What kind of tea is best for you?

I commonly encounter this question.  This was actually a question of mine years ago when I first started getting into tea.  I spent a good deal of time researching this issue and then doing a physical experiment (actually drinking the tea and documenting the results).  Just another day in one’s never ending quest to tea effectively and efficiently! 

Well, I found some pretty shocking results, to say the least!  First of all, the tea the we are most commonly exposed to is not very good for you at all.  That’s right, the tea bags that you are used to seeing and most likely purchasing from time to time are not very healthy for you.  These tea bags are filled with stems, bits, and pieces of tea, but not the blossoms nor the leaves, which possess the highest concentrations of antioxidants (the stuff in tea that‘s good for you). 

I also discovered that adding most artificial sweeteners or old fashioned sugar to your cup of tea can negatively override any positive health benefit obtained from drinking the tea.  That is a very important point for people to understand and there are a large population of you tea drinkers out there who would opt not to even have the cup of tea if it were unsweetened. 

The solution, only purchase loose teas.  Loose tea can be obtained from a seemingly endless number of suppliers.  Here is another tip, many of the tea companies that sell tea bags to the local stores sell loose teas as well.  Loose teas are not as commonly purchased by the mainstream public, therefore, they tend to not be stocked in stores as frequently.  Next time you are in your usual grocery store, pick up a box of bagged tea that you enjoy, go to the companies website and see if they do indeed supply loose tea.  Most likely, they will. 

 For those of you tea drinkers who refuse to drink that cup without sweetener, I’m still working on it.