Tea is an amazing beverage and part of any healthy lifestyle.
If you have closely read our blog posts or come into our tasting room to explore, you may have noticed that we tend not to focus on tea and health. There are two reasons for this. First, there is so much to tea that health need not be a primary focus. The second reason, however, can be summed up in three letters: FDA. In short, any company that starts making health claims about tea is treading on thin ice. Making health claims about a product places it dangerously close to regulation as a drug, and it’s way too easy to make claims not supported by sound research or are simply misleading. We would rather have people appreciate the beverage for its taste, history, and the craftsmanship it takes to produce a high quality tea.
Does that mean we discount tea and health? Absolutely not! But, we take claims with a dose of reality. Here is what we do believe.
- Tea isn’t a magic elixir, but it is full of amazing nutrients like antioxidants; L-theanine, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and many other potentially helpful compounds – but more study is needed.
- A healthy lifestyle certainly includes tea, so long as you use little or no sugar or added sweetener.
- Having a cup or pot of tea is a great way to reduce stress – when you take your time to appreciate is preparation, flavor, and mouth feel.
Over the next few blog posts we will be focusing a bit more on these specific health aspects of tea. So if you are looking for a bit of support in justifying more tea consumption, be sure to check out the next several posts. In the meantime, why not slowly enjoy a pot of your favorite tea.