It’s common to see people holding a cup of milk tea while hanging out with their family or friends. But you might want to think twice about queuing up in line to buy this popular beverage. According to a survey released two days ago by the Shanghai Consumer Council (SCC), some milk tea contains high levels of caffeine, sugar and trans fatty acids, which is bad for your health.
The SCC tested milk tea from 27 popular milk tea shops, including Heekcaa, Yidiandian, COCO, etc. The results show that, with no exception, all of the milk tea contains caffeine. Among them, the milk tea that contains most caffeine is called Letangkou, which contains 48mg per cup, the same amount as four cups of Americano. It is known to all that caffeine is harmful for expectant mothers. However, only one milk tea shop has a disclaimer about the issue, and others don’t have any at all.
The SCC also tested the sugar content of the milk tea.The sweet beverage typically contains between 11 and 62 grams of sugar per cup. The milk tea with the highest sugar content, known as Renzaichazai, was found to have the equivalent of 14 lumps of sugar. And even milk tea labeled as having "no sugar" was found to actually contain it — going completely against what the milk tea shops declared.
Another index of the survey is trans fatty acid. It turns out that four milk tea shops, including Ayinaicha, sell milk tea containing trans fatty acid that is higher than what is recommended. Excessive intake of trans fatty acid can affect children’s growth and result in obesity and cardiovascular diseases.
Children, seniors and expectant women should avoid drinking too much milk tea. Next time you walk by a milk tea shop, maybe consider another option and drink something healthier.
