The Pros and Cons of Tea: Seven Benefits and Side Effects of Drinking Tea

Everything should be done in moderation, including drinking tea. Drinking light tea can be good for your health, while drinking strong tea can be detrimental to your health. Therefore, it is beneficial to drink tea at the right time. So, what are the side effects of drinking tea?

【Seven Benefits of Drinking Tea】

1. Helps to refresh and stimulate the mind

Caffeine in tea can stimulate the central nervous system, enhance the excitement process of the cerebral cortex, and make people feel energized, enhancing thinking and memory capabilities.

2. Lowers cholesterol and cleanses the intestines

The combined action of tea polyphenols, theaflavins, and vitamin C can promote fat oxidation, aid digestion, lower cholesterol, and help with weight loss. Additionally, tea polyphenols can dissolve fat, while vitamin C can promote the excretion of cholesterol. Green tea contains tea saponin, which improves the resilience of blood vessels and makes them less likely to rupture.

3. Prevents heart disease

For heart disease patients over the age of 60 who drink more than 14 cups of tea per week, the risk of death within three and a half years after a heart attack is 44% lower compared to non-tea drinkers. Even drinking less than 14 cups can reduce the mortality rate of heart disease by 28%.

4. Helps with weight loss and skincare

Oolong tea not only helps moisturize the throat, freshens the breath, and prevents tooth decay, but also prevents skin allergies, eliminates excess subcutaneous fat, and reduces the appearance of "orange peel" skin. Catechins in green tea have significant antioxidant effects, helping improve complexion and brighten the skin tone.

5. Helps with diuresis and fatigue relief

Caffeine in tea can stimulate the kidneys, promote the rapid excretion of urine, increase the glomerular filtration rate of the kidneys, and reduce the time harmful substances stay in the kidneys. Caffeine can also eliminate excessive lactic acid in urine, helping the body quickly recover from fatigue.

6. Antibacterial and disinfectant properties

Liu Zhenliang listed "using tea to dispel pestilential qi" as one of the ten virtues of tea in "The Ten Virtues of Tea". Throughout history, tea therapy has also mentioned similar ideas of using tea to detoxify and sterilize. In Chinese folklore, tea leaves have always been used to disinfect small wounds. This is because a chemical substance called "theanine" in tea leaves can enhance the body's ability to resist infections by 5 times.

7. Promotes longevity

In Okinawa, one of the world's longest-lived regions, elderly people habitually drink traditional matcha (a type of Japanese green tea) and genmaicha (a type of tea that mixes green tea with brown rice) for health benefits. They also mix in various grains to regulate the stomach and intestines and slow down aging.

【Side Effects of Drinking Tea】

1. Frequently drinking large amounts of strong tea can cause various discomforts, such as diluting gastric juice and hindering normal digestion.

A person normally secretes 1.5-2.5 liters of gastric juice per day, which can digest the daily intake of food. Drinking large amounts of strong tea can dilute gastric juice, decrease its concentration, and hinder the digestion of food, leading to indigestion, bloating, abdominal pain, and in some cases, duodenal ulcers.

2. Tea hinders the absorption of iron in the body.

Tea contains tannic acid, with black tea containing about 5% and green tea containing about 10%. When a person drinks large amounts of strong tea, the interaction between tannic acid and iron becomes more active, hindering the absorption of iron and resulting in iron-deficiency anemia.

3. Drinking strong tea can cause constipation. Tannic acid in tea can not only bind with iron, but also bind with protein in food to form a clumpy tannic acid-protein that is difficult to digest and absorb, leading to constipation. For elderly people with constipation, drinking strong tea will worsen the condition.

4. Drinking strong tea can increase blood pressure and exacerbate heart failure.

Caffeine in strong tea can accelerate heart rate, leading to increased blood pressure. Additionally, the large amount of strong tea entering the blood vessels can increase the burden on the heart, resulting in chest tightness, palpitations, and worsening heart failure.