Time for a brew? How a cuppa could help keep body fighting fit

Just three cups of tea per day delivers as many antioxidants as six apples

BRITAIN'S long, hot summer could seriously damage your health but something as simple as a glass of water or a great British cuppa could head off a host of minor ailments and major problems, new research has revealed.

 

Dehydration can cause headaches, tiredness, sleep disturbance and dizziness and if you are one of the 2.8 million people who has chronic kidney disease, lack of fluids could also land you in hospital. Chronic kidney disease has been labelled a silent epidemic because there are no symptoms until kidneys begin to fail.



Tea consumption is linked to improved attention, alertness, creativity and work performance

Warning signs that you might be heading for trouble include weight loss, swollen ankles, feet and hands, insomnia, having to get up in the night to go to the toilet, itchy skin, muscle cramps, nausea and high blood pressure.

One Australian study estimates that emergency admissions for renal problems rise by 10 per cent when temperatures climb and researchers have called for public health campaigns to encourage adequate hydration during heatwaves.

Dietitian Dr Frankie Phillips, says there is a real need for accurate information and warns: "There is a lot of nutri-nonsense and misinformation around the subject of hydration."

For starters, there is no evidence to support the often-repeated claim that we should drink eight glasses of water a day.

That myth probably stems from a passing comment by US nutritionist Dr Frederick Stare in a book published in 1974.

Our national love of tea makes it an important player when it comes to hydration

Dr Frankie Phillips

One study reported that the recommended daily intakes range from less than a pint to almost eight pints. The US National Academy of Sciences Food and Nutrition Board suggests 2.5 litres (4.3 pints) a day but points out: "Most of this quantity is contained in prepared foods."

While NHS Choices takes a common.—sense approach and suggests: "A good rule is to drink enough fluid so that you're not thirsty for long periods and to steadily increase your fluid intake when exercising and during hot weather. Passing clear urine is a good sign that you're well hydrated."

There is also myth and misinformation about the best drinks to down. Dr Catherine Collins, the principal dietitian at St George's Hospital in London explains. "Many drinks are discounted by consumers as non-hydrating, even when evidence proves they are. The popular notion that caffeinated beverages cause dehydration is a myth."

Dr Phillips agrees. "Our national love of tea makes it an important player when it comes to hydration. Yet it is also a hugely important source of health-enhancing polyphenols. All the evidence shows that tea ticks a lot of boxes when it comes to healthy hydration."

Almost half the UK's intake of flavonoids, another name for these health-boosting plant compounds, comes from cuppas. Dr Carrie Ruxton, a nutritionist and member of the Tea Advisory Panel, says: "There is a lot of interest in flavonoids because there is now good evidence they are associated with increased antioxidant activity, reduced lipid peroxide and improved resistance to oxidation of unhealthy LDL cholesterol.

 

Around 40 per cent of the nation's hydration comes in a cup of tea but that's not the only reason our favourite beverage is so good for us:

ANTIOXIDANT ACTION

One study found that drinking three cups of tea a day delivers as many antioxidants as six apples while another estimated that a couple of cuppas has the same free-radical scavenging capacity as five portions of fruit and vegetables.

Tea also contains amino acids, a tiny top-up of B-group vitamins, potassium, manganese and zinc.

HEART HERO

Drinking three cups of black tea a day, the classic British cuppa, produces a significant reduction in blood pressure and LDL cholesterol, the bad one that increases your risk of heart disease.

Data from 22 studies suggest regular tea consumption reduces the risk of coronary heart disease by 27 per cent and cuts the odds of a stroke by 21 per cent.

DIET DELIGHT

So long as you don't add sugar, tea is low in calories but more importantly the caffeine and catechins in tea stimulate fat oxidation and accelerate weight loss by counteracting the fall in metabolic rate which usually occurs when you cut calories. A recent randomised control trial found that drinking three cups of black tea a day produced a "statistically significant reduction in weight".

 

On average volunteers dropped 1.4 pounds, which Dr Ruxton says "is modest compared with drug interventions" but shows tea can be a useful alternative to other drinks if you're trying to lose weight.

DIABETES PROTECTION

Meta-analysis, a super study which combines findings from all the relevant trials, found that drinking four or more cups of green tea a day reduces the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes by 20 per cent trials, found that drinking four or more cups of green tea a day reduces the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes by 20 per cent.

A second super-study confirmed it helps stabilise blood sugar levels in people with diabetes.

BRAIN BOOST

Doctor Who screenwriter Russell T. Davies says that tea is "just the thing for healing the synapses" and recent studies suggest he could be right.

Improved attention, alertness, creativity and work performance have been linked to tea consumption while the L.—theanine in tea appears to improve concentration and learning.

A study earlier this year found that three cups of tea a day is associated with a 37 per cent reduction in depression and there is some evidence it may stall loss of brain power as a result of ageing.

BONE BENEFITS

As we grow older some loss of bone mineral is inevitable and it's estimated that around three million people in the UK have some degree of osteoporosis.

However, research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has shown that tea protects against bone loss in later life and reduces the risk of fractures.