Tea Trouble? Mais non!

Delicious hot tea, how I enjoy its comforting aroma, its tasty flavor, even the soothing ritual of making tea.

However - sorry, but yes, there is a however - both hot and iced teas have their downsides. 

Allow me to quote Anne Barone:

"I mistakenly believed that, drunk without sugar, iced tea was a 'diet beverage.' Now I know that iced tea poses hindrances to weight loss.

'Iced tea glasses are huge, holding about twice as much as the average water glass. On a hot day (and we had a lot of them where I grew up), I might slosh down two glasses per meal and several in between. That is a lot of caffeine and tannic acid. Nutritionists warn that tannic acid interferes with iron absorption. Not enough iron and we feel exhausted. And if we feel exhausted, we aren't going to be moving around burning up calories are we? We might just grab a quick sugar boost from a candy bar.

'Excess caffeine, besides depleting us of the B vitamins and vitamin C, can increase appetite and induce a craving for sweets. (Maybe that is why in my iced tea drinking days I couldn't pass the cookie jar without taking one.) Unfortunately, no-calorie iced tea can cause you to take in more calories in the long run - or suffer uncomfortable hunger pangs. The French stick with their mineral water with a squeeze of lemon as a hot weather thirst quencher."

Okay, all of that being said, let's add a positive however. 

However, I believe the classic rule of thumb - Moderation in Everything - applies here, don't you?

Awareness of the physical, emotional, and mental effects of food and beverages is crucial to good health management as well as quality of life. After drinking tea, I have often suffered from the disadvantages Anne mentions in the above quote. Feeling exhausted can follow in the hours after my sipping, even though I've had adequate sleep and exercise. Also, I've noticed a sweet tooth later in the day after enjoying my morning tea. 

Now that I understand what is happening, this awareness causes me to consider my choices and thus mitigate the effects. I plan when I shall enjoy tea, consciously eating foods high in the B vitamins, vitamin C, and iron on days when I don't have tea. I make sure to arrange for a quality, portion-controlled dessert for later to allow me to control the sweet tooth. Knowing there is a delicious dessert after dinner makes it quite easy for me to resist compulsive sweet-tooth snacking beforehand. I've also noticed that when I have my morning tea with a good breakfast which includes eggs (my morning protein-of-choice), I don't get the lagging feeling later in the day. 

Tea shall remain in my weekly diet, not every day simply because it upsets my stomach if I consume too much. I shall continue to enjoy its comfort and soothing attributes while remaining mindful to be proactive in dealing with the downsides.

Découragement non! Let us not be discouraged in tea's little drawbacks. The joyful indulgence is worth the consequences.

Yes, we can have our tea and delight in it, too.

Bois ton thé avec bonheur! (Drink your tea with happiness!)