Tea is extremely important in a survival situation. Coffee is not.
In a highly stressful survival situation the brain of the individual may become confused and disorientated and panic may ensue. This will lead to the individual making the wrong decision, which will lead to a situation whereby the survival event is even more difficult to deal with. This will then lead to even more poor decision making with the consequent loss of life of the that individual. Survival ultimately is about making the correct decisions.
In the US army, soldiers are taught not to stop but to continue to be proactive, the assumption being that mistakes can be rectified and survival is assured. The assumption is that inactivity leads to a loss of moral and consequently gives rise to a sense apathy and defeat. This is the supposed flight or fight response to stressful stimuli. US army soldiers drink Coffee. Apparently caffeine is even put in that awful chewing gum stuff which makes you average GI even more hyper. This of course has its downside because I have even read that additives which cause constipation have been added to their MREs. The reasoning behind this I suppose is that it stops inappropriate bowl movements in highly stressful survival situation.
In the British Army the opposite applies but they have a secret weapon call the brew kit. In a highly stressful life threatening situation, the British soldier will sit down and make a nice cup of hot strong sweet tea if time allows and if the threat is not immediate. The act of making a nice cup of tea will allow the individual time enough to assess the situation and make the correct decisions and planning and allow the feelings of panic and stress to dissipate. Consequently this generally leads to a more successful outcome although too much tea drinking leads to a problem called swanning about as demonstrated at
Youtube Having served 12 years as an infantryman, I can largely debink the myth of MRE's causing constipation. After eating them day after day, for weeks on end, yes, they do; but, there are hardly ANY units that are totally dependent on MRE's for survival that long, without other types of provisions. They do contain a large amount of calories, and can be eaten one per day, to provide energy, and have been used as such. However, even SF teams are rarely out long enough to subsist solely on MRE's for an extended period of time. Firstly, they weigh quite a bit. And, as a soldier, when it comes to beans or bullets, bullets win hands down every time. If you need to carry enough food for a team of 4 to operate for an extended period of time, you will most likely be foraging as well.
And, coffee & tea, IMHO, are essentially the same. Yes, coffee is a dieuretic, but, in a one cup per MRE serving, it is miniscule compared to the amount of water one needs to choke down an MRE. On top of that, one wouldnt simply stop in the middle of combat to "brew up". Doesnt happen. But, a warm cup of coffee is a HUGE morale boost, no matter where you are. Also, I worked with the Brits once a few years ago, and they were totally hooked on our instant coffee. A rather popular trade item, right behind the M&Ms.I've yet to see a Brit, or any professional soldier, simply stop in the middle of a stressful situation, i.e. combat, to brew a cup of tea. Now, not saying it hasnt happened...but, its kinda hard to light a fire when someones trying to kill you. And, the americans have their kit too. The canteen cup comes with a burner, and you can get hexamine tabs from your supply SGT. We just dont treat it as a cultural "right". But, we do brew up, when allowed. The US army has some of the strictest noise/light discipline in the world. My unit, you couldnt wear a watch without a piece of 100 mph tape to cover the face. So, making coffee at 3 AM was TOTALLY out of the question. In times such as that, we simply put it in our lip like dip, and suffered through
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