A cup of tea really does help in a crisis: study

LONDON (AFP) — Researchers produced evidence Thursday to support what most Britons are famously certain of -- that a cup of tea is the answer to any crisis.

Dr. Malcolm Cross, a psychologist at City University London, tested the anxiety levels of a group of people following a stressful situation and revealed that even a single cuppa has a significant calming effect.

His team gave 42 volunteers a mental arithmetic exam and afterwards offered half of them a cup of tea and the other half a glass of water.

The water group's anxiety levels soared by 25 percent compared to before the task, while the tea group actually reported a four percent reduction in anxiety -- despite the taxing test, they were more relaxed than when they started.

According to a survey carried out for the research, 68 percent of Britons turn to Continue reading the remaining 50% ...