Cath’s Super Foods for Energy: Tea
By Catherine Saxelby
When you’re busy and feel overloaded, nothing picks you as quickly as a quick cup of tea. Now there’s new research to prove that tea out-guns coffee when it comes to lifting your mental performance and overcoming fatigue throughout the day.
Your grandmother would have told you what I’m about to say - there’s something about tea that refreshes and helps you relax and revive!
Honestly whenever I feel a little ‘worn out’ or in need of a break, I love a cup of good old-fashioned tea. English Breakfast with a shot of milk is the favourite brew but I’m also partial to a delicate Ceylon and most things herbal like lemon and ginger or anything with a little peppermint.
For years, scientists have been puzzling on what it is about tea that recharges your batteries. They knew tea contained modest levels of caffeine - around half or a third of what’s in coffee - but the lift you get was not simply a caffeine effect, as powerful a brain stimulant as caffeine is (and one of the key reasons we love our java).
One experiment in the 90s had volunteers consume three hot beverages and then take a maths test requiring concentration, memory and focus (something all of us would dearly love each morning!). Those who drank hot water with added pure caffeine fared better than those who just drank a cup of hot water (the control group). But those who sipped the tea outperformed the rest. So the researchers concluded - there was something else in tea apart from its caffeine.
New findings about tea
Now researchers believe they have found the answer. It’s a natural amino acid called theanine (pronouced thee-ah-neen) that virtually unique to tea. It works on our brain to enable us to stay alert yet relaxed. It’s a different feeling to that jolt of adrenalin we get from a strong coffee. It lets you pay attention to the task in front yet still take in what else is happening around you without overstimulation.
A recent Australian review, conducted by Dr Janet Bryan from the University of South Australia, has analysed the findings from 15 peer-reviewed studies on the benefits of theanine and caffeine in tea and how they work together.
It reveals that tea, consumed regularly throughout the day, can help maintain alertness, attention and accuracy, and soften the more acute negative effects of higher doses of caffeine.
The caffeine-theanine combo
It seems that tea’s combination of a low level of caffeine and the theanine is the key.
Tea has caffeine, but in low doses, and the combination of that with the theanine, has an effect on the performance of complex tasks such as switching attention and being able to ignore distraction – tasks that may be hindered by overstimulation and which are important tasks for today’s hectic lifestyle.
In contrast, a high dose of caffeine, like the spike you get from coffee, actually appears to hinder alertness in the long run.
The report indicated that tea is significantly associated with lower perceived fatigue than coffee. The theanine in tea exerts slow and constant effects resulting in a relaxed yet alert state of mind.
More health benefits from tea
The advantages of tea don’t just stop at brain power. Don’t forget that tea, both green and black, is a healthy way to stay hydrated. Tea has 4 top health benefits. It:
1. is a great source of antioxidants known as flavonoids. Antioxidants help maintain healthy cells and tissues by reinforcing our body’s natural defence system and may slow the ageing process and ward off cancer.
2. contains virtually no kilojoules or calories when drunk on its own (without milk or sugar).
3. keeps your heart and blood healthy - there is a link between regular tea consumption and heart health. Drinking three cups of tea per day may decrease the risk of heart problems by 11 per cent.
4. helps you cut back on caffeine overall so you get a good night’s sleep and avoid the “coffee jitters” (irritability and shakiness if you overdo the caffeine).
Catherine Saxelby is an accredited nutritionist and tea lover. She has worked for the tea industry and Liptons over the past 10 years. For more tips and ideas, go to her website at www.foodwatch.com.au