I am an avid coffee drinker. My go-to drink is a caramel latte. At the same time, have you guys ever had a salted caramel mocha or a chestnut praline latte? If you haven’t, you have to try them. They are delicious! Anyway, I love coffee. I love to start my day off with it, and whenever I am starting to feel a little run-down, I look to coffee as my pick-me-up. However, I do feel bad because I love tea too, especially green and earl grey tea. Unfortunately, the only time I drink tea is when I go to those cute tea rooms that look like Alice in Wonderland. Or, I put off drinking tea until I am having trouble sleeping or feeling sick. Tea is kind of like my back-up option. Lately, I have been wondering, Why coffee over tea? Which one is better for you in the grand scheme of things? I did some research, and lucky for you guys, I have decided to share my findings.

First off, tea and coffee have been around for ages. In fact, next to water they are both the world’s most widely consumed beverages. In addition, they both share a similar history of being founded by religious gurus on the eastern part of the world. Both drinks, have been used for centuries with the intention of keeping people alert. Now, of course, as the world advances, we look for the wrong in things that have been doing so much right for generations of people. So, what are the pros and cons of tea and coffee? Well, let’s start with coffee.

According to the Harvard School of Public Health, “coffee’s overall effect on health is pretty neutral.” There are no specific benefits, but the drink doesn’t increase a person’s chance of dying in anyway either. Coffee is capable of doing a lot of good. For example, studies have shown that coffee can prevent type 2 diabetes, it can decrease the risk of Gout in men over 40, caffeine can improve the effectiveness of painkillers, it can protect against liver cancer, and coffee can improve short-term memory and reflexes. At the same time, the phrase, “too much of a good thing,” is very true. Some people don’t know their limits, and when you abuse coffee, that is when you can run into problems like increases in bad cholesterol and tooth discoloration.

As for tea, according to the National Cancer Institute, it contains “polyphenol compounds, which are antioxidants that might aid in cancer prevention.” Also, polyphenol is known for protecting cells from DNA damage due to its free radical content. Free radicals are compounds that usually come about during metabolism and they are meant to get rid of viruses and bacteria. Moreover, tea is capable of doing a lot of other good things like preventing type 1 diabetes and liver cancer. It also decreases the risk of heart attacks and hydrates you! Nevertheless, like I said earlier, too much of a good thing can hurt you! Too much tea, black, white or green, can result in anemia, high blood pressure, and tea may contain pesticides(even when labeled organic), so watch out. You wouldn’t want to overdose on pesticides!

All in all, the the calming and rejuvenating qualities of tea and coffee are clearly amazing, but know your limits! No one likes a jitter bug.

Websites Used:

https://24.media.tumblr.com/3b6a79dbf4b50d25f47c9e4f725ca0ce/tumblr_mluh54J2yK1qd8wryo1_r2_500.gif

http://www.healthchecksystems.com/antioxid.htm

http://www.medicaldaily.com/health-benefits-coffee-vs-tea-which-one-better-you-309556

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