Coffee and tea are the most preferred beverages aside from still water worldwide. In this article, I will be sharing 10 surprizing health benefits of tea and coffee that you probably didn’t know. So, the next time you are meeting a friend for a cup of joe or tea, it might actually boost your health too.
10 Surprizing Health Benefits of Tea and Coffee
Coffee – Getting Down to Basics
Coffee beans are grown in over fifty countries and are then roasted and ground. This versatile beverage can be dripped, boiled, soaked, or steamed to make coffee, depending on how you prefer it or where you live.
Tea – Getting Down to Basics
Tea is made from the leaves of a bush referred to as Camellia sinensis, and is consumed by over two thirds of the world’s population. The leaves are typically steeped in steaming hot water and then served as a hot beverage or over ice.
What is The Difference Between Green, Oolong, and Black Tea?
Tea is dried and the leaves crushed to bring out the oils, after which they might be exposed to air for a while, contingent on the type of tea that is made. This process is referred to as fermentation which is a chemical reaction that impacts the flavour of the leaves and turns them into a brownish colour.
The longer the leaves are exposed, the more caffeine it will contain. The leaves that are used for green tea have not been fermented at all, which is why green tea contains very little caffeine. Oolong tea leaves have undergone fermentation for some time, while the leaves of black tea have been fermented for the longest period.
10 Surprizing Health Benefits of Tea and Coffee
Combatting Free Radicals
Free radicals are chemicals that damage the cells in the body which result in illness and disease. The body creates free radicals when particular foods are turned into energy and when sunlight comes in contact with your skin. You can also get it from certain foods and drinks you consume. Tea and coffee however, helps your body to combat free radicals using natural antioxidants.
Keeping Your Heart Healthy
Doctors often thought individuals should cut down their coffee and tea intake because of the caffeine content. However, drinking tea and coffee might help prevent a buildup of calcium in blood vessels that transport blood to heart muscles. Therefore, you have a lesser risk of developing heart disease.
Avoiding Type 2 Diabetes
Both coffee and tea are associated with a lesser chance of developing type 2 diabetes that affects how the body utilizes blood sugar (glucose) for fuel. Coffee contains loads of a particular antioxidant that assists with keeping blood sugar levels regulated.
This is generally the primary challenge of diabetes. Some antioxidants found in tea assist the body with processing sugar in the blood.
Keeping Liver Disease at Bay
The liver is another vital organ that could benefit from your daily cup of joe. Drinking three or more cups of coffee per day could reduce your odds of contracting chronic liver disease, liver cancer, or cirrhosis.
Coffee contains over 100 different chemical compositions, and scientists are still trying to figure out what exactly they do and how they work as a whole to protect your liver.
Parkinson’s Disease
Tea and coffee might assist with avoiding this serious disease that attacks the nerve cells in the brain and make it difficult to move. Some studies suggest that the early symptoms of Parkinson’s disease can be eased by drinking tea and coffee.
Gallstones
Gallstones can be very painful and are small pieces of hardened cholesterol and substances that form in the gallbladder. If left untreated, it could lead to health issues and severe pain.
However, drinking coffee can lower the risk of getting them since coffee assists with moving fluid through the gallbladder and reduces the chances of cholesterol crystallizing into gallstones.
Stroke Prevention
A stroke occurs when your blood is cut off from a particular area in the brain. A cup of tea or coffee a day might reduce your risk of getting one. This might be because coffee helps with easing inflammation in the body and controlling blood sugar levels. Drinking black tea is associated with reduced blood sugar which is also a primary cause of stroke.
Lowering Your Chances of Developing Alzheimer’s Disease
Alzheimer’s is a disorder that attacks the nerve cells (neurons) in the brain which leads to memory loss as well as changes in your thought patterns and behaviour. Coffee contains antioxidants that might protect these neurons while green tea contains antioxidants that might help with preventing clusters of protein that is thought to cause Alzheimer’s disease.
Lowering Your Risk of Developing Cancer
Green tea and coffee can help with prevention of prostate and breast cancers, while all types of tea can protect you from developing cancer that affects the stomach and ovaries. Researchers believe that antioxidants in tea, including polyphenols, are responsible for this.
Aiding Weight Loss
If you drink coffee and tea that are low in calories as an alternative to sugary drinks, you may find it easier to shed some unwanted pounds. They can provide a satisfying pick-me-up with very little calories. But, this doesn’t mean you can add loads of cream and sugar to them. You need to stick to drinking the basic brew.
Conclusion
I hope you have found these 10 surprizing health benefits of tea and coffee interesting and useful. Bear in mind that despite the health benefits linked to drinking tea and coffee, you have to do so in moderation. Too much caffeine could lead to anxiousness, irritability, and insomnia.
It could also prevent your body from holding onto calcium, which in turn could cause bone fractures more easily. Speak to your health practitioner about the amount of coffee and tea you can drink per day, which is not too much.
Sending you lots of light, love, and brewing goodness.
Anthea