Drinking tea associated with lower risk of heart disease

Tea is the most popular drink in the world after water and with good reason – it provides a range of natural health benefits, largely due to its flavonoid content.

A new scientific review just published in ‘Nutrition Bulletin’ [1] by independent nutritionists, Dr Carrie Ruxton and Dr Pamela Mason, has found that drinking three or more cups of tea a day is associated with a significant reduction in the risk of heart disease.

The review, which focused on black tea, reviewed 40 papers, most of which reported significant associations between regular black tea consumption and less heart disease. According to Ruxton & Mason, in the groups consuming the most tea, heart disease risk was 30-57% lower compared with groups who drank little or no tea. Their review found evidence of a reduced risk of various risk factors such as arterial stiffness and inflammation.Regular black tea consumption was also associated with reduced risk of stroke.

Commenting on this latest research, author and Tea Advisory Panel member, Dr Ruxton notes: “Mechanistically, these beneficial findings are thought to be due to positive factors in black tea such as flavonoids and theanine, which may help to control blood pressure by regulate nitric oxide production and inhibiting platelet Our review also found evidence of a link between black tea consumption and a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes when 1-5 cups of tea were consumed daily, depending on the study under investigation.”[2]

We’ve always known the ‘humble cuppa’ was actually rather mighty…time to put the kettle on.

Firstly, I just wanted to take a moment to reflect on what the Japanese people are going through at the moment. Japan is a truly wonderful country with some of the friendliest and most helpful people I have ever had the pleasure to meet. It’s devastating to see them having to go through so much upheaval but I’m amazed by their spirit and determination to begin to rebuild. Our thoughts are with everyone affected by the earthquake, tsunami and radiation fears.

With all the media coverage over numerous bans of Japanese exports from countries around the world, I thought it would be useful to try to address some safety concerns about Japanese green teas.

As you’ll be aware, there are legitimate health concerns regarding some of the food and water in the area around the source of the radiation (Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant). However this is not the case for all Japanese products, particularly Japanese teas. The vast majority of Japan’s tea is grown hundreds of kilometres south of Fukushima. The fact that the prevailing winds blow east over the ocean is also a positive.

According to the World Health Organisation, Japanese and International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors are testing foods at the source and preventing the export of products that show any unusually high readings, despite the fact these readings are generally below health damaging thresholds. It’s also crucial to note that the 2011 green tea harvest has not even begun. What has become known as ‘pre quake’ stock, now seems very much in demand.

It’s also worth pointing out that as Japanese tea is generally so good, the Japanese tend to hang on to most of it themselves. In fact, only around 10% of Japanese green tea is exported. We will need to wait and see how this disaster affects the global tea markets. The Japanese are traditionally large importers of tea, particularly Darjeeling (Japan is the third largest market for Darjeeling behind Germany and the UK). With the current harvesting of the much coveted First Flush Darjeelings, it appears that inevitably orders from Japan are way down. This will necessarily affect market prices.

As for eteaket’s teas, the only Japanese teas we currently stock are Gyokuro and Matcha, all of which was imported before the earthquake which caused the Fukushima disaster. We luckily have plenty of these teas in stock (because they were vacuum packed at source), so they should last us at least until the end of this year. If you’d like any more information about Japan Nuclear Concerns, you’ll find it on the World Health Organisation’s website by clicking here.

I do hope this clears up some concerns and we wish everyone in Japan our sincere best wishes in starting to overcome this tragedy.

With summer finally here (yes, even in Scotland) and the excitement of Wimbledon upon us we thought it was about time to explore the simple pleasures of iced tea.

Although it’s one of the most refreshing drinks around, iced tea is still very much frowned upon in the UK, which is strange given its prominence around the rest of the world (particularly in the US). Have a go yourself with our simple guide and let us know how you get on.

There are two main ways to make iced tea:

HOT BREW METHOD

This is the quickest way to make iced tea.

• Brew some tea. Use roughly 2 teaspoons of tea leaves per cup of boiling or hot water depending on tea type. That’s 8oz or 227ml give or take of hot water, so about double the amount of leaves as for normal hot tea. Remember never use boiling water for green or white teas – instead leave the kettle off the boil for about 2 mins. Brew the tea for the recommended time before removing the leaves (generally 3-4 mins for most black teas).

• Pour over ice. Pour the concentrated hot tea over ice cubes in a temperature resistant jug. If your iced tea goes cloudy, add a touch of boiling water. Add more ice if necessary but be aware that this will dilute the tea. A clever option is to pre-prepare some ‘tea ice’. Just make a little extra iced tea, fill your ice cube tray with it and put it in the freezer. Why not be a little adventurous and try your tea ice with some different drinks or cocktails?

• Do you want it plain? If you want a straightforward plain iced tea, use the best quality leaf tea you can find. It’s generally best to go for teas that have bright top notes rather than more malty teas like Assam. Teas with natural floral or fruity notes chill particularly well.

• Do you prefer it sweetened? Sugar and honey make good sweeteners. If using honey, it’s a good idea to add it to the hot tea first and stir until dissolved. If using sugar, it’s best to boil one cup of water with one cup of sugar and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. You can then add the sugar syrup to the iced tea to taste.

• Try adding other things. Another option is to add fresh or frozen fruit or fruit juice to your iced tea. Or experiment by adding various spices while the tea is still hot (we particularly like cinnamon, nutmeg or ginger). Fresh herbs like mint, basil or lemongrass also work well when added to your iced tea.

COLD BREW METHOD

This method is only recommended for green and white teas. For best results, use a good quality leaf tea and filtered water, which helps extract the tea better when brewing cold.

Use roughly two teaspoons of tea leaves per cup (roughly 8oz or 227ml) of cold water (again roughly double the amount of leaves as you would for normal hot tea). Add cold water to the leaves and refrigerate overnight (or longer for a stronger taste). Sweeten or garnish as desired.

Here is a list of our most popular teas to make iced

Unflavoured Tea: Ceylon Lover’s Leap, Second Flush Darjeeling, Ceylon Vert & White Peony.

Flavoured Tea: Life’s a Peach, Jasmine Chun Hao, Blooming Marvellous, White Peach.

Herb & Fruit Infusions. Although they don’t contain any tea so not strictly iced teas, these herb & fruit infusions work really well iced: Strawberries & Cream, Zen Zephyr and Cranberry Apple Riot.

Please let us know how you get on with your iced tea or if you have any interesting recipes or ideas (hello@eteaket.co.uk).

Happy experimenting.

© eteaket ltd June 2010