甘之如飴的“毒藥”

Its a staple on menus， from boutique teahouses to Starbucks： green tea. But the brew， which is experiencing a resurgence of popularity， once fell out of favor in the West.

從精品茶館到星巴克，綠茶都是菜單上的基本選項。不過這種強勢回歸的沖泡飲品曾經并不怎么受西方人待見。

Green tea is believed to have originated in China millennia ago， where it was recognized for its health benefits. And scientists continue to discover new uses for the beverage. Some studies suggest it can help reduce cholesterol， fight against cavities and perhaps even protect against cancer.

相傳綠茶幾千年前發源于中國，在中國它被稱為健康食品。科學家也不斷地發現它的新功效。有研究顯示，綠茶能降低膽固醇、預防蛀牙，甚至還有可能抗癌。

Bolstered by the health food craze， green tea sales are currently soaring. The Tea Association of the USA reports that green tea sales jumped more than 60 percent in the last decade. And in Canada， government data shows that profits for green tea imports more than quadrupled.

在健康食品風潮的助推下，現在綠茶的銷量也一路走高。美國茶葉協會報道稱，過去十年間，綠茶的銷量增長了60%。加拿大政府的數據顯示該國綠茶進口盈利增長至四倍多。

Nowadays， green tea seems to be everywhere. In shops， you can buy green tea leaves prepared in a myriad of ways： fried， aged， powdered or steamed.

現在，綠茶隨處可見。你可以在商店買到各種工藝加工的茶葉：烘炒的、陳化的、粉末化的或蒸煮的。

The irony is， despite green teas healthy reputation， the drink was once condemned as dangerous. Where did this non-sense come from？ Blame the Victorians， of course.

諷刺的是，盡管綠茶以健康聞名，它曾經卻被誤認為是危險食品。這種謬論從何而來？罪魁禍首當然是維多利亞時代。

The Victorians lived in a period of English history around Queen Victorias reign， in the 19th century. Thats when some of the silliest theories about green tea arose.

維多利亞時代指19世紀英國歷史上維多利亞女王統治的時期。有關綠茶最愚蠢的謠言也發源于此。

One 1882 book described bizarre experiments to illustrate the perils of green tea. Apply a dose of green tea below a frogs abdomen， and you could cause paralysis in its hind legs， the book claimed. And injecting the beverage into a dog would cause it to lose control of its bladder， legs and tail.

1882年的一本書描述了一個證明綠茶有毒的奇葩實驗。該書稱，將一定劑量的綠茶涂抹在青蛙的腹部會導致它的后肢癱瘓。給一只狗體內注入綠茶會造成它膀胱、四肢和尾巴失控。

The book went so far as to allege that green tea could kill someone， if it were applied to the sciatic nerve.

該書還聳人聽聞地宣稱如果坐骨神經感染了綠茶，人就會死。

At the time， a green tea panic was sweeping England. Even Charlotte Bronte， an English literary icon， refused to touch the drink， fearing its diabolical effects would have on her nerves.

當時的綠茶恐懼席卷了整個英國。連英國文學巨匠夏洛蒂·勃朗特都不敢觸摸它，因為擔心它致命的效果會影響自己的神經系統。

Some of the fear was well founded， though. English consumers preferred brighter leaves， over dull olive-colored ones. As a result， tea vendors would artificially dye their products， using anything at their disposal—including poisons like “Prussian blue” cyanide.

不過有些擔心也并非毫無依據。和橄欖色的深綠相比，英國消費者更偏愛顏色鮮艷的茶葉。結果就是茶商用一些他們可以獲得的化學制劑，包括有毒的“普魯士藍”氰化物，給茶葉人工染色。

Even today， mixing green tea with chemicals remains a problem. British Medical Journal once published an article about a 16-year-old teenager who contracted a virus after drinking contaminated green tea.

時至今日，綠茶中混合的化學物質仍然是個問題。《英國醫學雜志》曾刊登過一篇文章，講的是一個16歲青少年在喝了被污染的綠茶后感染病毒的事情。

But those rare instances arent stopping Westerners from raising their pinky fingers in salute to green tea and all its nutritional virtues.

不過這些罕見的事例并沒有降低西方人對綠茶及其營養價值的狂熱崇拜。