''Camellia ptilophylla'', also called the cocoa tea plant (not to be confused with the chocolate plant ''

Theobroma cacao ''Theobroma cacao'', also called the cacao tree and the cocoa tree, is a small ( tall) evergreen tree in the family Malvaceae. Its seeds, cocoa beans, are used to make chocolate liquor, cocoa solids, cocoa butter and chocolate. The largest ...

''), is a species of ''

Camellia ''Camellia'' (pronounced or ) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. They are found in eastern and southern Asia, from the Himalayas east to Japan and Indonesia. There are more than 220 described species, with some controvers ...

'' plant found in Southern Asia. It has insignificant levels of naturally occurring

caffeine Caffeine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant of the methylxanthine class. It is mainly used recreationally as a cognitive enhancer, increasing alertness and attentional performance. Caffeine acts by blocking binding of adenosine t ...

, unlike other varieties of the plant used to make

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and north ...

History

For many years, it has been widely consumed by local inhabitants in the Longmen area of

Guangdong Province Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...

of China but has only started attracting scientific interest since 1988. It was first scientifically documented in the 1980s.

Preparation for tea

A recommendation for consuming cocoa tea is like steeping most other teas, in which to infuse tea leaves with boiling water for 3 min. The aroma profile of Cocoa tea is different from the traditional green tea, but the difference between oolong Cocoa tea and traditional oolong tea is not. For instance, fruity, white peach-like and floral, orchid-like and dry-fruit were stronger in the Cocoa tea infusion, while roasted, fresh tree-like and sweet, sugar-like were stronger in the traditional oolong tea, also known as Tie guan yin.

Health Benefits

Studies have shown that green tea has positive health effects. However, the presence of caffeine in other varieties of tea plant has certain limitations. Therefore, this presents the idea that dietary cocoa tea might be of therapeutic value. For example, a study was conducted to see if it could provide a safer option for patients with diet-induced metabolic syndrome.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q11126720 ptilophylla