A spot of tea
ASU Web Devil - Tempe,AZ,USA
Souvia Tea – Since April 2004, Souvia Tea has offered the best in tea leaves and tea essentials. This quaint tearoom shares tea culture from around the …
Caffeine and Pregnancy
The British Foods Safety Administration is recommending that pregnant women limit Caffeine intake. This means no more than 2 cups of coffee or 4 cups of tea each day.
The article state that this is not “a new risk but is new advice”.
Tea generally has less caffeine than coffee with the least amount of caffeine being in green and white teas.
Fortunately, there are also great caffeine free alternatives for anyone trying to cut down on caffeine.
Red Wine and Black Tea
Two of my favorites! Now there is more good news with these two beverages and the helath front. A recent study found beneficial effects on glucose after consumption. And itnerestingly, it is a study that even compared different types of teas. It appears Balck Teas have the biggest effect….
More here - http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Health/2008/04/04/study_red_wine_tea_may_help_diabetics/9095/
Links to News on Tea and Health
While we drink tea primarily for its taste, many people enjoy the health benefits as well. Keep in mind that you should always look at the parameters of these helath reports as they are often long term and require people to drink tea regularly.
Hare are some recent reports:
Tea Good For Women’s Hearts? - Medical News Today
Health Tip: The Power of Green Tea
Black Tea May Help Fight Diabetes
Good news- Green Tea and Antibiotics
More good news from the health and tea front. An Egyptian studay found that drinking green tea whiule taking antibiotics boosted the effect of the drugs.
There is a summary of this study in US News and World Report.
White, Green or Black and Health
We get a lot of questions like “what is the helathiest tea?” We typically recommend people find the teas that they like and drink them regularly. 4-6 cups per day is recommended to get the maximum helath benefits. The is a recent article on Canada.com whcih provides a nice summary of health benefits by “color” of tea.
Some quotes from that article include:
”Most people don’t drink enough to get the kinds of results seen in research studies”
“like its greener kin, black tea contains antioxidants”
“To get the most of tea’s benefits, drink it freshly brewed, rather than bottled. Let tea steep for a few minutes to release the catechins”
It is a nice read and supports the consensus that all teas are good for you in different ways. It is great to have something that tastes good AND is good for you!
Souvia PRofiled in the Arizona Republic
Souvia Tea received some nice press in the Arizona Republic today.
It appeared in the Business Section and the Scottsdale Insert
An Excerpt:
“Judges were impressed by Souvia’s variety of teas, the staff’s knowledge and the Wingerts’ fondness for each other and their business, said Susan Ratliff, president of Exhibit Experts in Phoenix and lead judge for the micro-business panel.
“From the moment we entered the store, we were transported into an atmosphere of uniqueness,” Ratliff said. “I don’t believe any of the five judges had seen anything quite like it.”
Summary of the Tea and Health Conference
We get a lot of questions about tea and health. Some excerpts of a conversation with Jeffrey Blumberg, director of the Antioxidants Research Laboratory at Tufts University in Boston and co-chairman of the symposium:
”Tea has more of the catechins [a group of phytochemicals that act as antioxidants] than any food I am aware of. It is far and away the biggest, richest best source of those phytonutrients, and it’s a pleasant, aromatic and flavorful beverage.”
Are green, black and Oolong teas equally healthy?
“I don’t know of any controlled trials comparing the different colors of tea, but all of them come from the same plant,….and there is a huge overlap in what we are finding in different studies using different kinds of tea. Most… studies…show the same results”
How much do you need to drink to get the health benefits of tea?
“From lots and lots of observational studies, it looks like four to five cups a day will put you in the highest 20 percent for protection against heart disease and stroke. Those who drink four cups or more consistently have the lowest risk of heart disease.”
Read the whole article in the Taipei Times
This is a nice summary of questions we receive and it is great to see more and more confirmation in the Scientific community. The Proceeding will be published for those wanting more details and I will post a link here when I locate it.
Another nice summary is in the blog below:
Ask Souvia Tea: Sun Tea? Be careful
Many people make iced tea using the “Sun Tea” method which consists of placing tea in a glass jar in the Sun for several hours.
We do not recommend “Sun Tea” for several reasons:
First, there is no need to brew tea in the Sun. It does not provide any benefit over cold steeping. Prevention Magazine found the hot vs. cold steeping provides no diference in health benefits or taste. From the article “fridge tea actually won (on antioxidants), edging out hot-brewed iced tea made from the same box of Salada Green Tea tea bags.”
Second, The Centers for Disease Control does not recommend this method.
From the article at http://www.snopes.com/food/prepare/suntea.asp
“Tea made by placing loose or bagged tea leaves in glass jars of water which
are then left in direct sunlight can harbor bacteria that can make you ill.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, using the sun’s rays to make
tea can facilitate the growth of bacteria. Tea steeped in a jar on your
porch won’t get any hotter than 130deg Fahrenheit, about the temperature of
a really hot bath and not nearly hot enough to kill nasties lurking either
in the water or on the tea itself.”
Alcaligenes viscolactis, a bacteria commonly found in water, consequently
turns up in sun tea.”
Third, Cold steeping is simple, easily done overnight, and doesn’t heat up
your kitchen!
So, give it a try… Cold steep your next batch!
What’s in your Cup
A great article in the New York Times makes the point that much of the tea consumed in the US is not all that healthy… From the article
“But a 16-ounce bottle of the popular Arizona Green Tea with Ginseng and Honey, for instance, contains 140 calories and 34 grams of sugar. (By comparison, a similar amount of Coke has 194 calories and 54 grams of sugar.) A grande Tazo chai tea latte at Starbucks packs 240 calories and 41 grams of sugar.”
this is a benefit of brewing your own tea or drinking good quality leaf teas without all the additions.
