Tea, the subject of this wiki, is a term primarily referring to a beverage made by using the leaves of the plant Camellia sinensis which have been dried and (usually) oxidized, shredded or pulverized, and soaked in hot water (a process called steeping) to extract soluble ingredients.
The term is also applied (often with the adjective "herbal") to denote other similar beverages produced by steeping various products of plant origin (leaves, seeds, etc.) in hot water in a similar manner. Some people, however, prefer not to use the term "tea" for these and refer to such beverages as tisanes.
For the health effects of tea see Potential effects of tea on health.
