There are lots of reasons why I enjoy a cup of herbal tea (both hot and cold) : I love the aroma of various flavors of tea; holding onto a hot tea mug warms my hands on a cold winter morning; sipping tea in front of the fireplace is a great way to relax. And those are just the feel-good reasons. If you're not drinking tea yet, read up on these 10 ways tea does your body good and then see if you're ready to change your Starbucks order!
Let's go for 6-10 Top Health Benefits of Herbal Tea (continued from 1-5)
6. Herbal Tea bolsters your immune defenses.
Drinking herbal tea may help your body's immune system fight off infection. When 21 volunteers drank either five cups of herbal tea or coffee each day for four weeks, researchers saw higher immune system activity in the blood of the tea drinkers.
7. Herbal Tea protects against cancer.
Thank the polyphenols, the antioxidants found in herbal tea, once again for their cancer-fighting effects. While the overall research is inconclusive, there are enough studies that show the potential protective effects of drinking tea to make adding tea to your list of daily beverages.
8. Herbal Tea helps keep you hydrated.
Caffeinated beverages, including tea, used to be on the list of beverages that didn't contribute to our daily fluid needs. Since caffeine is a diuretic and makes us pee more, the thought was that caffeinated beverages couldn't contribute to our overall fluid requirement. However, recent research has shown that the caffeine really doesn't matter -- tea and other caffeinated beverages definitely contribute to our fluid needs. The only time the caffeine becomes a problem as far as fluid is concerned is when you drink more than five or six cups of a caffeinated beverage at one time.
9. Herbal Tea is calorie-free.
Tea doesn't have any calories, unless you add sweetener or milk. Consuming even 250 fewer calories per day can result in losing one pound per week. If you're looking for a satisfying, calorie-free beverage, tea is a top choice.
10. Herbal Tea increases your metabolism.
Lots of people complain about a slow metabolic rate and their inability to lose weight. Green tea has been shown to actually increase metabolic rate so that you can burn 70 to 80 additional calories by drinking just five cups of green tea per day. Over a year's time you could lose eight pounds just by drinking green tea. Of course, taking a 15-minute walk every day will also burn calories.
Ref : http://yourtotalhealth.ivillage.com
By : Lynn Grieger
6-10 Top Health Benefits of Herbal Tea
Labels: Health Benefits of Herbal Tea
