"greentea" news and stories

The idea of slurping ramen in zero gravity makes me chuckle. I imagine strands of noodles floating around a space capsule while Strauss plays. Clearly that's not the image that the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) had in mind when it approved 29 foods for use in space earlier this week.

JAXA's spaceworthy menu includes instant ramen noodles, curry, onigiri rice balls, powdered green tea and mackerel in miso sauce. All of the products had to meet the stringent standards of the International Space Station, which include packaging capable of withstanding drastic changes in air pressure and temperature. JAXA hopes that astronaut Koichi Wakata, who will be stationed at the ISS starting in fall of 2008 will get to enjoy the new Japanese space cuisine. Too bad sake and natto did not make the menu.

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The other day I tried a bottle of a great new soda. At least it was new to me. Turns out it's been around for a couple of years. I came across Zota Green Tea Soda, in of all places, a kosher deli. Usually, when I eat deli I drink Dr. Brown's Cel-Ray, but I'm always game for something new. They had only one flavor, root beer.

While it didn't have the world's most pronounced root beer flavor, it was quite good and incredibly refreshing. Like most better sodas, Zota has no high-fructose corn syrup. Rather it uses evaporated cane juice as a sweetener. It packed a nice little caffeine kick and I'm sure also carried all the health benefits of green tea. I can't wait to try some of the other flavors, which include ginger, cola, lime and orange.

After looking at the company's web site I understand why Zota was in the deli's beverage case. Not only is it organic, it's also certified kosher.

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and to raise awareness and help to raise funds for charities that support cancer research, many companies offer special promotions and products. The Republic of Tea is one such company, with a number of products where a portion of the proceeds goes directly to charity. In fact, as of yesterday, the Republic of Tea has contributed over a half million dollars to the Susan G Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, which is pretty impressive since it comes just from tea.

Their Sip for the Cure line includes Pink Grapefruit Green Tea, which was their original offering in the collection, Pink Rose Green Tea, Lady Apple Green Tea and Pink Lemonade Green Tea, as well as marmalade, a mug and a teapot.

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Lipton drink mixers for the busy body on the go have recently expanded to iced tea, and not a moment too soon. With the heat of summer breathing down our necks, those of us who are short on time and containers will truly appreciate these small packets of pre-measured iced tea mix. The simplicity of opening the non caloric mix and dumping it into 16 ounce bottle of water is so simple that even my toddler could mix himself a cool one for some thirst quenching tea. The flavors range form the traditional to a variety of green tea mixtures. These are ideal to keep in your glove compartment, diaper bag or office drawer to help give  any plain bottle of water a little zip.

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Well, chalk another one up for our old friend green tea. A Japanese survey of over 1,000 men and women ages 70 and older has identified a possible link between green tea consumption and mental health. The study participants that incorporated two or more cups of green tea into their daily routine showed 50 percent less aging-related cognitive impairment than those who drank green tea only a few times a week. While the findings are interesting, it's still important to remember that there are plenty of other factors at play. The study only examined patterns in its participants lifestyles, it didn't create a direct link. An abstract of the study, which appeared in the February edition of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, is available here.

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