According to the latest study, natural ingredients found in a cup of tea can improve brain power and increase alertness. Researchers looked at the effect of key chemicals found in tea on the mental performance of 44 young volunteers.
The effects of these ingredients, an amino acid called L-theanine – which is also found in green tea – and caffeine at levels typically found in a cup of tea, were compared with a dummy treatment.
The active ingredients significantly improved accuracy across a number of switching tasks for those who drank the tea after 20 and 70 minutes, compared with the placebo. The study found the tea drinkers’ alertness was also heightened. According to the Dutch researchers reporting on their findings in the journal Nutritional Neuroscience, tea was also found to reduce tiredness.
