What makes tea or coffee healthier depends on several factors, including your body’s metabolism of each beverage, personal taste preferences and desired health benefits. Either beverage can provide significant health advantages and should play an integral part of any healthy lifestyle plan.

Coffee contains less caffeine than black tea and is packed with antioxidants, potassium, and magnesium – qualities which have been linked to improved brain function, metabolism improvement, heart health benefits, as well as mental alertness and focus enhancement. According to studies, research indicates that coffee may improve brain function, metabolism boost, boost metabolism and promote heart health while black tea may be better at reducing cholesterol, aiding weight loss, as well as increasing mental alertness and focus.

Tea and coffee may help to prevent stroke by increasing blood flow to the brain and limiting clot formation, and drinking either in the morning may reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes by managing blood sugar and decreasing inflammation.

Answering the question of which drink is better: tea or coffee depends entirely on what your body needs and desires from each beverage. Tea might provide a mental lift that keeps you going for hours, while coffee may increase energy levels for heavier workouts at the gym; but if jitteriness or insomnia are factors, coffee might not be.

Both black tea and coffee contain polyphenols, natural plant chemicals with antioxidant properties that may protect against chronic disease. Common polyphenols found in both beverages include chlorogenic, ferulic, caffeic and n-coumaric acids – four acids which help cleanse away free radicals that damage cells causing free radicals that damage DNA to be eliminated more effectively and thus helping to decrease oxidative stress which leads to conditions like cancer, arthritis, heart disease and Parkinson’s.

No matter which beverage you opt for, it is advised to limit sweeteners or milk as these can add unnecessary calories. Furthermore, those sensitive to caffeine might want to consider switching over to green or black loose leaf tea rather than coffee for optimal health benefits.

If you’re uncertain which beverage would provide the greatest health benefits, try both and determine which has more of an effect. From there, choose how much of each you would like to consume regularly and stick with that plan.