16th May, 2008: Tea Habits are Telling
Is your boss one who constantly blows on her tea? Does your favorite supervisor make tea? Your answers may have quite a bit to say about these managers. That’s according to a report commissioned by the UK Tea Council.
The study which was headed by an occupational psychologist (lest you doubt its validity), yielded intriguing results and unlocked a number of secrets to our co-workers’ tea habits. As a case-in-point, almost 80 percent of the one-thousand European office workers and human resources managers surveyed, thought that tea-makers “displayed top management skills.” Tea-makers were also regarded as the best office communicators.
In addition, the report identified six specific tea drinking habits tied to personality traits. For instance, confident managers tend to lean forward “with cup close to chin in one hand” and use “lots of flowing, varied and relaxed gestures.” At the opposite extreme is the weak boss who “holds [the] cup in both hands as if warming them and keeps blowing tea nervously.” This, the study warns, is the type of boss “who’s not comfortable in charge.”
Are Americans different in our tea habits? You decide. To learn more about the UK study, visit the UK Tea Council website here.
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14th May, 2008: May, National Smile Month
Everyone understands that brushing and flossing are essential for a dazzling smile. But did you know that tea can also support dental health? “We all know excellent nutrition helps build an excellent body,” says Paula Shannon Jones, DDS, spokesperson for the Academy of General Dentistry. “So it follows that whatever you eat affects your teeth and gums, too.” Also what you drink!
From May 18 to June 17 — which is National Smile Month in the United States and the U.K. — pay special attention to your diet, and consider what you’re drinking.
An earlier post on the Bigelow Tea blog told of how black and green teas contain antioxidant compounds that keep plaque from adhering to your teeth and help reduce your chances of developing cavities and even gum disease.
“Tea also has potential for reducing bad breath because it inhibits the growth of the bacteria that cause the odor,” according to Christine D. Wu, PhD, who conducts research on oral health.
If you also enjoy acidic beverages, however (such as sodas and sports drinks which can be tough on our teeth’s enamel), try using a straw positioned toward the back of your mouth to limit the liquids’ contact with your teeth.
For more information on smart dental health practices, click here, and for additional details on the largest independent international dental health campaign, stop by the National Smile Month web site.
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7th May, 2008: Tea’s Role in Women’s Health
Can certain foods deter ovarian cancer? Scientists are uncovering evidence that may just be the case … and tea is one beverage that also falls into this category.
In a special report for MSNBC.com, Karen Collins, R.D. notes that “diets high in certain flavonoid compounds found in tea, vegetables, fruits and beans may significantly lower a woman’s risk of developing ovarian cancer.”
Regular Bigelow blog readers have already read of the importance of flavonoids in a healthy diet. Now, according to Collin’s report, we learn that they have positive implications for ovarian health specifically. A comprehensive 2007 study published in the International Journal of Cancer, suggested that two flavonoids might help lower the risk of developing ovarian cancer.
“Kaempferol – a flavonoid found in tea, broccoli, kale and spinach – and luteolin – which is provided by peppers, carrots, cabbage and celery – were both identified as cancer protective. Women who consumed the most of these two flavonoids were 40 percent and 34 percent less likely, respectively, to develop ovarian cancer compared to women who consumed the least. Participants who consumed high levels of a third phytochemical, myricetin (found in tea, dried beans, raisins and blueberries), also seemed somewhat protected.”
Collins cautions, however, that “although the research is promising, for now women are best advised not to focus on a single potential link highlighted in one or two studies, but to follow current guidelines to lower overall cancer risk. General recommendations include following a diet that provides a wide variety of vegetables and other plant-based foods, exercising regularly and controlling weight.”
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22nd April, 2008: Green Tea May Help Beat Superbugs
Emerging research suggests that consumption of green tea may combat the growing threat of antibiotic-resistant superbugs. That’s the word from Edinburgh, Scotland where the Society for General Microbiology recently held an international conference. There Egyptian researchers discussed trials which “have shown that drinking green tea helps the action of important antibiotics in their fight against resistant superbugs, making them up to three times more effective,” according to PHYSORG.com.
Green tea was tested in combination with antibiotics against over two dozen disease-causing micro-organisms. “In every single case green tea enhanced the bacteria-killing activity of the antibiotics,” said Dr. Mervat Kassem, a faculty member at Alexandria University in Egypt, where the research was conducted. In one instance, “the killing effect of chloramphenicol [a widely used antibiotic in low-income countries] was 99.99% better when taken with green tea than when taken on its own in some circumstances,” Dr. Kassem continued. In some cases, even a small dose of green tea was effective.
“Our results show that we should consider more seriously the natural products we consume in our everyday life,” asserted Dr. Kassem.
For more information on the health benefits of green tea, readers are invited to visit the U.S. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine website at http://nccam.nih.gov/health/greentea/index.htm.
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15th April, 2008: Tea Consumption May Reduce the Risk of Carotid Plaques in Women
More good news about tea…drinking a few cups of tea a day may reduce the risk of carotid plaques in women. A new study published by Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis & Vascular Biology set out to examine the relationship between drinking tea and common carotid artery intima-media thickness and carotid plaques. As recently reported by Food Consumer, the researchers concluded the following: “In a large sample of elderly community subjects we showed for the first time that carotid plaques were less frequent with increasing tea consumption in women.”
The researchers looked at data from 6,597 subjects aged 65 or older in the French population of three cities. Carotid plaques were found in 33.7% of women who drank three or more cups a day, 42.5% of those who drank one or two cups a day and 44.0% among women who did not drink tea at all. Interestingly, for women who drank three or more cups of tea a day, this relationship was independent of age, center, major vascular risk factors, education and dietary habits.
First read about this over at Organic Tea blog and wanted to make sure to share it with our followers too…
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8th April, 2008: The Nutrient Power of the Pomegranate
Nutritionists are giving the pomegranate some well-deserved respect. For centuries the fruit has held a place of honor in the worlds of literature and religion, but it’s only been recently that evidence of its health benefits have begun to emerge in clinical studies.
In writing for LifeScript, a leading source of free, up-to-date health information, Jill Weisenberger, a registered dietician and author of several articles on nutrition, explores the many health-related attributes of this overlooked fruit. Five chief benefits stand out.
- Pomegranates pack a lot of nutrition, but relatively few calories. According to Weisenberger, pomegranates and their juice have an abundance of antioxidants and phytochemicals. These include compounds which are anti-inflammatory and cancer fighting.
- Studies suggest that the fruit promotes heart health by improving blood flow and possibly reducing the risk of atherosclerosis.
- Other disease-fighting properties are being uncovered relating to Alzheimer’s disease and its prevention.
- Osteoarthritis sufferers will be happy to hear that pomegranates may also offer relief for joint pain based on recent trials.
- Those fighting prostate cancer have good news in the form of renewed research efforts following an initial study. “The results were so promising that a larger study is now underway,” says Weisenberger.
The news only gets better! You can enjoy the health benefits of this nutrient-laden fruit even if you don’t care for the complications of its ‘natural packaging’ (pomegranates can be tricky to eat and easily stain). Bigelow Tea now offers Bigelow Green Tea with Pomegranate and Arizona Green Tea with Pomegranate and Acai (Acai is an all-natural fruit from Amazon palmberries.).
Check out these pomegranate products on the Bigelow web site and, for more details on the benefits and history of the pomegranate, view the full LifeScript article here.
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2nd April, 2008: More Reasons to Go for the Green! Green Tea that is…
A recent article in TODAY provides more evidence about the benefits of green tea. A new study, conducted at the University of Arizona, looked at the antioxidant properties of green tea. Researchers studied 42 healthy individuals who were given four capsules of green tea extract every morning for a month. The results were very favorable.
Participants who began the study with the lowest levels of the detoxification enzymes known as glutathione S-transferase or GST saw the greatest results. For these individuals, GST levels increased by 80%. This is important because GST helps the body defend itself against toxic and cancer-causing compounds found in both a person’s genetic makeup and in the environment.
Green tea contains catechins that also contain antioxidant properties, according to dietitian Charles Lew from Tan Tock Seng Hospital’s Department of Nutrition and Dietetics. Catechins may help the free radical damage often associated with certain cancers and cardiovascular disease.
The article goes on to cite green tea as a healthy beverage choice because it contains six times less caffeine than coffee and is virtually calorie free. More good about the green? Additional recent studies have also shown green tea catechins to have anti-inflammatory properties, which in turn, may help people who suffer from rheumatoid arthritis by reducing inflammation and slowing cartilage breakdown.
Go for the green…green tea!
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26th March, 2008: Working in Tandem: Tea with Lemon
Contrary to this popular song’s refrain, “Lemon tree very pretty and the lemon flower is sweet but the fruit of the poor lemon…” poor lemon? Not quite! Lemon juice has been proven to boost green tea’s anti-oxidant properties by as much as 80%. More specifically, a study at Purdue University found that lemon juice caused green tea’s catechins, which display health promoting qualities, to remain in the body that much longer, inferring greater absorbtion. Following lemon, in terms of stabilizing power, were orange, lime and grapefruit juices. Although this study only examined green tea, the lead author and assistant professor of Food Science at Purdue University, Mario Ferruzzi, suspects that some of the results could apply to black tea as well.
Working in tandem…drink tea and lemon…to better your health!
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19th March, 2008: Black Tea May Reduce Risk of Parkinson’s
Drinking at least a cup of black tea a day may reduce the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease by as much as 70% says a landmark study out of Singapore that suggests that consumption of black tea may reduce the risk of Parkinson’s disease. What makes this new research so remarkable has been its extensive scope. A MediaCorp news article notes that the findings are based on a study of over 60,000 subjects over a period of 15 years!
Led, in part, by Dr. Koh Woon Puay of the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine in the National University of Singapore and Dr. Louis Tan, a neurologist at the National Neuroscience Institute, the study “scrutinized the lifestyle and dietary habits of more than 63,000 Chinese Singaporeans.” The researchers accounted for lifestyle factors and, according to Dr. Koh, “discovered that black tea contains ingredients, other than caffeine, that have protective effects.” (Earlier studies had already revealed beneficial effects from caffeine.)
While optimum consumption of tea was not determined, test results indicate that, on average, a daily cup of black tea reduces one’s risk of Parkinson’s by approximately 70 percent. By comparison, green tea seemingly had no effect on disease susceptibility. Continuing research will examine other potential factors associated with Parkinson’s.
A cup of black tea each day is all it takes…
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18th March, 2008: The Wizard Speaks: Tea Tops Dr. Oz’s Anti-Aging Checklist on Oprah
As seen on The Oprah Winfrey Show, Dr. Oz’s Anti- Aging Checklist features tea, both green tea and white tea, as part of a regiment for looking younger and living longer. As Mellow Monk points out, Dr. Oz recommends drinking four cups of green tea and/or white tea per day. In order to combat the aging process, in addition to drinking tea, you need to stock your kitchen with anti-oxidant rich items. Dr. Oz’s favorites include blueberries, sweet potatoes, broccoli and tomatoes. The checklist outlines other “musts” like benchmarks for sleeping, vitamins, exercise and more.
Looking younger and living longer is certainly appealing…no ruby slippers required.
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