pu'er, where it was originally processed and sold, but it is grown on the Nuoshan Mountains. It is said that the unique taste of Pu'er Tea was developed because it took weeks to transport the tea leaves by horseback to the town to be processed. During this transportation period the tea leaves would begin to ferment in the humidity and release a strong, fragrant aroma, which people found quite pleasant. A special technique of tea fermenting developed and Pu'er was thus created.

The secret of making Pu'er tea has been closely guarded in China for centuries. The tea leaves are collected from growers of a special broad-leaf tea tree, which are said to be related to ancient prehistoric tea trees. The leaves go through two types of fermentation, which gives this tea its unique characteristics; a mild, but distinctively earthy flavour. Pu'er requires a minimum of 10 years to mature and gets only better with age. Pu'er teas are much like fine wines, which become smoother and more balanced with age. Pu'er teas are much lower in tannins than other teas due to the special processing method which it undergoes.

Pu'er tea has been celebrated since the Tang Dynasty (618AD-906AD) for its health benefits and curative powers in certain diseases. Modern medical science has recently shown that the health benefits of Pu'er tea may be more than just Chinese folklore. Since 1970 France, Japan and China have been conducting many scientific studies on Pu'er tea which suggest that it may:

1. Reduce cholesterol in the blood stream
2. Reducing body weight
3. Helping to reduce high blood pressure, heart & liver diseases related to high saturated fat diets
4. Detoxifying the liver
5. Helping prevent intestinal infection, digestive problems and constipation
6. Helping to prevent the formation of cancer cells in the body due to its anti-oxidants

(tcmadvisory.com)