Tea Or Coffee: Which Is Healthier?

This is a good question because it seems like every day there’s news about the health benefits of one or the other.

The truth is there isn’t a clear standout. Both of these uniquely healthy pick-me-ups have their own long list of health pros and cons.

Tea

The pros: Tea boasts a long list of health benefits. The rich antioxidants in tea fight inflammation, and have been shown to
help prevent blood vessels from hardening. Tea drinkers have a significantly lower risk of stroke and heart disease, and tea is known to boost brain health.

Regular tea drinkers also have higher bone density levels and slower rates of bone loss.
Overall it’s associated with anti-aging: research shows that the cells of regular tea drinkers have a younger biological age
than non-drinkers.

The cons: The first one is purely cosmetic—stained teeth.

Another is the potential impact on your iron levels due to tanins, a type of antioxidant that interferes with the absorption of non-heme, or plant-based iron from foods like greens and beans.

In one classic 1982 study drinking tea with a meal resulted in a 62 percent reduction in iron absorption compared to 35 percent for coffee.

Finally, if you’re sensitive to it, the caffeine in tea may also be a con, although the levels are lower than coffee. One cup or eight ounces of black tea contains 14-70 mg of caffeine, and green tea 24-45 mg, compared to 95-200 mg in the same sized portion of coffee.

Coffee

Pros: The good news about coffee just keeps on coming. A brand new Harvard study found that those who drink about three to five cups of coffee a day may be less likely to die prematurely from some diseases than those who drink less or no coffee.

A rich source of antioxidants, regular coffee consumption has also been linked to protection against type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s, and certain cancers.

Cons: Natural substances in unfiltered coffee (meaning boiled or espresso) have been shown to raise cholesterol levels
slightly. Also coffee is more acidic than tea, so if you have stomach or digestive issues you may tolerate tea better.

Coffee has long had a reputation for bone issues, but it remains unclear how significant the effects are. One study found
that a high intake of coffee—four or more cups a day—reduced bone density by 2-4 percent, but the effect didn’t translate
to an increased risk of fracture.

The remaining cons of coffee are primarily tied to its caffeine content, which again is higher than in tea. Caffeine is a stimulant, so if you’re sensitive to it coffee may leave you feeling overly stimulated, jittery, and anxious. If you have high blood pressure, you should limit your caffeine intake because caffeine can cause a short, but dramatic spike in blood pressure.










Cynthia Sass
Source: foxnews.com