Tea Time
Tea is the ultimate comfort food, according to researchers at University College London. Researchers there showed that regular tea drinking can help you more effectively recover from stressful situations, by cutting the secretion of cortisol, a hormone secreted in response to stress.
The study followed 75 young healthy men for six weeks, during which they gave up all their regular tea, coffee and caffeinated drinks. The men were divided into two groups: one group received a daily beverage with active black tea components, while the other received a beverage with no tea components. Both drinks contained similar amounts of caffeine. But neither group thought they were drinking tea; to control for sensory cues, the researchers concocted brews without the familiar taste and smell.
Researchers monitored the participants' blood pressure, cortisol levels and blood platelet aggregation while they were faced with challenging tasks, like defending themselves verbally against an accusation of shop lifting. In both groups, all three markers spiked while the men were completing the tasks. But 50 minutes afterward, the control group's cortisol levels were still twice as high as the tea drinkers'. Platelet aggregation - a marker related to clotting and heart attack risk - also remained higher in the non-tea group.
The researchers aren't sure how to explain the results, but we know that tea contains many healthy antioxidants that impart a myriad of health benefits. It's also virtually calorie-free, has much less caffeine than coffee, and counts toward your water needs for the day.
