03.22.07
women and tea….hurray!
posted by Michelle Rabin | 21 comments
I'm not a big TV viewer, which is why Tivo is a wonderful tool for me. I just let Tivo know that I'm interested in taping certain people and poof…..there it is. Dr. Christiane Northrup is one of the physicians whose TV appearances I want to catch. She's a physician who, more recently, has become increasingly alternative in her attitudes about medicine and health and wellness. I recently caught her PBS show entitled Menopause and Beyond-New Wisdom for Women. Her message was clear: cardiovascular disease is the #1 killer of women in the U.S. In fact, if you were to take the next six leading causes of death and add them together, heart disease/stroke would still be #1. Perhaps the most startling statistic she presented was actually about tea. According to Dr. Northrup, if a woman consumes 5 cups of tea per day, she effectively decreases her risk of stroke by 69%. I had to rewind that segment two times to be certain I heard it correctly. Yes, 69% is correct. In addition, more women than men die because of a stroke. For those who survive, it is the leading cause of serious-long term disability. Cardiovascular disease isn't just a concern for older women. Coronary heart disease is the #1 killer of women over 25. Imagine that by simply shifting our liquid consumption from water to tea, we can seriously impact our health and wellness. We can cut our risk of stroke by 69%.
I want to know why that isn't a headline in all the newspapers around the country. I don't know of any drug that can claim such a huge health benefit…..do you? My generation of women were sold a bill of goods by the pharmaceutical industry about HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy). We were told, not only would it eliminate our hot flashes, it would reduce our risk of cancer and heart disease. NO! So much for the FDA and so much for double blind clinical trials. Here's a safe, inexpensive and effective drink that can reduce the risk of stroke by 69%. We should all be doing a dance with cups of tea in our hands. HURRAY!!!! I'll have some tea thank you very much. Let's spread the word to woman around the world: DRINK TEA- LIVE LONG AND LIVE WELL!
March 22nd, 2007 at 11:41 am
Stupid question alert!
5 cups…is that 5 x 8oz standard cups?
March 22nd, 2007 at 11:51 am
Don’t you know that there are never any stupid questions?
Yes - 5 cups that are 8oz each. If one gets in the habit of substituting their bottled water with tea, it will be pretty easy to get the 5 important cups in throughout the day.
March 22nd, 2007 at 1:46 pm
Did the study specify green tea vs. black tea? Are both as effective at decreasing the risk of stroke/heart attack?
March 22nd, 2007 at 3:20 pm
Unfortunately Dr Northrup did not offer any way to access her data or research she used to develop this PBS show. I accepted it at face value as I can’t imagine she would provide information that was not substantiated. I know she’s written a book on this topic. Perhaps it’s available in that venue. For me, given that green and white teas are substantially higher in polyphenols, I encourage the consumption of those healthier teas. If I’m going to drink tea for its profound health benefits primarily, why not drink the tea with the biggest bang all the way around!
I’ll do a little checking and will report back if I find anything pertinent.
March 22nd, 2007 at 4:21 pm
Hi cowgirl,
there is evidence of benefits from both types of tea, black and green. Dr. Northrup refers in an article on her website to 2 studies done in Japan (green tea) and the Netherlands (black tea). You can read more about a recent long-term study on effects of green tea regarding heart disease here. I put together an overview on recent studies regarding the health benefits of tea on the blog of our teahouse.
One thing I noticed in most of the discussions about influence of tea type on the health benefits is the question: green or black? White tea is rarely talked about but some studies (focusing on cancer prevention) were undertaken that show that white tea is more effective than any other kind of tea (a good starting point to read about the health benefits of white tea is the Linus Pauling Institute.
March 22nd, 2007 at 10:30 pm
And again, folks…forget about bottled tea for health benefits. They are diminishing within one hour of brewing, so I have read. Brew it up fresh!!! (And it just tastes SO much better that way anyway!)
March 22nd, 2007 at 10:39 pm
You are absolutely right, Team. You might want to read a post I wrote a while back about just this issue of bottled teas. And it’s more than just the health or quality issues, it also has a huge environmental impact. You can find the post here.
March 23rd, 2007 at 12:50 am
There are also innumerable studies done in China regarding pu-erh and the lowering of arterial plaque and cholesterol.
One of my patients had her cholesterol go down 30 points in eight weeks by having a small cup of pu-erh toward the end of her meal and another after eating. This, together with moderate exercise and watching her saturated fats and animal fats, really paid off.
Besides, tea is delicous!
BTW, that’s a FABULOUS photo!
Shen
March 23rd, 2007 at 4:56 pm
I have been wondering about brewing tea, refrigerating it, and taking it on a hike instead of water. Does Team’s comment imply that this brew is not as good as the fresh, hot variety? Would it be better than water in any case? Further, is there any down side to drinking hot tea while exercising?
March 23rd, 2007 at 5:33 pm
Info about hydration:
http://chemistry.about.com/cs/foodchemistry/a/aa070803a.htm
March 23rd, 2007 at 8:01 pm
If I remember well, there was a discussion here on T Ching about the high amount of caffeine needed to actually cause net water loss. I think the opinion was green tea does not have enough caffeine to cause net water loss.
Re: hiking; I suppose if you are hiking the Grand Canyon in heat of summer, you would actually want to take water or sports drink (it doesn't hydrate better, but you tend to drink more of it, as the linked article above said). And if you are exercising, the idea of hydration is also about maintaining your body temp closer to normal…hot drinks will effect be the opposite (remember that Seinfeld episode when a marathon runner grabbed Kramer's hot tea
March 23rd, 2007 at 11:07 pm
A note to add to Phyll’s comment. One of the big differences between sports drink and water is the addition of salts and minerals that the body needs, and are lost due to sweating. So, while most of us don’t need sports drinks to make up the electrolytes lost during normal athletic activity, they are essential in some instances. Unfortunately, I’m not sure that tea contains the necessary electrolytes. Another interesting tidbit though, is that cold water is asborbed more quickly by the body than hot.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyponatremia
March 24th, 2007 at 12:03 pm
I want to remind everyone about the article I wrote about NEW research on tea and hydration. They have debunked the “urban myth” that tea is dehydrating. I imagine it will take some time for this information to make it into the mainstream. Due to the low levels of caffeine in green and white tea, it is NOT dehydrating.
March 24th, 2007 at 12:09 pm
I’ve always been taught that drinking cold water was NOT good for the body. It’s taken me years to enjoy room temperature water instead of ice water which I used to love……chewing the ice cubes was the icing on the cake, although my dentist wasn’t happy. I’d be interested in seeing research that says cold is best…..thanks team.
March 24th, 2007 at 12:45 pm
Anne, I think the link you provided regarding hydration and tea is outdated or uninformed. Current research has concluded that tea is not dehydrating. In fact, depending on the amount of coffee and whether the person is a regular coffee drinker, neither is coffee. The issue is the amount of caffeine that is consumed, not just caffeine per se. Consuming 250 - 300 mg of caffeine, in one sitting, will cause dehydration but, apparently, only in new drinkers. For regular consumers of coffee, it appears that their bodies adapt physiologically to the caffeine and it doesn’t cause diuresis. If you take into consideration that tea, even black tea, has considerably less caffeine than coffee, it would take at least 5 cups of black tea at one sitting to reach the levels of caffeine that would cause a diuretic effect. Obviously, white and green tea would require 15 - 20 cups at one sitting. See below for an excerpt from a scholarly article about this topic.
Tea and fluid replacement
It is a common misconception that tea should be avoided as a fluid replacement due to the diuretic action of the caffeine present. The diuretic effect of caffeine was originally based on acute studies in caffeine naïve individuals. However research shows that a tolerance to caffeine develops. As such those who are not caffeine naïve, i.e. regularly ingest caffeine, do not experience an increased urine output or altered conditions of hydration status after consuming caffeinated beverages.
Another consideration to take into account when investigating the relationship between caffeine and diuresis is the dose size of caffeine ingested. Where the dose relationship has been systematically investigated it is only at a high dose of 360 mg that a diuretic action is found.17 A recent systematic review of the accumulated evidence has shown that acute diuretic effects are observed generally in cases where at least 300 mg of caffeine is ingested. This finding suggests that tea does not have a diuretic effect unless the amount of tea consumed at one sitting contains more than 250-300mg of caffeine, equivalent to between 5 and 6 cups of tea.
It is also widely believed that plain water is more hydrating than other sources of fluid. Medical, physiology, nutrition and military texts have long said that water from foods and a range of beverages can all meet fluid needs.
The effect of drinking tea on hydration status has been further explored in a study conducted in circumstances where fluid balance of the body is stressed. Nine male and four female members of expeditions based at Mt. Everest base camp at an altitude of 5,345m were subjected to a crossover experimental design study comprising two 24-hour dietary interventions. In the ”˜tea' condition, hot brewed tea formed a major part of fluid intake for 24 hours, whereas in the ”˜no-tea' condition tea was excluded from the diet for 24 hours. Despite similar volumes of fluid being ingested in the control and tea conditions, there were no differences in urine volume or markers of hydration status. The authors of the study concluded by saying that even when tea is drunk at high altitude, where the body is subjected to large losses of water, there is no evidence that tea acts as a diuretic when consumed by regular tea drinkers. In fact, tea can make a useful contribution to the hydration status of the body.
March 24th, 2007 at 1:33 pm
Team, I too would be very interested in reading the references for your statement that cold water facilitates intestinal absorption more than hot or warm water. I have always been taught the opposite.
March 27th, 2007 at 7:27 pm
I’m Team and I don’t believe I made that statement.
Thanks for the link on the post re: freshly brewed vs bottled. I’ll read it with interest!
March 27th, 2007 at 7:30 pm
It turns out I had read it and commented. And again, no matter how ‘pure’ bottled tea producers make it, the nutrition (as I have read at least) begins to deteriorate within one hour of brewing. I know a fanatic tea supplier (my kind of co.!) who insists 15 minutes is all the time the peak TASTE lasts!
March 28th, 2007 at 4:51 pm
Perhaps I missed the link, but does drinking freshly brewed iced tea have the same benefits as drinking hot tea? I understand that bottled teas, which may spend months if not years in storage would lose much of their health benefits, but how about Iced tea made from very high quality loose tea, stored in a pitcher for no more than a day or so?
March 28th, 2007 at 4:58 pm
That is clearly your best chance, Alchemist. You will, however, continue to lose polyphenol content (and taste) over time. I would not brew up too large a batch and stick with brewing enough for maybe 2 glasses to be refrigerated at a time. This way you have the best chance of consuming it as fresh as possible.
March 30th, 2007 at 3:43 pm
From my reading, nutrients begin to degrade within one hour. It’s so simple to brew fresh in a concentrated form and then pour over ice and stir or shake. The flavor is amazing and it’s literally ‘alive’ in the glass, so to speak. Even in an hour or two in the refrigerator it loses that freshness, both taste and nutrients.