Tea Makes Everything Better!

Tea is like my best friend. I drink tea 24/7. I think on average I drink like 3 cups of tea a day, maybe more if I'm super stressed. I need tea in the morning like most people need coffee. However, I HATE coffee, it is the most disgusting drink in the world. I don't know how people drink it, but to each their own I suppose.

I guess you could say tea has the same effects on me as coffee does for other people. In the morning, it wakes me up and during the day it keeps me calm (does coffee do that? I don't know, I hate coffee). If I don't drink tea in the morning... well, I'm a bit cranky. Maybe because I'm used to it or maybe because it actually does wake me up. I realize some teas have caffeine in them, the teas I drink have very low amounts, however if I really need caffeine I just make myself some Green Tea.

There are many different types of teas and they all benefit you in some sort of way, whether it's just awesome tasting or it actually has real health benefits.. My personal favorites include Jasmine Green Tea, Green Tea, Herbal Teas and Earl Grey. There may be more, but I haven't gotten around to trying every single Tea flavor in the world because I'm a poor college student ):

So I'll start with my favorites:

• Jasmine Green Tea - Is a part of the Green Tea and Herbal Tea family with Jasmine flowers added to it. It is said that the Jasmine part has really no benefits but the Green Tea does.

• Green Tea - Green Tea is very popular among the general public because it tastes good and has some common health benefits. It is very high in antioxidants and has EGCG which is said to protect against cancer, heart disease, etc. Green Tea can be caffeinated or decaf (I switch between both). Different plants/ flowers can be added to Green Tea to create any taste you like such as the Jasmine Green Tea I've stated above.

• Herbal Tea - These are usually not caffeinated and contain some mixture of dried fruit or herbs (flowers), such as chamomile, jasmine, dandelion root, lavender, peppermint, etc. They are the tastiest in my opinion. My mom always had me drink peppermint tea for tummy aches and chamomile was for going to bed. That's why there's teas called "Sleepytime" by Celestial Seasonings and it does contain chamomile. Fun fact: If you eat or drink peppermint, it can make you more alert to your surroundings.

• Earl Grey - Is a Black Tea which is also very high in antioxidants and has almost as much caffeine as coffee (coffee has 50 to 100 milligrams, Black Tea has about 40). I personally love Early Grey. English Breakfast tea is another Black Tea. It is said that this tea can reduce strokes and keep cholesterol low.  

Other Types I have not tried:

• Oolong Tea - According to the internet, apparently this tea can help in weight loss, whether or not that is true, I don't really know because I haven't ever had this tea. It is on my list though.

• White Tea - This tea is said to ward off cancer and heart disease as well (seems like tea is just all around good for you). I think I've tried this tea once, it was one of those flavored Lipton white Teas and I wasn't all that fond of it. But then again, I don't really like fruity teas, I'm more of an herbal tea person.

*To learn more, obviously Google the tea you'd like to try and read reliable articles, this is just a friendly overview.*

Teas can come in bags, which has a pre-measured amount of tea and you steep it for a certain amount of time, or it can come in containers as loose leaves, which one should be more educated on how much tea to put in a cup and the steeping times (I'm too lazy to do the second method so I just buy the bags).

That being said, the brands of tea I buy most of the time include:

• Twinings

• Lipton

• Celestial Seasonings

• Bigelow

I used to be crazy about Teavana but then figured out their little marketing plot so now I basically stay as far away as possible. I don't like places that treat their customers like crap/ just try to suck them into spending tons of money (which I don't have!!). 

I've also started to get into organic teas, and one brand, Two Leaves and A Bud, which can be bought at any Whole Foods store, has served me well so I recommend trying those. 

Yogi teas taste nasty but they apparently have a ton of health benefits so I sometimes force myself to drink those. I like the stress reliever ones. 

And last, Tazo teas are okay as well. I like the iced teas you can get at Starbucks.

My Thoughts:

So that is my take on Teas and why I love them. Tea is a huge part of my life, and don't even get me started on my Tea mugs... I have tons. My newest one was given to me for my birthday by my boyfriends mother, which I absolutely adore. 

Some of my favorite mugs....

 

                                    This one my mother bought me for Christmas!                 This one my boyfriends mother bought me for my birthday!

I love tea cups as well, I have a couple from Disney World that one of my friends bought me and they have little Alice in Wonderland details on them. So adorable. I would love to just have a huge tea party with a bunch of tea lovers! I tend to have them alone...