Health's in the Tea Bag
Well, okay, we might be slightly overstating the benefits of tea, but not by as much as you’d think; science continues to reveal just how potent the beverage is. And popular: Last year marked the 13th consecutive year that tea sales increased, according to the Tea Association of the USA, which represents the industry.
This steady increase in tea consumption is likely linked to a slew of studies showing that drinking tea can significantly improve your health. Tea has been shown to slow tumor growth in cancers of the skin, lungs, mouth, esophagus, stomach, liver, pancreas, small intestine, colon and prostate, according to a review of multiple studies reported in the January 2005 issue of The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Other research demonstrates tea’s effect on heart health—a study in the January 2003 Preventive Medicine found that people who drink more than six cups daily had significantly less heart disease than non-tea drinkers.
While pretty much any leaf or flower steeped in boiling water can be called tea, real tea comes from a single bush, Camellia sinensis. Although all real tea, especially green tea, contains powerful disease fighting antioxidants, white tea—though rare in the West—may be even more effective than its cousins. “White tea has been processed less than green tea, so its antioxidants are more intact,” says Milton Schiffenbauer, PhD, a professor of biology at Pace University in New York and one of the few scientists studying white tea.
Schiffenbauer’s research has revealed other benefits in white tea too. He tested its effects on the bacteria that cause dental cavities and found white tea to be a powerful antibacterial and antiviral agent. “For example,” he says, “when I add regular toothpaste to a virus, it kills around 5 or 6 percent of the virus. When I add white tea to the toothpaste, it kills 95 percent. The numbers are mind-boggling.” While his research has focused on toothpastes and gum, Schiffenbauer recommends drinking white tea to gain the same antibacterial benefits.
Real Camellia sinensis teas aren’t the only leafy brews that are beneficial to your health. In a study published in Radiation Research in 1999, the antioxidants in “red tea”—also called rooibos after the bush it grows on—showed liver-protecting abilities, and anecdotal evidence suggests that rooibos eases stomachaches and insomnia. Gaining the health benefits from either real tea or its red cousin is easy. Mohr suggests simply drinking a few cups per day (try starting with three). However, he says, "This is one case where more is better."
Varie-Teas
Variations in how tea leaves are processed account for the different types. The flavor is often determined by how much time passes between when the leaves are picked and when they’re dried. Here’s a primer:
Black
Black tea leaves go through the most steps. First the leaves are withered and oxidized for two weeks or more, then they’re dried. Black tea is more concentrated—and caffeinated— than other varieties. A cup can contain anywhere from 25–110 mg of caffeine (a cup of coffee contains 100–135 mg).Green
Green tea is among the least processed. Leaves are steamed and then dried within one to two days of being picked so they retain much of their color and healthful antioxidant content—and have relatively little caffeine.White
Although white tea is fairly new to America, everyone from the ritziest gourmet stores to your local supermarket is starting to sell it. White tea is made from the buds of tea leaves, which are covered in fine, silver-white “hair.” It’s minimally processed, like green tea, and has a super-light, delicate flavor.Oolong
Called semi-black tea, oolong lies somewhere between green and black in terms of the amount of processing it goes through— and the amount of caffeine and antioxidants it contains. It has a mild black-tea flavor.Red
Red tea isn’t really tea at all because the leaves come from the rooibos plant (pronounced roy-buss, which means “red bush”), which only grows in a small area of South Africa. It’s naturally caffeine free and has a full, rich, fruity flavor.Herbal
Often called tisanes because they contain no real tea (unlike flavored black or green teas), herbal “teas” are brewed from dried leaves or flowers, such as mint, chamomile, verbena and lemongrass. Tisanes can also be made from medicinal plants, such as dandelion and peppermint, which have healing properties.
8 Foods Every Vegetarian Should Eat
To help you fill in these gaps, we tapped the expertise of nutritionist Cynthia Sass, RD, a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association—and a vegan, so she totally gets it. We’ve identified the “great eight” foods on these pages. All are loaded with one or more of these hard-to-get nutrients.
The only thing you need to do: Check the chart below to see how much you personally need of each nutrient. Then use food labels to keep track of what you eat for a day or two, or even a week. Good bet you’ll be amazed by how many gaps you have. The simplest way to fill them? Start working in daily servings of the great eight.
And, oh yes, check out the recipes. They were invented by one of VT’s best staff cooks, who combined every one of the great eight foods into a single, genius soup-and-salad meal. Have a version of this meal regularly and that tricky trade-off we mentioned? Bingo, it’s gone.
1. Tofu
Why it’s great: Plain tofu has a lot going for it. It’s a terrific source of protein, zinc, iron, and it even contains some cholesterol-lowering omega-3 fatty acids. It also gives you more than 100
milligrams (mg) of calcium in a half cup. But the same amount of calcium-enriched tofu gives you up to 350 mg (about one-third of your daily needs) plus roughly 30 percent of your daily vitamin D, which helps your body absorb the calcium—an extra bone-building punch that many people need. Look for enriched soymilk, too, which is also fortified with calcium and vitamin D.
Tip: “Tofu can be substituted for the same amount of meat, poultry or fish in almost any recipe,” says Sass. Firm tofu works best because it holds its shape when you sauté it or grill it.
2. Lentils
Why they’re great: Lentils, like beans, are part of the legume family, and like beans, they’re an excellent source of protein and soluble fiber. But lentils have an edge over most beans: They contain about twice as much iron. They’re also higher in most B vitamins and folate, which is especially important for women of childbearing age as folate reduces the risk for some birth defects. For new vegetarians, lentils are also the perfect way to start eating more legumes because they tend to be less gassy.
Tip: Lentil soup is just the beginning. Add lentils to vegetable stews, chilis or casseroles. Toss them with red onions and vinaigrette. Stir them into curries; cook them with carrots. Experiment with different varieties—red lentils (right) cook up very fast and can be turned into bright purées.
3. Beans
Why they’re great: A cup a day gives you about one-third of your iron and protein and roughly half your fiber. Even better, most of that is soluble fiber, which helps lower cholesterol. One cup also provides a good amount of potassium, zinc and many B vitamins, and some calcium too. Just one alert: Rinse canned beans well—they can be soaked in salt.
Tip: It was once thought that to get a complete protein, you needed to combine beans with grains (rice, pasta, bread) at the same meal. “Now we know you just have to eat them during the same day,” Sass says. Toss beans and vegetables with whole wheat pasta; make soups and chilis with several varieties; add a sprinkling to grain.
4. Nuts
Why they’re great: They’re a nifty source of quick, totally palatable protein. In additon, walnuts, peanuts, almonds, cashews, pecans, macadamias and Brazil nuts are rich in zinc, vitamin E and omega-3 fatty acids. Some, like almonds, even provide a decent amount of calcium (about 175 mg in a half cup).
There’s also some great nut news: “Recent studies show that even though nuts are high in calories, eating them does not lead to weight gain,” says Sass. In fact, people who eat nut-rich diets tend to weigh less than those who don’t, say researchers at Loma Linda University and Purdue University. Peanuts may even help weight loss. Why nuts don’t make you fat—and may even help you lose weight—isn’t clear. “It’s possible that nuts make you feel so full that you’re less likely to overeat other foods,” says Sass. Other experts suspect that the labor-intense job of digesting nuts burns off calories. There are also hints that nuts increase the amount of fat
that passes through the digestive tract, which might explain nut-linked weight loss. More research is obviously needed!
Tip: Different nuts give you different nutrients. For example, a half cup of almonds provides about four times as much fiber as the same amount of cashews. Cashews, however, contain about twice as much iron and zinc as almost any other nut. Pecans and walnuts tend to land right in the middle for most nut nutrients—potassium, magnesium, zinc and calcium. Sprinkle them in salads, or keep a bag of mixed nuts in your desk or backpack. Garnish smooth soups with crunchy whole nuts, stir chopped nuts into muffins and add crushed nuts to pie crust.
5. Grains
Why they’re great: Some enriched whole-grain cereals are fortified with hard-to-get vitamin B12—some even offer 100 percent of a day’s requirement in one serving—as well as iron, calcium and many other nutrients. Keep in mind that if you don’t eat eggs or dairy, you’ll have to take a B12 supplement to make sure you’re getting enough. As a group, cereals and other whole-grain foods (whole wheat breads and pastas, brown rice, etc.) are also high in other B vitamins, zinc and, of course, insoluble fiber, which not only helps whisk cholesterol out of your system but may reduce your risk of colon cancer and
other digestive disorders.
Tip: Because different grains provide different nutrients, vary the types you eat. “It’s easy to get into a rut of, say, just making brown rice all the time. It’s better to mix up the grains you eat,
including oatmeal, bulgur, wild rice, whole rye and pumpernickel breads,” says Sass. Also try some of the ancient grains—spelt, farro, kamut—which are now sold at most whole foods markets.
6. Leafy Greens
Why they’re great: Unlike most vegetables, dark leafy greens such as spinach, broccoli, kale, Swiss chard and collards contain healthful amounts of iron—especially spinach, which has about 6 grams or about one-third of a day’s supply. They’re also a great source of cancer-fighting antioxidants; are high in folic acid and vitamin A; and they even contain calcium, but in a form that’s not easily absorbed. Cooking greens and/or sprinkling them with a little lemon juice or vinegar makes the calcium more available to your body, says Sass.
Tip: Always try to eat iron-rich foods with foods that are high in vitamin C because the C helps your body absorb the iron. With dark leafy greens, this comes naturally—just toss them into salads with yellow and red peppers, tomatoes, carrots, mandarin oranges or any citrus. Or if you prefer your veggies cooked, sauté a couple of cups of greens in some seasoned olive oil
with sweet peppers, garlic and onion.
7. Seaweeds
Why they’re great: Besides being a terrific source of iron and phytochemicals, many seaweeds—such as alaria, dulse, kelp, nori, spirulina and agar—are good sources of minerals, including magnesium, calcium, iodine, iron and chromium, as well as vitamins A, C, E and many of the Bs. Talk about superfoods!
Tip: Add chopped dulse to salads or sandwiches, sauté it with other vegetables or use it in soups. Use nori sheets as the wrappers for vegetarian sushi. Toast kelp, and crumble it on pasta or rice, or add it to noodle soups. Browse through Japanese or Korean markets to find seaweeds to sample.
8. Dried Fruits
Why they’re great: They’re good, super-convenient sources of iron—and if you combine them with some mixed nuts, you’ve got a packet of iron and protein you can take anywhere easily. In addition, dried fruits—think apricots, raisins, prunes, mangos, pineapple, figs, dates, cherries and cranberries—provide a wide array of minerals and vitamins as well as some fiber. And even kids love to snack on them.
Tip: Sprinkle them on salads, use in chutneys, stir into puréed squash and sweet potatoes, or blend with nuts and seeds to make your own favorite snack mix. Chopped up, dried fruits make healthful additions to puddings, fruit-based pie fillings, oat bars, cookies, hot and cold
cereals—you name it.
Top 7 Foods to Try
If you’re a new vegetarian or vegan, be sure to try these if you haven’t already. After all, exploring new tastes, textures and flavors is half the fun of going vegetarian! Look for these foods at natural foods stores and well-stocked grocery stores.
1. Tofu
2. Seitan
3. Egg Replacer
4. Nutritional Yeast
5. Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP)
6. Tempeh
Tempeh is made from cooked and fermented soybeans and formed into a patty, similar to a firm veggie burger. If you absolutely hate tofu, tempeh has a similar protein and calcium content, as well as beneficial isoflavones, but tastes nothing like tofu, as it has a textured and nutty flavor. Tempeh can be found in the refrigerated section of most health food stores.7. Soy Ice Cream
Pollution inside your car
Informed consumers know by now that the “new car smell”—released by chemicals in seat cushions, armrests, floor coverings and other features of an auto’s interior—is not a good thing. But we’re just learning how bad it might be.
The Ecology Center tested the interiors of 2000- to 2005-model-year cars for the presence of toxic chemicals. It checked out 11 leading automakers and discovered that worrisome substances known as PBDEs (for flame-retardant polybrominated diphenyl ethers), linked to brain and thyroid problems, exist at levels five times higher in cars than in homes and offices.
“Most people think about cars causing outdoor air pollution, such as smog,” said Jeff Gearhart, the Ecology Center’s campaign director, when the group released its report in January 2006. “Now we know that breathing the air and dust inside cars may be dangerous.”
Founded nearly 40 years ago after the country’s first Earth Day, the Ann Arbor, MI–based Ecology Center is now working with Environmental Defense, the Environmental Working Group and Greenpeace to reform the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976. This federal law establishes which chemicals are approved for use in consumer products, including cars.
“But PBDEs were already in use when the law was passed,” Gearhart tells VT, so they were “grandfathered” in. “We want to change the law so grandfathered chemicals must undergo the same toxicity testings as new chemicals do, and if they fail the tests, are banned.”
Banning these flame retardants would be irresponsible, says John Kyte, North American program director for the Bromine Science and Environmental Forum, which represents PBDE manufacturers. “The Ecology Center reported the presence of [PBDEs], but at inconsequential levels,” Kyte tells VT. “Fire prevention in automobiles is critical,” and PBDEs include deca-PBDE, the most studied flame retardant.
If PBDEs are banned, it’s unlikely to be in one fell swoop. Because states can establish their own standards for which chemicals are permissible in consumer products, the Ecology Center is campaigning in state houses as well as in Congress.
“That’s actually a good thing,” Gearhart explains. “Since it’s not realistic for automakers to design a car for every market, if even one state requires that PBDEs be removed from cars, automakers will have to design their products to meet this most restrictive standard. That’s a huge victory.”