How strange my mind-body works. Last week I got a bit of tummy bug involving fever and running to the toilet a lot. So over 4 days I reduced my diet to lots of water and just dry food in the hopes of starving off the bug. By Sunday evening I was starting to eat a normal meal again. I still reduced the amount of dairy stuff I was eating till Wednesday or so. But a weird thing happened when I started back using dairy again: I don’t like tea any more. 

If you know me, you know I drink copious amounts of tea. In work, I regularly drink four to six very large mugs of tea during the day and I continue that rate into the evening too. But now, when I drink tea I don’t like it. I only sip it a bit, nearly out of just habit. The reason is that the taste of milk in my tea is overpowering, and not that particularly nice. Before I got sick I didn’t notice it at all, but now I find it awful. And I’m not sure I like tea without milk! What is strange is that I have no problem with milk in my breakfast cereals or cream on my pasta. Just in tea.

It’s really odd experience. For example in the evening after dinner I have a craving for a nice cup of tea and relax on the sofa  while the kids are finally in bed. However I hold back, remembering the taste of milk, but still having that carving, but nothing to fill it. It leaves me a bit restless, not sure how to fulfil the craving. Most of the time I just go and relax anyway and forget about it. 

Luckily though I beating back my new found aversion by just regular cups of tea over the course of the day. The taste of milk is still quite powerful but it’s getting less.

I could read in this some depressing thought about humans (i.e. me) are just creatures of habit and we don’t really change, but who cares. I need my little drop of caffeine okay?

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Saw this article on BBC news with the title “Tea ‘healthier’ drink than water”!

I’m a big tea drinker. I don’t drink coffee but I drink copious amounts of tea. My mug in work is about twice the size of a normal mug. However I always thought that tea, because it’s hot and full of caffeine, that it dehydrates. In fact, I would always have a small bottle of water nearby to make sure I drank enough liquids during the day. But according to this research:

Tea not only rehydrates as well as water does, but it can also protect against heart disease and some cancers, UK nutritionists found.

Aha! No need to hydrate when drinking tea! I took this advice to heart last week, and after my lunch-time gym session, had a nice warm cup of tea. Normally after the gym, I drink as much water as I can and avoid drinking tea till much later that evening. I noticed no ill effects!

They found clear evidence that drinking three to four cups of tea a day can cut the chances of having a heart attack.

Some studies suggested tea consumption protected against cancer, although this effect was less clear-cut.

Other health benefits seen included protection against tooth plaque and potentially tooth decay, plus bone strengthening.

Now my only problem is that I’m drinking tea all the time. I don’t have that guilt “twang” if I’ve hit my fourth mug of tea that morning!

Sadly, there is a big-fucking-disclaimer. Even though:

Dr Ruxton stressed that the work was independent.

It is important to note:

The Tea Council provided funding for the work.

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