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Abstract The nutritional significance of tea is confined to certain vitamins and minerals. Tea is able to contribute riboflavin, folic acid, β‐carotene, α‐tocopherol and phylloquinone, and is also one of the more significant sources of fluoride in the UK diet. The pharmacological action of caffeine in tea is so modified, probably by its interaction with polyphenols, that the beneficial properties of the alkaloid may be enjoyed without harmful side effects. Beneficial effects attributed to tea polyphenols acting synergistically with ascorbic acid include the strengthening of capillary blood vessels and an anti‐atherosclerosis action. The potential value of tea has been well recognised in Russia but has received scant attention in the West.
Stagg et al. (Wed,) studied this question.