The unique aroma and taste of Irani chai and Madras coffee is an instant mood lifter, but they come loaded with undesirable calories and
caffeine.
If you must have your daily cuppa or cuppas, the National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) advises switching to a healthier version of tea and coffee,
with 30 per cent less calories. Decaffeinated coffee and tea powder avoids the harmful effects of caffeine, but allows one the benefits of
flavonoids and other antioxidant polyphenols present in tea and coffee.
The NIN also recommends you to use toned milk and less sugar. A cup or 200 ml of “healthy” chai is just 75 kcal and coffee, 110 calories, which is
about one-third less than the calories in tea and coffee served in restaurants and hotels, which use whole milk and too much sugar. If you like the
taste, switch to low-fat cow’s milk rather than buffalo milk.
The NIN has come out with revised dietary guidelines for Indians that covers an array of food and drink, from tea to alcohol, and from fruits and
vegetables to fish and mutton.
The dietary guidelines are in keeping with current lifestyles and are aimed at toning up physical and mental systems and keeping diseases such as
hypertension and cardiac problems at bay.
“The blood pressure of many Indians has gone up since 1998, when the dietary guidelines were last recommended. Then, 12 per cent of men and nine
per cent of women in rural areas suffered from hypertension. Today, 25 per cent of people have high blood pressure,” said NIN director Dr B.
Sesikeran. “Only 13 per cent of men and 10 per cent of women in urban areas had diabetes in 1998. Today, 16 per cent of people in towns and cities
are diabetic,” he adds. The NIN’s formula for healthy tea is as follows: 150 ml of potable water, two teaspoons or 15 grams of sugar and 50 ml of
toned milk, besides tea leaf or dust as desired. In case of coffee, it recommends 100 ml of potable water, 100 ml of milk and 15 grams of sugar,
besides coffee powder.
If the recommendation is followed, a 200 ml cup of tea is 75 kilo calories and 200 ml cup of coffee is 110 calories.
Cow’s milk contains less fat and thus fewer calories. A 200 ml cup of cow’s milk with 15 grams sugar is 180 kcal, while a similar quantity of
buffalo’s milk with sugar is 320 kcal.
The NIN’s dietary guidelines recommend drinking tea and coffee in moderation so that the caffeine intake does not exceed tolerable limits. Tannin
is also present in tea and coffee and is known to interfere with iron absorption. Avoid taking tea and coffee at least one hour before and after
meals.
Besides caffeine, tea contains theobromine and theophylline. These are known to relax coronary arteries and thereby promote blood circulation. Tea
also contains flavonoids and polyphenols that are known to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease and stomach cancer. The NIN guidelines
recommend decaffeinated coffee and tea to counter the effects of caffeine if you are a heavy tea/coffee drinker.
As in all things, moderation in food and drink is the key to success, according to the new guidelines