introduction
In the afternoon, enjoy a cup of fragrant flower tea, tea is not only an ordinary drink, but also a cultural tradition that has been passed down for thousands of years.
For many seniors, tea can be more refreshing and soothing.
However, as the number of Alzheimer's patients in China increases year by year, some people are beginning to wonder if tea drinking is somehow linked to the disease.
Especially for those elderly who have been drinking strong tea for a long time, do excessive tea consumption lead to memory decline and cognitive decline?
Uncle Zhang's story
When Uncle Zhang was young, he was a rare craftsman in the village, and he was a good hand at carpentry. He made a lot of the furniture in the village, from the wooden bed to the stool.
Every morning, Uncle Zhang gets up early and works in the yard, his hands are always covered with sawdust, and he has a simple smile on his face.
The life in the village is simple and regular, and Uncle Zhang's daily life is not only doing carpentry work, but also drinking tea. He brewed a pot of strong tea all year round, and the tea was steaming in a large porcelain bowl, and he drank it for a day.
His wife, Granny Li, occasionally persuaded him to drink less, but Uncle Zhang always smiled and waved his hand: "The tea is good, refresh your mind, invigorate your blood and eliminate blood stasis, and drink your spirit!" ”
Granny Li didn't want to say anything more, just silently brewed a pot for him every day, and it seemed that this pot of tea had become a part of their lives.
But gradually, Granny Li found that Uncle Zhang was not as shrewd and sharp as before.
At the beginning, he only occasionally forgot some small things, such as when he went to the village to buy rice, he didn't remember how many catties he had to buy; Or when you go out, you forget to put on the old hat you usually wear.
Granny Li didn't take these things seriously, after all, she was old, who wouldn't be a little confused?
Besides, Uncle Zhang is still so energetic, working and drinking tea every day, there seems to be no big problem.
Things are moving faster than Granny Li imagined.
One day, Uncle Zhang went out to the town to buy wood, but he forgot the road while walking. Obviously, he has walked this road for decades, but he suddenly stood at the intersection and didn't know which way to go. He stood there and was stunned for a long time, and finally ran into an old acquaintance in the village and led him home.
After coming back that time, Uncle Zhang seemed a little embarrassed, buried his head at the table and kept silent, and Granny Li didn't ask much, but was faintly uneasy.
As time passed, Uncle Zhang's memory became worse and worse, and sometimes he even forgot to eat, or couldn't say the names of the children in the family.
One morning, Granny Li made him tea as usual and called him to get up, but found Uncle Zhang sitting on the edge of the bed in a daze, his eyes glazed.
"What's wrong with you?" Granny Li stepped forward and patted him lightly on the shoulder, and Uncle Zhang raised his head with a kind of dazed look in his eyes, as if he didn't know the person standing in front of him at all.
"Who are you?" Uncle Zhang asked in a low voice.
At that moment, Granny Li's heart seemed to be pinched by something. She didn't expect that she had lived with Uncle Zhang for decades, and now he didn't even remember her.
After hearing about it, people in the village also came to visit their homes, some said that it was because he was old, some said that he might have had a stroke, and some quietly persuaded Granny Li to take him to see a doctor.
Later, under the persuasion of the children, Granny Li took Uncle Zhang to the hospital in the town.
The doctor examined it and said that Uncle Zhang had Alzheimer's disease, also known as Alzheimer's disease. There is no specific medicine for this disease, so we can only rely on paying more attention to it and maintaining good living habits.
But Granny Li didn't understand why Uncle Zhang, who had a tough body all his life, got this disease?
After returning to the village, Uncle Zhang's condition became more and more serious. He used to be able to go around the village by himself, but now he can't even recognize the road to his home.
Granny Li can only follow him at all times, for fear that he will get lost if he doesn't pay attention.
Once, Uncle Zhang had to go out, saying that he was going to do carpentry work, but Granny Li couldn't persuade him. In desperation, she could only follow him, along the way, Uncle Zhang walked into the crop field for a while, and then walked towards the woods, and Granny Li followed him all the way to call him, and he ignored it.
When it was almost dark, Uncle Zhang suddenly stopped and stood at the entrance of the village in a daze, looking at the sunset in the distance.
Granny Li caught up with her breathlessness and whispered, "Let's go home, home is here." Uncle Zhang turned his head with a confused expression on his face, but he still followed Granny Li home.
Day after day like this, Granny Li not only does housework and works in the fields every day, but also takes care of Uncle Zhang at all times.
Despite this, she still insisted on making him a pot of tea every day, as if the tea could make Uncle Zhang go back to the old days and remember the bits and pieces of their lives.
Later, someone in the village heard about Uncle Zhang's illness and ran over to ask Granny Li: "You still drink so much tea for him every day, it can't be that you drink too much tea to get this disease, right?" ”
Granny Li was stunned for a moment and shook her head: "No matter what, he can't do without this pot of tea for the rest of his life." ”
She couldn't say why, she just felt that tea had become a part of their lives and couldn't be easily put down.
Despite the aggravation of his condition, Uncle Zhang still gets up early every day, although he sometimes makes mistakes even getting dressed, but Granny Li always patiently helps him tidy up, and then sits in the yard with him and makes a pot of strong tea.
Uncle Zhang sometimes looked at the teapot in a daze, as if he was recalling something, but in the end he didn't say anything. Granny Li sat next to him, silently looking at him, occasionally sighing softly, but never complaining.
The days passed like this, and Uncle Zhang's memory gradually disappeared in the long river of years. Although he no longer remembered Granny Li's name and no longer knew who he was, the pot of tea with the fragrance of tea floating every day was still the most familiar taste in his life.
Even though all the memories are blurred, Uncle Zhang's habit of drinking tea has never changed.
The more tea you drink, the more dementia you have, really?
Is Uncle Zhang's Alzheimer's disease related to the pot of strong tea he drinks every day?
After all, Uncle Zhang's body has always been very tough when he was young, why did he get such a disease when he got old?
Some people in the village have heard that drinking too much tea is not good for the body, especially for the elderly, and can even cause dementia. This statement has gradually become a hot topic.
In fact, such a statement is not groundless.
In recent years, there have been some discussions about the relationship between tea and Alzheimer's disease both at home and abroad. Especially in China, the incidence of Alzheimer's disease is increasing year by year, and China has the largest number of Alzheimer's patients in the world. The Chinese have a tradition of drinking tea, and tea is almost every family's daily drink.
Some people have asked, is drinking too much tea leading to the high incidence of Alzheimer's? Does long-term excessive tea consumption, especially strong tea, adversely affect the body?
According to some studies, tea does contain some special components, such as tea polyphenols and caffeine, which are beneficial to the human body when consumed in moderation, which can be antioxidant and refreshing.
However, the crux of the matter lies in the word "moderation". Excessive intake of anything can bring side effects, and tea is no exception.
Drinking a large amount of strong tea for a long time may lead to a series of problems.
The first is that it affects sleep. Many people drink tea to refresh themselves, but older people are already prone to insomnia, and if you drink too much tea, especially at night, it may lead to difficulty falling asleep and reduced sleep quality. Lack of sleep is one of the important factors that lead to memory loss and sluggish thinking.
Some of the ingredients in tea, while good for the body, can also pose health risks when consumed in excess.
The fluoride contained in tea, moderate intake is good for dental health, but long-term high intake, especially the higher fluoride content in strong tea, may have a negative impact on bones and the nervous system. These effects may be related to the occurrence of Alzheimer's disease.
And the tea leaves may not be the same as before. Most of the teas on the market today have been processed multiple times and may contain pesticide residues or other chemicals. Long-term consumption of such tea, especially strong tea, may also have adverse effects on the body.
Still, there is no conclusive scientific evidence on whether drinking tea can actually directly cause Alzheimer's. Scientists have yet to find a clear causal relationship between tea drinking and Alzheimer's disease.
Many studies have shown that drinking tea in moderation, especially green tea, may have some benefits in slowing down brain aging.
However, excessive consumption, especially strong tea for a long time, can be taxing on the body, which cannot be ignored.
If you are not comfortable with strong tea, you can buy some herbal tea and flower tea to replace the strong tea in the past. Or pay attention to the strength of the tea when making tea, and try to brew it lightly.
We remind everyone to pay attention to a balanced diet in daily life, after all, health is the most important thing.
epilogue
There is no conclusive scientific evidence for the claim that "the more tea you drink, the more dementia you have".
However, excessive consumption of strong tea, especially in the elderly, may indeed trigger a series of health problems, such as sleep disorders, nervous system burden, etc.
Drinking tea wisely, controlling measurements, and especially avoiding excessive caffeine intake are essential to prevent Alzheimer's disease.
In addition, a healthy lifestyle, including proper exercise, a balanced diet, and social activities, is also an effective means to delay cognitive decline and prevent Alzheimer's disease.
Tea, as a traditional drink, still has its health value, as long as it is consumed in moderation and with good lifestyle habits, it will not become a direct cause of Alzheimer's disease.