Oolong and allergies

It's no surprise to anyone that I have allergies. :oP I heard from my friend Greta ( Rexphiles ) that oolong tea has been shown to help people suffering from eczema - common among severe allergy sufferers like Greta and I.  She and her family have been drinking oolong for some time now and has enjoyed the benefits of reduced flareups. So I gotta at least try it, right?!

Here is the article that got her to seriously consider oolong... and now me too! Oolong Tea for Eczema

I don't think of myself as a tea drinker so I had no idea which types I might prefer. I ended up ordering a sample pack from Rishi to give it a go. It was a good choice because it gave me several basics: Wuyi, Jade, Plum and Iron Goddess of Mercy (what a great name!). I actually enjoyed them all, but found the Iron Goddess a tiny bit strong for my taste. My favorite was the Jade.

Last weekend, Greta and I had a 'girls day' including a visit to Teavana where she taught me a bit more about the types available and reminded me that you can get several brewings out of the same leaves making it much more economical than you might think. I came home from Teavana with Jasmine and Monkey Picked Oolong. Even better, Greta sent home a few spoonfuls of several of her favorites so I could sample more. YAY!

We tried Sweet Oolong Revolution first because Steve thought it smelled the best - pumpkin and spices, what can I say the man loves his pumpkin pie. It was really nice both hot and cold, we'll be adding this one to our list for future purchases. We moved on to Monkey Picked Oolong.  It is a fantastic 'basic' tea without a lot of added flavors.  *thumbs up*  We tried Utopian Jewel which might be just a little too fruity for me - it might be the raspberry, or it might be the mildly serious allergic reaction I had later.  Sadly, we won't be repeating Utopian Jewel.

Next was Jasmine day, and this is going to be one of my favorites.  I did good in choosing it with the Monkey Picked for my first Teavana purchases! 

Then we tried Rishi's Plum Oolong which I like better cold than hot (the last third of the hot cup got strangely bitter) and Teavana's Kamiya Papaya Oolong.  While we both liked the flavor of the Kamiya, I broke out in a rash, so while not as serious as the Utopian reaction, one I probably won't want to repeat.  I may get more for Steve though because he really liked it.

So far, I haven't noticed many effects other than my allergic reactions... but since they have only been to certain blends, I imagine it's a flavor ingredient thing and not a tea thing.  Watch this space as we work our way through our samples, and I will keep you posted on the effects!