By Dessy Damianova
After the heavy meals of the holiday season, after all manner of indulgences and the occasional breach of dietary discipline, we quickly return to the normality of a daily routine that is decidedly restrictive, demanding and stressful. The season of leniency is over; we are swiftly thrust back into one of self-discipline and rigour.
Moreover, with the January restart, we find ourselves in the heart of winter, which at the beginning of 2021 is far from as mild, indulgent and forgiving (to borrow the same adjective) as it was in previous years. With cold and snow on the agenda, grey and gloomy days set in, pushing us to seek the delights of indoor comfort and the comforts of a welcoming, cosy home. This is all the more true as we are currently living under teleworking conditions and everything happens at home anyway – our activities as well as the breaks that punctuate them, the difficult tasks we carry out as well as the rewards that follow.
Sipping a hot drink against a backdrop of cold and gloom is probably the least of these rewards, yet this small pleasure retains a special meaning at a time when winter and the health crisis are conspiring to keep us at home. Iconic from the very start of the crisis, the image of the remote worker concentrating on a computer screen, a cup of tea or coffee in front of them, has become even more topical in the middle of this cold, snowy winter. Iconic, but also highly realistic: are we not all now remote workers confined behind our computers with the unavoidable cup of coffee (or tea) in front of us – or beside us?
There is no question that the cup placed next to the computer is indispensable. But it is less certain that its contents must always remain unchanged. Must we really confine ourselves to the coffee/black tea divide when other hot drinks can just as well, if not better, accompany our work? Not to mention that these drinks may be less harmful to health than tea and especially coffee, which, when consumed frequently and in large doses, brings with it numerous harmful effects. These, let us recall, are both physical (by absorbing minerals and preventing the body from retaining iron, magnesium and calcium, coffee is responsible for a deficiency in substances essential to the body’s proper functioning) and mental, notably the intense stimulation caused by caffeine and, above all, the addictive reflexes it may trigger in the brain.
Without wishing to completely disqualify coffee, which also has its virtues – including well-known antioxidant properties – one can recommend other hot drinks capable both of softening our sometimes several-hour “stay” in front of the computer screen, of boosting our concentration, and even of offering anti-stress benefits. And all this without provoking the negative sensations that coffee, and even black tea, can trigger in their most fervent devotees.
Nutritionists warmly recommend another hot drink – a beverage with a high cocoa/ dark chocolate content. With its own antioxidant properties and its ability to boost brain function, cocoa has many advantages that its controversial cousin, coffee, simply cannot claim. Capable of supporting concentration in the short term, cocoa can also have a long-term effect: it sustainably improves the brain’s cognitive function by increasing blood flow. Furthermore, unlike coffee, cocoa not only does not absorb the minerals (magnesium, iron, zinc) that enter the body through food, but, being rich in these substances itself, also provides fresh and abundant supplies of them.
Black tea also has its “cousin”, its beneficial double, which, in addition to exerting a gentler effect on the brain – refreshing and “watering” it rather than boosting it – stands out for many other advantages. This is, of course, green tea. Its benefits span a wide range of bodily functions, from increasing brain plasticity (and thus enhancing intelligence) to intensifying fat burning (with a visible slimming effect), while also reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer and type 2 diabetes. These benefits have not only never been disproved, but are confirmed by more and more new studies.
Other hot drinks are also worth recommending for winter days spent in teleworking mode. Naturally, there is the whole range of herbal teas, each with its own beneficial effects on physical and/or mental health. On the anti-stress front, orange-peel decoction/infusion seems ideal. Combining relaxing qualities with skin-rejuvenating effects, it also has the added virtue of releasing the subtle scent of orange – the quintessential fragrance (at least in our Northern Hemisphere countries) of indoor comfort, winter well-being and a final lingering aftertaste of the holidays.
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