skinzar

1. Tea contains caffeine

The average cup of tea contains somewhere between 25-100mg of caffeine! According to the FDA, it is recommended that we limit our caffeine to 400mg per day, which is (if you’re being safe) 4 cups of tea a day. Coffee contains twice the amount of caffeine that tea does (on average) so it is recommended we drink no more than 2 cups per day.

The effects of caffeine on skin are very minimal, until we drink it in excess. If you overdo it with the tea, studies have shown that your blood pressure increases, as well as your acne!

Regular caffeine intake also increases attention span and ‘alertness’! Studies have shown that the cumulative effect of this is that it can reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, as the alertness causes a sharp and better formed memory over time.

2. Catechins

Catechins are a substance found in tea leaves (especially high in green tea) which are a class of antioxidant. Antioxidants remove free radicals and are absolutely great for giving your skin a young look. This substance is essentially anti-ageing which is brilliant really. Additionally, catechins reduce skin inflammation, thus reducing erythema (redness) and decreasing probability of acne breakouts or reducing the size of already-formed pimples

Just for extra information, coffee contains a substance similar to this – ‘phenolic acid’. It’s also an antioxidant, however it reduced LDL (low density lipoprotein) cholesterol and thus reduces risk of atherosclerosis and associated conditions such as heart attacks!

3. Be careful

• Tea that is too hot is never good – it is recommended you wait at least 2 minutes before drinking tea. Not doing this has been linked to a five-fold increase in cancer, particularly of the oesophagus. This is probably due to repetitive stress in the oesophageal lining which causes rapid production of cells to recover the trauma and then some of those cells change and become cancerous!
• Tannins in tea decrease the ease of iron absorption which is particularly troublesome if you are consuming tea between meals. It is always recommended that you take iron supplements daily to mitigate the risk of anaemia and associated problems