Time for a Change
By Cal Orey

Imagine: You’re experiencing hot flashes, night sweats and mood swings, and you find yourself about to enter a strange new world—menopausal changes at mid-life. It’s enough to make a woman feel like an alien. But it doesn’t have to be an Outer Limits event.

“Since an estimated 1,328,000 women in the United States actually hit menopause every year now, you have lots of company,” report co-authors Lorilee Schoenbeck, ND, Cheryl A. Gibson, MD, and M. Brooke Barss, MD, in Menopause (Twin Streams).
Fortunately, with what we know now about menopause—commonly known as “the change of life”—you don’t have to feel isolated, powerless or out of touch.

Tell-Tale Signs of Hormonal Imbalance
Menopause is the time in which a woman’s sex hormone levels start to decrease and she stops menstruating. Because of the change in hormone levels, menopause may cause physical discomforts that seem as weird as sighting an UFO. But understanding why these changes occur can be helpful to the female psyche and put The Change into perspective.

“In the menopausal woman, the imbalance of these hormones cause the deleterious effects of estrogen to surface,” reports Raquel Martin in The Estrogen Alternative (Healing Arts Press). “They include tendencies to increased body fat, salt and fluid retention, depression and headaches, and increased blood clotting—root causes of the well-known complaints of many menopausal women. This same imbalance between progesterone and estrogen is frequently a cause of PMS in premenopausal women.”
Other common menopausal experiences may or may not include changes in menstrual periods, night sweats, insomnia, mood changes, heart palpitations, vaginal dryness, and the single most common complaint—hot flashes. Every women reacts differently.
While the cause of hot flashes or flushes (which are an unexpected warm feeling in a woman’s body) is still unknown, less estrogen and more of the hormone’s follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) may be partly to blame.
Certainly, knowledge of what to expect during the “pause” is calming. But there’s no doubt that strange, uncomfortable menopausal signs can still be stressful.

Nature’s Remedies
Instead of asking the doctor to prescribe menopausal hormone replacement therapy (which has pros and cons) to ease menopausal discomforts, more and more premenopausal and menopausal women are discovering phytoestrogens (phyto originated from the Greek word for “plant”) and nutrients as a healthful alternative.
“There’s a whole class of compounds known as phytoestrogens that are famous. They are plant forms of wheat molecules that actually do bind to estrogen receptors in the body, and activate the cells that have estrogen receptors on them,” explains Schoenbeck, who has a private practice in Vermont where she specializes in women’s health.
“If you eat or take phytoestrogens it feels to your body like there is more estrogen around even when there isn’t,” adds Schoenbeck. And phytoestrogens, which are found in soy foods and herbs, may work wonders for premenopausal, menopausal and postmenopausal women.
Resveratrol can help. A compound found in grapes, wine and the roots of an herb called Japanese knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum, used in traditional Chinese medicine), research has shown that resveratrol is an estrogen mimic, which may help explain its reported heart-healthy benefits (Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 1997; 94:14138-43).

Bountiful Vitamins
While eating a phytoestrogen-rich diet may ease menopausal discomforts, nutritional experts believe that vitamins and minerals are important, too.
For example, vitamin E may benefit women complaining of vaginal irritation, vaginal dryness or painful intercourse. The anti-stress nutrient, vitamin C, may help relieve some physical and emotional stress linked with menopause. And calcium and magnesium are two soothing minerals that may help reduce those irritating hot flashes and night sweats, as well as prevent the bone loss that can occur due to estrogen loss.

The Soy Solution
Two of the more notable phytoestrogens, diadzein and genistein, are commonly found in such soy foods as soy nuts, soy milk, tofu and miso, and in supplements. In some Asian countries, where women consume plenty of soy, hot flashes and other menopausal complaints are reported to be nonexistent.
According to the Menopause co-authors, during the 1980s anthropologist Margaret Lock, PhD, compared the menopausal experience of over 10,000 women in Japan, Canada and the United States. “At the start, Lock was astonished that there was no Japanese word for ‘hot flash,’ and more so when she found no word for menopause! She would later conclude that the Japanese had no word to signify the end of menstruation simply because it was not a significant event.”
Add the co-authors: “The now-famous dietary influence of phytoestrogen-containing soy products in the traditional Japanese diet likely contributed to the lack of symptoms Lock found in Japanese women.”
So how exactly does soy work? “When a woman’s estrogen level goes down, and she has less estrogen in her bloodstream, her body may react to that by having hot flashes or night sweats. Sometimes supplementing with soy in the diet can ease these symptoms because it can make her body feel like there is a little more estrogen around,” explains Schoenbeck.
In one study, researchers kept track of a group of 177 postmenopausal women who were experiencing five or more hot flashes each day. These women took soy isoflavone extract or a placebo on a daily basis. Two weeks later, decreases in hot flashes occurred in the soy group, but the women who didn’t take soy had no relief for the first month (Menopause 2000 Jul-Aug; 7(4):236-42).

Chasteberry: Mother Nature’s Hormone Helper
Versatile chasteberry (Vitex agnus-castus) may prove beneficial to both premenopausal women who have irregular periods and PMS and menopausal women who experience hot flashes.
Chasteberry is believed to help balance out-of-whack hormones involved in the menstrual cycle.
“It is the herb of choice for early perimenopausal (premenopausal) women. It increases luteinizing hormone and inhibits the release of follicle stimulating hormone. And it has the effect of slightly enhancing your own body’s progesterone,” points out Schoenbeck.
German studies conducted in the late twentieth century found that chasteberry reduces PMS symptoms, including fatigue, anxiety and mood swings. Its benefits are believed to come from various chemical components, which include chasteberry flavonoids, reports Sue Kovach in Super Herbs (Globe).
Researchers also believe that chasteberry has a strong effect on the pituitary gland, the body’s master hormone controller located underneath the brain. This may help it to normalize ovarian hormones, which might explain its benefits in reducing some menopause complaints such as hot flashes, Kovach adds.

Other Herbal Helpers
Chasteberry isn’t the only remedy herbalists recommend for menopausal discomforts. Other herbs used during The Change include dong quai (Angelica sinesis), a Chinese herb that contains phytoestrogens which the body may use similarly to estrogen. Herbalists recommend dong quai to help ease hot flashes and vaginal dryness. Motherwort (Leonorus cardiaca), used since antiquity for its effects on the heart, can be helpful in treating palpitations, and in relieving hot flashes and night sweats.
Some herbs are especially prized for their ability to straighten out the emotional rollercoaster many women ride during menopause. One of the most famous is St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum). This herb appears to make serotonin, a neurotransmitter vital to good mood, more effective, which helps ease moderate depression in many people. Valerian (Valeriana officinalis), another brain chemical modulator, acts as a sedative and treats insomnia.

Heart-Healthy Clover
Like black cohosh, red clover (Trifolium pratense) is another herb that contains helpful phytoestrogens, including formonoetin, daidzein, genistein and biochanin. “All these compounds can bind to estrogen receptors and therefore act like weak estrogen molecules,” report the Menopause coauthors. In several studies, women who took red clover extracts found relief from hot flashes.
Evidence suggests, however, that red clover’s strength lies in providing heart protection.
“One Australian study (Menopause 2001; 8(5):333-37)...showed that red clover raised HDL (good) cholesterol by 28%,” point out the Menopause co-authors. That’s a good thing, since the risk of developing heart disease increases when estrogen levels decrease during and after menopause.

Benefits of The Change
Despite all the complaints and discomforts a woman can experience during her menopausal years, the change actually does have its perks.
For example, menopause can be a time to kiss pesky gynecological symptoms goodbye.
“Uterine fibroids, which can cause intense cramping and excessive bleeding, will shrink as estrogen declines. The pain associated with endometriosis usually vanishes at menopause. Fibrocystic breast tissue softens, making it easier for most women to perform breast examinations,” point out the Menopause co-authors.
And there are other advantages to having successfully navigated The Change.
In The Complete Idiot’s Guide To Amazing Sex (Alpha Books), author Sari Locker concludes: “Think positively about the freeing benefits of menopause: no more periods, no more cramps, no more bloating, no more PMS, no more worrying about getting pregnant. The change of life doesn’t have to change everything. Women can still feel sexy and desirable.”
What’s more, many women find events associated with their menopausal years provoke the kinds of soul-searching inquiries that give depth to life.
“Suddenly we find ourselves questioning the meaning and value of many of the relationships that we’ve never dared to look at too closely before,” says Christiane Northrup, MD, author of The Wisdom of Menopause (Bantam). “Having the courage both to embrace the necessary changes of midlife and to feel the loss that is associated with those changes is a crucial part of creating a firm foundation for health in the second half of our lives.”
So don’t feel alienated by The Change. Think of it as a inner voyage to a new you.

Emotional High
By Carl Lowe

“Feelings, all my life are feelings…” drones a sentimental song from the 70s. Whether or not you agree with those teary sentiments, your emotions and feelings incontrovertibly exert a powerful influence on how much satisfaction you derive from everyday living.

Dipping emotions cause exquisite pain. Such torment can lead to troubles that are difficult to escape. When your emotional life needs repair, your main enemy is your own despair. But by changing your outlook, adjusting a few lifestyle habits and examining what you consume, you may start yourself on the path to a life of less turmoil and anguish.

Your emotions may vary moment to moment and day-to-day in the same way that the weather can vary. While the sun may seem to be shining on your life today, tomorrow your outlook may shift to cloudy with a 90% chance of rain.
Like those rain clouds, emotions are always on the move. The word emotion derives from the Greek term that means moving out: The release of feelings is a continuous flow that can make you feel on top of the world or down in the dumps.
A lingering bad mood that declines into depression may be signaled by a dropoff in your interest in an activity you usually enjoy. Your sleep pattern may change, you may find yourself crying or tearing up at inappropriate times, your appetite may change, your energy level can drop. Other problems include not being able to concentrate or feeling unable to function, or you may experience free-floating guilt.

A study by Murali Doraiswamy, MD, director of psychiatry clinical trials at Duke University, has found that the rate of depression soars during and after the winter holidays and is especially strong right into the first half of January. If your holiday blues last longer than about two weeks, Dr. Doraiswamy advocates visiting a health practitioner to see if you are suffering a clinical depression.

Omega-3 Mood Boosters
An increasing amount of scientific research has shown that improving mood may be as simple as eating more fish or, alternatively, taking fish oil supplements. Your brain is mostly fat. The omega-3 fatty acids you get from eating fish (and also found in flaxseed and algae) are incorporated into the structures of the brain and help it function more efficiently and happily.

Studies now show that if you are pregnant or nursing, consuming more omega-3s can drop your chances of developing postpartum depression and, in addition, can boost your baby’s neurological development.

According to David Kyle, PhD, the US director of the Mother and Child Foundation, about 15% to 20% of women who give birth in the United States develop postpartum depression (Meeting, Amer Chem Soc, 4/8/02). “We believe that the high incidence of postpartum depression in the United States may be triggered by a low dietary intake of DHA,” Dr. Kyle says.

Kyle noted a study authored by Joseph Hibbeln, MD, of the National Institutes of Health, demonstrated a “highly statistically significant inverse correlation” between eating too little DHA and depression. “The higher the intake of DHA, the lower the incidence of depression,” Dr. Kyle says.

Dr. Kyle adds that recent research by Dr. Hibbeln has “found exactly the same correlation” between new mothers avoiding depression and having a lot of DHA in their breast milk. The large amount of DHA excreted with the milk showed that the mothers had a lot of DHA in their bodies from their diets.

A Dutch study, according to Dr. Kyle, showed that during pregnancy the placenta pumps DHA from the expectant mother to the fetus, thus depleting the woman’s DHA levels and making her more susceptible to depression.

Dr. Kyle says studies find that the DHA in a mother’s milk rises and falls with DHA in her diet. Women in the US usually take in about 40 to 50 milligrams of DHA in their daily diet compared with about 200 milligrams for women in Europe and about 600 milligrams daily for Japanese women. “The DHA content of mother’s milk in the United States is among the lowest in the world,” Dr. Kyle added.

Babies who get plenty of DHA either in their mother’s milk or from DHA-supplemented infant formulas also benefit. Dr. Kyle mentions the study shows that the level of DHA in milk of nursing women who take supplements is double that of women who consume hardly any fish and don’t take supplements.

Last year, the US Food and Drug Administration approved the addition of DHA in infant formulas sold in this country. DHA-supplemented formula is already available in about 60 countries around the world, Dr. Kyle said. Earlier this year, the two major manufacturers of infant formulas sold in the United States announced plans to introduce DHA-supplemented formulas for the US market. Dr. Kyle recommends that women who want to increase their own levels of DHA can either take dietary supplements, which are widely available, or eat grilled, broiled or baked fish.

Grab Some GABA?
An amino acid (protein building block) known as gamma-aminobutyric acid has been found to play a crucial role in the proper functioning of the brain and maintaining a healthfully optimistic outlook.

GABA is a member of a class of chemicals called neurosteroids, substances that take part in dealing with stress, boosting memory and avoiding depression. Researchers now believe that alcoholic beverages can relax you by interacting with GABA receptors in the brain, places where GABA latches onto brain cells.

Neurosteroids like GABA “produce their effects by interacting with neurotransmitter receptors and then altering neurotransmission, producing their effects in a millisecond time frame,” says A. Leslie Morrow, MD, professor at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. “…they are synthesized in the brain…(and) are very fast modulators of receptors for neurotransmitters.”

Some antidepressant drugs are thought to improve mood by stimulating GABA activity.
While you can take GABA supplements, there is some question of how much will actually reach your brain: Most of it may not cross the so-called blood/brain barrier. However, your brain makes its own GABA out of glutamic acid (another amino acid) and vitamin B6. By increasing your intake of those nutrients, you can provide your brain with the means of making its own GABA.

Of course, if you suffer serious mood swings or depression, see a qualified health practitioner. But if your mood problems are just enough to put a dent in your holidays, a little TLC and dipping into natural mood modulators may be enough to shift your spirit back into an optimistic mode.

Stress Takes a Holiday
By Chrystle Fiedler

The myth: The holidays as they look in an old-fashioned print, filled with beaming, smiling faces and peace to all.
The reality: Holidays in the modern mode, including long lines at the mall, jam-packed datebooks and non-stop shopping, wrapping and partying.
The difference: Stress.

“Stress is an unavoidable part of life,” says Janet Zand, ND, OMD, LAc, co-author of Smart Medicine for Healthier Living (Avery). “During the holidays, typically we have the double whammy of physical and psychological stress.”
And besides, there is an awful lot to do—including holiday shopping, planning vacations, meeting work deadlines and tying up year-end loose ends—we tend to overeat and under-exercise.

Time with family can also bring up unresolved issues and emotions, adding to our stress load. Some can’t be with family, and this can be stressful as well. “The holidays do bring up a certain amount of sadness and loss,” says Hyla Cass, MD, author of Natural Highs: Feel Good All The Time (Avery). “It’s a vulnerable time of the year because you are supposed to be so happy.” All of these factors stress the mind and body.

Stress Compromises Health
“Researchers estimate that 80% of all major illness, including cardiovascular and endocrine disease, and cancer and various infections, is due to stress,” says Dr. Zand. Signs associated with stress include fatigue, headache, irritability, changes in appetite, withdrawal, teeth grinding, lowered sex drive, elevated blood pressure and insomnia.

“Many people attribute stress symptoms to their nerves. In fact, stress usually affects the parts of the body that are related to the nervous system, especially the digestive tract,” says Dr. Zand.

Stress means that the adrenal glands, our emergency organs, are taxed to the max. “The adrenals are fight or flight responders and put out adrenaline and cortisol,” says Dr. Cass. “In the short term that’s protective, especially if we’re running away from lions and tigers. But in our day and age often we’re sitting at a desk and we can’t do anything with the energy that’s generated. Stress becomes chronic.”

During the holidays, especially, stress builds. “The more stress we have the more we tend to respond with a stress response,” explains Dr. Cass. “Our immune system is affected. At this time of year that leaves us open to colds and flus. The more stressful your lifestyle, the more nutrients you need.”

The Gift of GABA
GABA (gamma aminobutyric acid) is the main calming amino acid and neurotransmitter. “GABA acts as a significant mood modulator by regulating the neurotransmitters noradrenaline, dopamine and serotonin,” says Dr. Cass. “GABA helps to shift a tense, worried state to relaxation and a blue mood to a happy one.”

Anti-Stress Nutrients
Although there is no magic food, Dr. Zand says, green leafy vegetables come close because they are high in trace minerals, B vitamins and folic acid. “B-Complex vitamins are really strategic in the proper functioning of the nervous system.”
“B vitamins are co-factors in breaking down protein and creating neurotransmitters,” explains Dr. Cass. Pantothenic acid (vitamin B5) especially supports adrenal function and is important during stressful times. Find it in whole grains, legumes, cauliflower, broccoli and salmon. Take your Bs as supplements, as well, to give your body an edge over stress, especially during the holidays.

“Vitamin C is also extremely important for stress at this time of year to strengthen your immune system, protect you from colds and flu and support the adrenal glands,” says Dr. Cass. “Adrenal hormones really use up vitamin C.” Dr. Zand recommends taking vitamin C with flavonoids. These antioxidants help diminish free radicals that can damage body tissues.

A multivitamin should also be part of your daily routine, during the holidays and everyday. “Antioxidants (in multivitamins) such as A, E and selenium are also extremely important,” says Dr. Cass.

Minerals can help stave off stress, too. “If you think of anxiety as a big muscle twitch, magnesium is a very simple, inexpensive and potent mineral,” notes Dr. Cass. Zinc also supports adrenal health.

Holiday Stress-Less Basics
The holidays are a sugar-rich time, says Dr. Cass, so it’s important to eat a good balance of carbohydrates, fats and proteins (the latter essential for proper nerve function).

“Rapid-release sugars in cakes, candies and puddings really take a toll on our body because it’s quick energy, a quick mood elevation followed by a drop when the sugar rush wears off,” Dr. Cass explains. “It’s a sugar high followed by a sugar low.”

Sugar, Dr. Zand adds, also makes your white blood cells sluggish so your immune system is compromised. “If you think you’re going to be tempted, eat protein, vegetables, good fat and low glycemic index carbohydrates that release sugar slowly to fill you up before you go to a party,” says Dr. Cass.

Also, “if you are going to eat junk, think about the quantity that you are consuming,” says Dr. Zand. “For example, instead of eating a whole piece of chocolate cake, cut it in half.”

To limit caffeine, have one cup of coffee in the morning, instead of four throughout the day. “Caffeine has the same effect as sugar,” says Dr. Cass. “When it’s not buffered by any food, we have this rapid rush which feels really good, we feel awake and stimulated and then we crash.” If you do drink eight ounces of coffee, Dr. Zand suggests, drink eight ounces of water.

Limit alcohol, too. “Instead of two drinks, consider one and drink it slowly,” says Dr. Zand. “Dilute, say, wine with club soda and make a spritzer.”

“Try to get regular exercise during the holiday season because physical activity can actually clear your mind and help you keep stress under control,” says Dr. Zand. “There is a lot of research demonstrating its efficacy in protecting serotonin levels and endorphin release. You want all that during the holiday season. Any type of exercise will do it for you as long as it’s consistent. Even if you just take a 20-minute walk five days a week.”

Restful sleep is also very important. “Usually the less sleep you get the more susceptible you are to stress, the more likely your immune system will be compromised and the greater chance of your getting sick during the cold and flu season,” says Dr. Zand. “So know what your capacity is and aim for that. Some do brilliantly on six, some need eight, some need nine, a lot of children need twelve.”
“Research links deep breathing, relaxation and meditation to destressing the body,” notes Dr. Zand. “When you are sitting in traffic or in line waiting to buy things, take some nice, deep cleansing breaths,” adds Dr. Cass. “You’ll be amazed at how it will relax and energize you and at the same time, clear out negative thoughts and toxins and metabolic waste. Oxygen will also go to every cell in your body including your brain to nourish it and give it the nutrients it needs.”

And don’t forget to drink plenty of water this holiday season. The suppliers of some waters are now promoting the fact that they have produced a purified water with smaller clusters of molecules designed to pass more easily in and out of cells. That action is supposed to promote the better distribution of nutrients in the body and waste removal. According to these water mavens, when you drink this form of purified water, the body has to expend less effort breaking up molecular clusters and achieves adequate hydration more readily.

“During the holidays, we like to fantasize about pleasant things, especially family get-togethers, but it’s important to have a good reality check,” says Dr. Cass. “Remind yourself how it was last year and don’t live under any illusions about how it ought to be. When it comes to being with our family we tend to regress. Be aware that you may fall into old roles.”

At the same time, she says, expect the best. “Be as positive as you can in your thoughts and behavior. A good phrase that can help you detach from others’ behavior is ‘I love myself. I love them. It’s not about me.’ Don’t take it personally. Everyone has their own stuff and is on their own trip. Don’t expect someone to be different.”

You can enjoy this special season. Just remember to eat right, exercise and take time to breathe.

The Comforts of Tea
By Lisa James

Outside, a sharp wind drives rain across the lawn and whips tree branches into a fury. But you don’t care. The kettle’s on, and soon a hot cup of tea will drive winter’s chill from your body even as it gently chases stressful thoughts from your mind. While waiting for your brew to steep, you may find yourself agreeing with the tea enthusiast who exclaimed, “Thank God for tea! What would the world do without tea?”

Tea’s ability to both relax and revive helps explain why it is second only to water as the beverage of choice worldwide and is gaining favor even here in the coffee-fueled United States. But tea may provide more than just a refreshing lift: Research shows impressive health benefits accruing to infusions of this remarkable plant.

For All the Tea in China
People are turning to tea in record numbers: While 44% of Americans indulged in 1996, 55% sipped tea in 2001. Tea sales jumped by more than $3 billion in the past decade.

An increased interest in tea’s effects on health, especially those of green tea, is responsible for much of the boost. “Green tea sales have grown drastically, and I think that’s because of the education of the consumer as to how green tea is beneficial for your life,” says Charlie Baden, Blend Master at Celestial Seasonings in Boulder, Colorado.

These benefits were first appreciated in the tea plant’s native China, where mountain tribes chewed the leaves for medicinal purposes and monks appreciated tea’s ability to keep them awake during long meditations.

Tea’s Antioxidant Advantage
Mounting evidence suggests that tea not only refreshes but also protects the body by acting as an antioxidant, a substance that quells free radicals. These destructive radicals are rogue molecules that disrupt cellular structures and play havoc with the body’s chemical balance.

Tea’s antioxidant capacities lie in its polyphenols, the compounds that color your brew. Polyphenols are especially abundant in green tea and are available in green tea extract.

“The antioxidant potential of green tea polyphenols has amazed even the scientists studying green tea,” say Lester Mitscher, PhD, and Victoria Dolby, authors of The Green Tea Book (Avery/Putnam). According to Korean researchers, “total antioxidant capacity of [blood] plasma increased” among individuals who breakfasted on green tea (EJCN 2000; 54:527-9).

“Recent research studies reveal the antioxidants in tea may inhibit the growth of cancer cells and support cardiovascular health,” says Jeffrey Blumberg, PhD, FACN, of the Research Center on Aging at Tufts.

Tea and Cancer
While research into the cancer-tea connection is far from complete, results so far have proved intriguing.

At least two investigations suggest that tea, both as a beverage and as an ingredient in skin-care products, may help forestall skin cancer. One study team concluded, “Although more clinical studies are needed, supplementation of skin care products with green tea may have a profound impact on various skin disorders in the years to come” (Arch Dermatol 2000; 136:989-94; Cancer Epidem Biomarkers Prev 2000; 9:727-31).

In addition, tea has been linked in some studies to lower rates of oral and colon cancers (Gen Dent 2002; 50:140-6; Cancer Invest 2002; 20:458-63).
The best way to avoid tumor development is to block cancer initiation, a process free radicals may spark by injuring the DNA that controls cell reproduction. “Green tea’s [polyphenols] supplement the body’s levels of antioxidants, which neutralize free radicals before they even have a chance to interact with DNA,” say Mitscher and Dolby. “In addition, green tea boosts the body’s levels of antioxidant enzymes.”

Green tea can keep some DNA-damaging compounds from ever forming.
For instance, once you swallow them, nitrites and nitrates in processed meats can form nitrosamines, substances associated with stomach cancer. According to Mitscher and Dolby, “…the polyphenols in…tea react with…nitrosamine compounds in order to reduce their carcinogenic activity or prevent their formation.” Researchers in India have found that tea consumption drops the risk of stomach cancer considerably (Int J Cancer 2002; 99:727-31).

Tea compounds have shown an ability to battle malignant cell changes. In the lab, a polyphenol called EGCG has kept breast cancer cells from creating a chemical they need to form their own blood supply, and tannic acid, another tea component, has helped compel cancer cells to die natural deaths (J Nutr 2002; 132:2307-11; Cancer Epidem Biomarkers Prev 2001; 10:1083-8).

Taking Tea to Heart
Evidence suggests that taking tea may help you take care of your heart.
Researchers believe heart attacks become more likely when arteries narrow and stiffen with oxidized cholesterol. In numerous studies, tea has lowered cholesterol and helped keep blood vessels pliable (Ann Epidemiol 2002; 12:157-65; Clin Sci (Lond) 2002; 102:195-201).

Green tea also apparently reduces the blood’s tendency to form clots that can block arteries. “Green tea inhibits the formation of thromboxane, and a low level of thromboxane in turn inhibits blood clots,” say Mitscher and Dolby.

Studies involving thousands of people have linked tea consumption to both a lower risk of heart attack and improved survival chances if an attack does occur (AJCN 2002; 75:880-6; Circulation 2002; 105:2476-81).

Tough Bones and More
Tea may toughen bones. Investigators have found that folks who take tea habitually have denser bones than those who don’t imbibe (Arch Intern Med 2002; 162:1001-6). Bone renews itself by constantly breaking down and building up; tea’s polyphenols apparently stymie excessive bone breakdown.

Green tea has been used for millennia in Asia to clean teeth. Now we know why—the polyphenols keep decay-inducing plaque from sticking to teeth and helps tooth enamel battle plaque’s destructive effects.

In men, oolong tea has been shown to stoke the body’s fires and increase fat burning (J Nutr 2001; 131:2848-52). And a link has been found between tea-drinking and a reduced risk of rheumatoid arthritis (Arthritis Rheum 2002; 46:83-91).

Brewing a Classic Cup
For all of its health advantages, tea’s more alluring benefit lies in its refreshing flavor. The best way to savor that flavor is to use fresh, cold water, preferably purified or bottled. Bring water to a full boil for black tea, but just to the steaming point for green.

No matter what kind of tea you favor, you can’t beat this ancient potion’s ability to deliver a delicious health boost. Keep the kettle singing this winter and all year long.