When the red emblem of American Heart Month spreads across the North American continent, two heart-protective foods around us should also receive attention! Men drinking black tea and women eating brown sugar—two red foods—are the vanguard for protecting heart health.
Black tea is an excellent beverage. A new study from the United Kingdom shows that drinking a cup of tea daily can help men reduce stress, thereby benefiting heart health. Andrew Steptoe of University College London conducted a trial with 75 men. One group drank 4 cups of black tea daily, while the other group consumed other beverages. The results showed that the first group of subjects experienced significantly less stress. However, Steptoe also reminded that black tea should not be too strong and should not exceed 4 cups a day.
The old saying, "A woman should not go a hundred days without sugar," refers to brown sugar. Wang Guowei, Vice President of Beijing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, told a reporter from *Life Times* that brown sugar "warms and supplements, warms and disperses, warms and unblocks." It is warm in nature and has the effect of nourishing and replenishing blood. Research shows that 1000 grams of brown sugar contains 900 milligrams of calcium and 100 milligrams of iron. At the same time, brown sugar also contains various trace elements, some of which can stimulate the body's hematopoietic function. "For women with blood deficiency, that is, those with usually light menstrual flow and pale complexions, they should drink some brown sugar water appropriately," Wang said.
In addition, in the theory of health preservation in Traditional Chinese Medicine, there is a saying that "the five colors enter the five organs." This means that foods of different colors have different health-preserving effects. The *Huangdi Neijing* (The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon) states: "White moistens the lungs, yellow benefits the spleen and stomach, red nourishes the heart, green nourishes the liver, and black nourishes the kidneys." Therefore, drinking more brown sugar water also has a heart-nourishing effect for women. Recently, Japanese scholars, based on ancient beauty formulas from a thousand years ago, discovered that "molasses" can be extracted from brown sugar, which has the effects of promoting blood circulation, detoxifying, and beautifying the skin.
"Drinking some ginger and brown sugar water is a very good choice for women," Wang Guowei said. The main function of ginger is to warm the middle jiao and dispel cold, which can prevent women from catching cold. However, Wang also reminded that whether it's ginger and brown sugar water or brown sugar water, drinking it once a day is enough. If you need to drink it continuously, it's best not to exceed 7 days.