Are ready-to-drink teas as healthy as consumers think?
Does tea have health benefits? Yes. Generally speaking, when tea is brewed and consumed relatively quickly, it provides many health benefits that come mostly from antioxidant polyphenolics naturally present in tea. Today, tea has become hugely popular because it provides the nutritional health benefits and everyday convenience that consumers are looking for in functional beverages.
Antioxidants. Antioxidant benefits are probably the most well-known natural benefits of tea, and products that claim to contain “antioxidants” are readily available. Tea’s strong antioxidant capacity comes from tea catechins, which are a unique group of flavonoids present only in tea and chocolate and are known for providing higher amounts of antioxidants than other known polyphenolic compounds, such as those present in fruits and vegetables.Since antioxidants have numerous positive impacts on human health including free radical reduction, cancer prevention, and lowering the risk of heart disease, they are considered the most important functionality that tea and other plants can provide.
Increased energy. Another large perk of tea is its natural energy boost. Tea is now being used as an ingredient in products such as energy drinks, energy shots, stick packs and protein powders, which allows for these products to be made with fewer artificial ingredients, and therefore appeal to consumer’s growing interest in healthy consumption. Tea itself is also being advertised as an energy source in the U.S. There is a claim on many energy products that states, “provides energy for improved performance,” which has been proven true in many clinical studies where tea is the main test ingredient. According to a study conducted by Panza et al, 2008 in Brazil, antioxidants in green tea may increase the benefits of strength-training exercises by reducing detrimental effects of oxygen-related stress because of the natural presence of caffeine and flavonoids (Nutrition, 2008)1.
Muscle recovery. Tea is also a valuable ingredient in the category of sports nutrition because tea has muscle recovery functionality. As compared to the other benefits of tea, this is one of the most up-and-coming reasons to consume tea. Its benefits have been proven true in many clinical studies. For example, when 14 athletes consumed antioxidant-rich green tea three times a day for seven days, oxygen-related stress caused by increased free radical production during resistance training was reduced because of the green tea’s superior antioxidant capacity from catechins. This result suggests that green tea extracts can be used in sport drinks to help with recovery from fatigue and reduce stress from exercise (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1999)2.
Weight management. Drinking tea helps people lose weight because it prevents lipid and carbohydrate absorption, suppresses appetite, and boosts metabolism. Since weight management requires a lot of tea polyphenolics to spur weight loss, weight management products with a tea base generally exist as dietary supplements, which contain a highly-concentrated form of tea polyphenolics. This allows weight loss to be jump-started with polyphenolics (tea catechin) and caffeine.
Immunity protection. Generally speaking, tea is a well-known immune system booster when it is freshly brewed. Teas claiming “immune support” are available in the tea market and are growing in popularity. These teas are made with Camellia sinensis, and are typically herbal teas.
Anti-aging. Anti-aging benefits come directly from antioxidant activity, and tea naturally has anti-aging capabilities because of its high levels of antioxidants. Several teas claim anti-aging ability, but many consumers believe putting tea extract directly on the skin provides better results. Thus, cosmetics in the anti-aging category made with tea extracts are becoming more popular.
Real Health Benefits of Tea
The tea drinking culture in the U.S. is unique compared to other tea drinking countries because about 80% of tea consumed in the U.S. is served chilled.3 This is attributed to the rapid expansion of the ready-to-drink (RTD) tea market. Many consumers are shifting toward healthy beverages, and it has made tea the seventh most popular beverage, following soft drinks, water, beer, milk, coffee, and fruit beverages in the U.S. beverage market.4
These days many people drink tea on a daily basis because it is convenient, many exotic and enticing flavors are available, and it can be made hot or cold, depending on a consumer’s mood or the season. Most importantly, consumers view tea as a healthy alternative to soft drinks. This certainly holds true when drinking brewed tea, but the same healthy perception might not always be true when drinking RTD tea. RTD tea often does not contain the same number of polyphenolics as its brewed counterpart, despite how it may be labeled.
Source: Nutraceuticals World
