The Benefits of Tea

So, I may never develop a taste for sweet tea, but I'm really trying to like hot tea. Apparently it's good for you, and hey, anything is better than water in my book.

Introduction

Photocredit: Unsplash.com/Morgan Sessions

Despite being from the south, where people practically bleed sweet tea, I've always hated tea. Cold, hot, sweetened, unsweetened; it all tasted bad to me. Well, since I'm trying to up my water intake and I've given up soda, I'm really struggling to find something I actually enjoy drinking. After a few friends came over and all of them wanted hot tea, I decided to give it another go. I didn't hate it, but I'm not sure I love it either...

Since tea is supposed to be good for you, I decided to do some research on the benefits of tea—I also hope the knowledge will make me like it more. There are quite a few mentioned on the internet, but I picked the 5 that I thought were the most interesting or important. As always, references are at the bottom in case you want to do some more digging.

Benefits of Tea

Hydration

Obviously, my goal is to be hydrated in a healthy but satisfying manner. We know there's water, but water is pretty boring. Tea provides a little flavor, without the excessive sugar, caffeine, acid (which is bad for your teeth), etc. that many other beverages include.[9]

Antioxidants & Weight Loss

Antioxidants are important to a healthy diet, even though it's not conclusive if they prevent diseases.[11] What's more, according to Time Magazine, the antioxidants found in green tea increase the body's ability to absorb fat as fuel. That can mean weight loss and improved muscle endurance![1][9]

Lower Risk of Heart Attack

Tea apparently lowers your risk of heart attack.[1][9]

Less Caffeine

My mom used to get on me about the amount of caffeine I drank, despite the fact that she consumes way more caffeine than I ever did. Nonetheless, most sources suggest the maximum amount of caffeine a person can consume per day without negative health consequences to their health is about 400mg. That's about 4 cups of coffee or a little more than 11 cans of Coke.[4][5] Someone even died from consuming too much caffeine (and from my home state at that)![4]

Of course, with Coca-Cola reporting that one 12oz can only contains 34mg of caffeine—a 20oz bottle would then contain about 56mg—soda doesn't seem like much of a threat on the caffeine front. However, Starbucks' Pike Place Roast contains 410mg of caffeine by itself!

There's also the fact that caffeine is addictive. While it may be safe to consume a large quantity of caffeine, I think it's unhealthy to be addicted to it. 1 Corinthians 6:12 reminds us that just because we can do something doesn't mean we should, and that we shouldn't let things control us, which is exactly what addiction does. You can actually become addicted to caffeine just by consuming it consistently; it doesn't matter if you drink 34mg or 400mg, if you consume the same 34mg a day, it will effect how your brain functions and you run the risk of becoming addicted.[7]

While some tea does have caffeine, most varieties don't and those that do have much less caffeine than coffee or soda.[1] 35mg30-40mg

Type of Tea	Estimated mg of Caffeine per 8oz[8]
Herbal Tea	0mg
White Tea	10-15mg
Green Tea	30-35mg
Oolong Tea	30-50mg
Black Tea	40-60mg
Yerba Maté
Pu'erh

Bone Health

There's a special type of tea, brewed from a Moringa plant, that actually provides more calcium than milk. This tea is supposed to be really good for bone health, possibly preventing bone loss.[1] Perhaps there will soon be a study on whether Moringa tea reduces the risk of osteoporosis. As it is, Google Scholar lists plenty of study that show promise of some benefits of the plant.[1][10]

A Word of Caution

There is one thing I'm obligated to mention: tea, particularly green and black tea, may reduce your ability to absorb iron. If you have iron deficiency anemia (like myself), you'll want to keep at least an hour between consuming iron rich foods and drinking tea.[12][13]

Up Next: Juice

I love juice, but it's hard to find real juice. The next post in this series will be dedicated to this topic, so stay tuned!

References

1. Linda Caroll. "Drinking tea may improve your health — here's what to try". Today. January 3, 2018
2. "Caffeine: How much is too much?". Mayo Clinic. March 8, 2017
3. Sally Tamarkin. "Here's How Much Caffeine You Can Safely Have Per Day". Buzzfeed. April 26, 2017
4. Mary Bowerman. "This is how much caffeine it takes to kill an average person". USA Today. May 16, 2017
5. "Ever wonder about the caffeine in Coke or the caffeine in Diet Coke?". The Coca Cola Co.; visited July 2018
6. "Pike Place® Roast". Starbucks; visited July 2018
7. Jason Stromberg."This Is How Your Brain Becomes Addicted to Caffeine". Smithsonian. August 9, 2013
8. "About Tea". The Tea Spot; visited July 2018
9. Laura Newcommer. "13 Reasons Tea Is Good for You". Time. September 13, 2012
10. "Search Results: Morning Tea Reduces Bone Loss". Google Scholar; visited July 2018
11. "Antioxidants: In Depth". National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. November 2013
12. Frank S. Fan. "Iron deficiency anemia due to excessive green tea drinking". Clinical Case Reports, pg. 1053–1056. November 2016
13. Cathy Wong, ND. "Can Drinking Tea Hinder Iron Absorption From Food?". Very Well Health. December 05, 2017