Although SE Asia produces wonderful coffee, won't the majority of the non tea drinkers in this study drink water, fruit juicers and beer?
Tea tipplers are more likely to live longer, healthier lives than you triple venti pumpkin-syrup soy-milk latte-swilling fiends
Tea lovers that chug three or more cups of the warm nectar per week are more likely to live longer than those that drink tea less often, or never touch the wonderful stuff. “Habitual tea consumption is associated with lower risks of cardiovascular disease and all-cause death,” said Xinyan Wang, a researcher at the Chinese …
COMMENTS
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Sunday 12th January 2020 12:07 GMT Anonymous Coward
Yep.
Correlation =/= cause. Would have to see if it is, or even possible (as many lie about consumption, has killed family and others we know), to control for alcohol consumption taking the place of "alternatives" to drinking tea in the study.
(Though as you say, regional differences in consumption and lifestyle would also have a drastic difference. If poor drink less tea, and rich drink more, giving the poor more tea instead of better healthcare, won't help em!)
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Sunday 12th January 2020 18:35 GMT Yet Another Anonymous coward
Re: Yep.
Scientists here at the Institute of Studies, compared tea drinking monks in a Tibetan monastery with coffee drinkers in Syria and concluded that tea drinking protects you from nerve gas.
We are also investigating complaints that there have been no proper double-blind trials of the effectiveness of parachutes and intend to replace half the chutes in the Army Parachute display team with anvils.
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Monday 13th January 2020 11:06 GMT Michael H.F. Wilkinson
Re: missing details
Lapsang Souchong is great. I frequently have it in the afternoon, and then some colleagues think their computer might be overheating when I enter their offices, with my steaming mug of smokey Lapsang Souchong.
Keemun black teas have the advantage that they never turn bitter if you forget to take the infuser out of your mug.
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Sunday 12th January 2020 12:46 GMT Charlie Clark
Nothing new here
Black tea also has anti-oxidants and, as long as you don't drink it with sugar – which only perverts do – has long been considered to be "beneficial". Or at least not harmful. Fermentation is a trade off: personally I find green tea very harsh. I seem to recall that tea is also a good source of fluoride, but could be wrong.
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Sunday 12th January 2020 16:32 GMT Anonymous Coward
Re: Nothing new here
"Tea is a good source of fluoride for winding up the anti-fluoride crowd."
Ignorance is bliss, I guess this is why you're so blasé about it
Industralists are clapping their hands, thanking people like you
You've saved them Trillion$ in responsible disposure costs
You sir, are a filter, well done
Oh and by the way, cigarettes are healthy, the PR company said so /Sarcasm
I thought IT people were inquisitive, I know I am
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Sunday 12th January 2020 18:42 GMT Jan 0
Re: Nothing new here
That linked article is a pretty good summary of the pros and cons of fluoride water treatment, from a mid twentieth century viewpoint. The author strays from neutrality by careful use of pejorative words like pollution (like weeds, pollution is something that's not owanted in particular contexts.) Pretending that FSA is something frightening, but carefully not revealing what FSA is. (Fluorosilicic acid. OOH! It's an acid! Run for the hills. Err wait, I've got acid in my stomach;) If FSA is contaminated with arsenic, then it requires further treatment, not abandonment.
Flaming Death, via Frank Zelko, seems to think that we should have waited until the 21st century before introducing fluoride for the prevention of tooth decay. I'd like to know how much chemistry Frank Zelko has been taught.
In the light of 21st century knowledge, we can now further optimise the use of this frightening pollutant:). Does Flaming Death have a better plan to optimise fluoride levels in humans?
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Monday 13th January 2020 09:28 GMT Charlie Clark
Re: Nothing new here
I can't drink black tea without milk or lemon juice: the physical reaction is simply too strong. Never tastes greasy to me, but, in hard water areas it's likely to taste sweet because of the lactose in the milk. NB. without some kind of acid regulator, it's not so good for the teeth.
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Monday 13th January 2020 00:15 GMT bombastic bob
Re: Nothing new here
well I like Earl Grey (black tea) with enough sugar in it to kill the bitter... as well as my daily quad cappuccino with lots of "fake sugar": (stevia) in it, and heavy cream in the foamy stuff. An chocolate syrup. yum!
I often use bags of Twining's English Breakfast to make iced tea. 4 bags makes 1 gallon of it (on the stove for ~10 minutes in a large pot on high, just short of boiling) then cool it in a sink partly full of water, then into a pitcher with 2.5 cups equivalent of stevia, and some 'fake vanilla' to go with it, or maybe peppermint oil, or something equally interesting, THEN into the fridge. I typically do a gallon of such tea every couple of days. Gotta maintain those caffeine levels!
/me wonders what kinds of looks of shock and horror will emerge from this description.
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Monday 13th January 2020 07:54 GMT Holtsmark
Re: Nothing new here
Having tried the "teas" available in the UK, I can onl comiserate with you for trying to make these liquid horrors drinkable. But do not despair.. There is more to tea than that which can be found on the shelves of Tesco.
/me pours himself a cup of "Prinz von Homburg", a green tea blend from his local tea store, which by now is being exported to friends and familyy all over the world..
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Monday 13th January 2020 10:04 GMT Holtsmark
Re: Nothing new here
El Reg being a British (soon to be English) Rag, I expected some downvotes for that comment :)
I just find it funny how the "nation of tea drinkers" often serve stuff that more or less comitted tea-drinkers from the rest of the world find awfull..
Anyway.. to each his own.. It all depends on what one is used to.
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Monday 13th January 2020 16:47 GMT I ain't Spartacus
Re: Nothing new here
I just find it funny how the "nation of tea drinkers" often serve stuff that more or less comitted tea-drinkers from the rest of the world find awful
Holtsmark,
There could be a simple reason for that. Because we're a nation of tea drinkers, everyone drinks the stuff. Which means that lots of people are drinking the cheaper ones or the brands that they grew up with.
Whereas, if you come from a country where tea is only drunk by connoisseurs, then the people who drink it are going to be much more fussy about what they get.
I like tea, and care about which ones I drink. But Sainsbury's Red Label is still delicious as a basic everyday "breakfast tea" blend. I prefer that to quite a few of the expensive speciality ones I've tried.
It also matters if you have your tea with milk. A lot of the taste is disguised by milk, so if you've always drunk it with milk and two sugars - it doesn't matter as much what you're having. You drink what you're used to.
I also find that loose leaf tea is probably not much "better" than tea from teabags. Although you're more likely to get better quality (and pay more for it). But the consistency of your tea will be much higher made in a teapot (even with tea bags) than made in a cup - where how you pour it and how long you steep it seems to make a much bigger difference in how the tea tastes.
Darjeeling, black, no sugar please.
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Monday 13th January 2020 19:45 GMT werdsmith
Re: Nothing new here
@Holtsmark
I’ve been around the world and had some wonderful tea in Asia. But most of the world, I’ve tried tea when I can actually get it and I find they haven’t actually got a clue about tea. On the evidence of your comment I would say you were one of them.
Tea here is a casual several times a day drink, and when it’s done right nothing beats it, Nothing.
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Monday 13th January 2020 08:39 GMT werdsmith
Re: Nothing new here
Cheap green tea products are quite harsh. You need to spend a bit more to get the smooth ones.
Double Dragon Organic Green tea from H&B is a good low cost choice. Don't brew it too long, don't squeeze the bag and you will get smooth green tea.
As for health properties, I believe that anyone who actively uses green tea is probably someone who mindfully wants to look after themselves in general so are probably making healthy choices in general and their good condition is not necessarily down to the tea.
I drink tea any time anything needs sorting out and it seems to fix everything.
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Monday 13th January 2020 13:51 GMT imanidiot
Re: Nothing new here
Most important, unlike black tea, green tea should be set with water that has come off the boil and cooled a bit. 80 to 90 degrees C is usually recommended, depending on the tea. This can require some experimentation on how long to let the water cool. Some people don't even bring the water to a boil first, personally I think they are wrong. Boiling water on green tea actually brings out the less tasteful compounds.
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Sunday 12th January 2020 13:12 GMT Muscleguy
That final caveat is the killer, confounders to the left of 'em, confounders to the right of 'em.
I suspect it's a trojan. When I'm sedentary I want to drink more coffee. When I'm active (distance running) my tastes change and I want tea. Black with lemon, preferably Russian Caravan tea. I happen to have a mug of it beside me right now.
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Monday 13th January 2020 13:56 GMT imanidiot
Re: Details?
Actually, the link between soy and hormone production is tenuous at best and disputed. The effects of plasticizers on hormone levels have been linked much more clearly. How much plasticizer is going to leach out of a teabag and whether that amount will have any effect is another matter. I prefer good quality loose leaf tea over a teabag anyway since what ends up in the bags is usually the cheapest shit they can find at the time and the loose leaf is quite a lot better quality.
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Monday 13th January 2020 11:57 GMT Chairman of the Bored
Re: Erm...
Where did I get that? Apologies, I forgot the British context and tea culture of El Reg. My wife's family is from China, and in that context the higher end black teas are for export, the swill is consumed domestically, and green tea is a premium product. Therefore people with higher socioeconomic status will generally grab the green... In part because it's a status thing. But these people will live longer anyways. Confounding factors.
FWIW, if you order tea in a Chinese restaurant in the USA, you will invariably get an exceptionally weak cup of green. Ask for "whatever the manger is drinking"
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Sunday 12th January 2020 18:42 GMT TWB
My problem with tea
I love it, but I always want a biscuit (or many) with it, so tea may shorten my life indirectly.
The thing is with these 'xxxxx extends your life' claims, is that longer lives are not always more enjoyable, you may suffer for longer at the end. It's a bit like when people/commentators/journalists/politicians say "we're all living longer - which is a good thing" - really?.....I can think of loads of downsides to people living longer.
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Sunday 12th January 2020 21:14 GMT Blofeld's Cat
Re: My problem with tea
A centenarian being interviewed on her 100th birthday, was asked what one thing she considered had most contributed to her long life.
She paused for a moment and then said, "Having the measles as a young child".
The interviewer looked puzzled and asked for clarification.
"Well", said the centenarian, "they wouldn't allow me to board the Titanic in 1912".
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Sunday 12th January 2020 20:10 GMT Chris G
Builder's tea
Is the way to go, although I leave out the skip of sugar in my case. The ad used to claim 'So strong you'll grow a third bollock' which is what this study seems to contain, a lot of bollocks.
Tea, if you enjoy it, will benefit you to some degree or other but as to whether or not it will help to prolong your life will depend on so many other factors.
For example I find drinking tea while driving a large, fast motorcyle up (or down) a motorway can be potentially life limiting, while sitting at my PC with a pint porcelain mug of the aforementioned builder's beverage is only dangerous if I drop the boiling tea and heavy mug on my toe. Medical studies that are largely based on a single or narrow set of statistics are in real terms quite valueless, except to actuaries who may use the results to separate insured persons from larger amounts of premium .
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Monday 13th January 2020 11:26 GMT 0laf
Hmm onl;y with green tea and not taking into account other health factors. Dare I suggest that those who drink green tea regualrly are also statistically more likely to be the type of people who will eat more healthily.
I'm not sure too many pasty loving human larballs are regular green tea drinkers.
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Monday 13th January 2020 17:00 GMT I ain't Spartacus
Well, I love a green tea with a chinese takeaway. Or in a chinese restaurant. Or when I have sushi at the place next to the cinema, before going in to watch a film with the help of some friendly Maltesers...
Though when I cook chinese food it tends to be jasmine tea at the moment.
Sadly my lifestyle is not as healthy as it should be. So I'm hoping that all the tea I drink counteracts this. Pass the bacon!
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Monday 13th January 2020 15:53 GMT ThatOne
Science has made a major leap
Let me see if I get this straight: So people occasionally drinking a cup of tea might live up to a year more than those who never ever drink any tea? If this is an advertisement for tea the benefit is much too small, make it a decade, insist on good health till the end.
First of all, the limit of "tea-drinking habit" is set so low it is hard to not be included, especially in a country where tea is traditional (I guess, never been there). So, who are those bad apples who never drink any tea, despite the environment? Hm?
Second, one year is not much, it's all too near to the noise level. It might as well be caused by socio-economic differences (rich vs. poor, city dweller vs. peasant), did they filter for that?
Third, there have already been number of studies (many to be found here on El Reg) proving that tea (and coffee, or tea, but not coffee, or coffee, but not tea - and wine too, red, but not white, actually white too, but not beer, although beer too) are lowering the risk of some specific health problems.
If I had to summarize the whole discussion I'd say "Actually it seems that several traditional drinks might have some minor health benefits"... Yes, so we've been told.
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Monday 13th January 2020 16:21 GMT Chairman of the Bored
Crap diets
Sometimes there are exceptions to the rule.
Many years ago I took my then 85-year-old grandmom to the doctor for an annual checkup. He gave her the traditional lecture about her crap diet: full of saturated fats, caffeine, sugar... And she asked him, "So, I'm 85 and I've outlived every one of my peers. So what you are saying is that if I eat a crap diet I won't live to old age? Well.....?"
Doc: "umm.... er...."
Grandmom, "With respect, young man, I've outlived three of YOU docs despite your fancy diets..."
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Monday 13th January 2020 16:42 GMT Dropper
Tea and Beer
https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/03/23/bmj_uk_alcohol_study/
So a cuppa in the morning and a beer before bed.. heart attack risk reduced by nearly half!
So can I cancel death completely by eating bacon sarnies with my tea and a vindaloo with my beer? If so, it would be the final proof that God is British.
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Monday 13th January 2020 17:31 GMT IareFlash
Love Tea, Drinkers
You only have to mention the blessed cuppa on this website and within minutes you have more prose on the subject than the combined works of Shakespeare.
Flame away dear tea imbibers lets have a brewhahahaha!
Bewleys English Breakfast, 1 sugar, full fat milk.
I thank you.