Got Milk? Great, But You Might Want to Keep it Out of Your Tea...

Over at the MH Today Blog, Bill Stieg reports on new research that shows that adding milk to black tea eliminates the tea's cardiovascular benefits. Hey, that doesn't seem fair! After all, when I was a little boy, Dziadek (the great-grandfather whom I mentioned here; Dziadek is Polish for "Grandfather") gave my brother and me tea with milk, and he lived to be 100 years old. Yeah, yeah, I know that's just one example and doesn't prove anything about the health benefits of tea, but it just doesn't seem right to give milk the boot after so long.

Anyway, this research doesn't say we can't enjoy tea with milk, just that we can't expect any heart health benefits--specifically, benefits to the "flow-mediated dilation (FMD)" of arteries. I wonder if this research finding holds up for soy milk? Almond milk? Grain milk? Coconut milk? Rice milk? Goat milk? As far as I know, the research tested only cow's milk, but it would be interesting to discover whether the milk substitutes I mentioned eliminate health benefits when they are added to tea. That would be especially important for people who suffer from lactose intolerance (the majority of the world's population), except, of course, for goat's milk which does contain lactose.

You can find additional coverage of this story at the following pages:

http://www.medpagetoday.com/PrimaryCare/DietNutrition/tb/4826

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/healthnews.php?newsid=60437

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/01/070108191523.htm

http://www.webwire.com/ViewPressRel.asp?aId=26023

http://www.healthcentral.com/heart-disease/news-28523-31.html

Of course, this is one research study and, apparently, a new finding, so we will have to wait for further research to learn more about this newly discovered relationship between tea and milk. As always, talk with your doctor about any concerns you may have concerning tea and its benefits for you.