Benefits of tea vs coffee

There seems to be a competition between coffee drinkers and tea drinkers over which beverage is better, tastier, and healthier. There are those, of course, who enjoy the both equally, profiting from the benefits these two popular beverages have to offer, which are plentiful on both sides.

Coffee

The reason why most people drink coffee, apart from its taste, is the fact that it contains caffeine, which is a stimulant and helps when we need to boost our energy or improve the endurance. Fro this reason it is one of the most popular breakfast drinks and the content of caffeine in coffee is much higher that in tea.

Coffee also offers some significant benefits for the health. For example, it is an excellent diuretic and laxative, meaning it helps when we need to expel excessive water from the body or to stimulate bowel movement.

Caffeine which is present in coffee is used in the production of certain analgesics, which means it helps relieve the pain.

Some studies have proven that coffee has some effects on reducing the risk cancer, especially oral, esophageal and pharyngeal. Others have shown the correlation between coffee and reduction of risk of Parkinson’s disease, liver disease like cirrhosis and gallstone disease.

The negative effects of drinking coffee include anxiety (“coffee jitters”) high cholesterol and blood pressure, reduction of iron absorption and negative effects on pregnancy.

Tea

Tea is generally considered to be healthier than coffee because it is a tremendous source of antioxidants like flavonoids, catechins, and tannins, which are important in fighting the free radicals.

Antioxidants are even more present in green, white and oolong tea. Thanks to this, tea is beneficial for the immune system, it has anti-cancer properties, improves cardiovascular health, it can act as an antidepressant, lowers stress hormone levels, improves cognitive processes and mental alertness, and much more.

Tea is said to be beneficial for people who suffer from irritable bowel syndrome, atherosclerosis and liver disease. It can even be used as a means to lose weight.

Because today there is so much talk about the health benefits of tea, some manufacturers have started producing tea beverages, which advertise the fact that tea, especially green tea, is excellent for health. However, this should be taken with precaution because they often add sugar or artificial flavorings to those beverages, making them not so healthy after all. For example, some brands of tea beverages contain more sugar than a chocolate bar.

Brewing your own tea, especially if using the loose leaves and not the tea bags, is certainly healthier and can be quite a fulfilling ritual.