Re-thinking Tea

A warm mug of spiced tea on a chilly day in fall, or an iced glass of peach sweetened tea on a hot day in the summer, are just a couple familiar ways that we think of tea, but how can we start thinking of tea as something so much more?

My name is Kelley Scruby, owner of Do You Tea? —a small business in Hoboken, New Jersey that specializes in custom and seasonal loose leaf tea blends. One of my favorite things about tea is finding a blend that works specifically for a customer. Different types of tea leaves and ingredients have different properties and flavor profiles.You not only want the benefits that come with drinking tea, but you also want to be sure you’ll like the flavors and properly enjoy your cup of tea!

Tea can be very versatile. You can drink it to feel better or just to stay healthy. You can serve it to your friends after dinner, or drink a cup in the morning to start your day.

The benefits of tea are vast. Some will give you more of a caffeine boost while others with protect you from various ailments. Teas can speed up your metabolism or help lower your blood pressure. You can drink teas “pure” or flavored by adding fruits or spices.
While drinking any type of tea is better than none at all, you must remember that you are not getting the full amount of benefits you could get from your tea by drinking individual tea bags. A lot of times, tea bags tend to be what is left over after the full tea leaves have been used, and is often referred to as “tea dust.” Loose leaf tea is normally the full tea leaf, and the blends contain full pieces of fruits, spices, and other herbs.

Neva Cochran, MS, RD, LD, a Texas based, registered dietician, spoke at the Las Vegas World Tea Expo on disbanding myths about some of the health benefits of drinking tea, such as how one tea may be more “superior” than another, “…both of them contain compounds that promote health. Some of them are the same and some of them are different, but when you look at the balance between the two they both have significant amounts of antioxidants and flavenols that can help with a variety of different diseases.”

We need to be reminded that there are other beverage choices out there that not only taste better, but have so many more benefits for us than the sugary drinks we buy for convenience.

Stay tuned as I introduce and share my knowledge about the subtle differences and rewards that drinking tea can bring to your life.

Source: http://www.worldteanews.com/news/myths-and-truths-about-tea-health-benefits

The information supplied in this article is not to be considered as medical advice and is for educational purposes only.