9 of the Healthiest Types of Tea!

It has come to our attention that our recent declaration that coffee is healthy may have given the impression that we are trying to replace every other beverage on earth with coffee, and that’s just not true!

There are many healthy beverages besides coffee. Beverages like water. In fact, water is such a healthy beverage that you literally need it to stay alive—you can’t get much healthier than that!

You can drink more water and add even more healthful benefits to your water by using that water to make tea. “Tea” is such a broadly defined term that covers so many different beverages with a myriad of health benefits that it could even be argued that tea is more healthy than coffee. With the general caveat that the value of the cure depends upon the ill, these are nine of the healthiest types of tea.

Green Tea

Best for overall health, green tea has a history of medicinal use that spans thousands of years and is backed up by both historical records and modern medical literature reviewing the studies of its benefits. In the past, people have been treated with green tea to aid with cancer prevention, vascular issues, weight loss, and other issues. Green tea contains a certain blend of antioxidants that may be the reason for its mild anti-inflammatory effects.

Black Tea

If you read our story about the health benefits of black coffee and got to wondering if there was a tea version of that, the answer is black tea! With more caffeine than other types of teas, black tea is linked to many of the same cognitive benefits as coffee, plus scientific evidence suggests compounds in black tea may also help to reduce the development of cognitive decline, inflammation, diabetes, heart disease, and cancer.

Oolong Tea

While green tea contains antioxidants, oolong tea has more! It also has more caffeine than green tea (although not as much caffeine as black tea). Oolong tea is also full of something called L-theanine, an amino acid that’s been shown in studies to improve brain activity and sleep quality and reduce stress and anxiety. This is the perfect tea for when you want to be alert and focused without anxiety or jitters from a lot of caffeine.

White Tea

When it comes to having the most antioxidants, white tea is tops! Antioxidants help to repair the body from free-radical damage that we’re exposed to everyday just from being alive. Free radicals, over time, contribute to many health effects that range from annoying, like premature signs of aging, to deadly. Increasing your antioxidant intake helps reduce that damage and keep you looking better—and feeling better—for longer.

Chamomile Tea

Having a cup of tea before bed is a really easy way to add a few minutes of self-care to an otherwise hectic or stressful day. When it comes to the best way to wind down, chamomile tea is a great place to start. Chamomile is a member of the daisy family that may be the oldest documented medicinal plant in human history, and modern research suggests this tea may support immune health in addition to making you sleepy for a good night’s sleep.

Echinacea Tea

If you’re feeling under the weather, try having a cup of herbal tea with echinacea in the blend. This herbal supplement is popularly used for its immune-boosting properties, and it tastes pretty good, too! Whether you start to feel better sooner because the echinacea worked, or just because it gave you an excuse to take some time for your wellness, you’ll be on your way back to good health.

Ginger Tea

Tummy troubles? Try an herbal tea blend that includes ginger! Ginger is a root known throughout history for its medicinal uses, especially as a safe and effective treatment for nausea. One of the advantages of ginger over other anti-nausea treatments is that it’s pretty tasty with a bit of sweetener, which makes it easier to convince the sick person to drink it (especially if the sick person is a kid).

Tip: To make fresh ginger tea, grate some fresh ginger root into a mug, then add hot water and let it steep for 5 to 10 minutes. For additional soothing benefits, add lemon and honey. To avoid all this effort, buy tea made with dried ginger instead.

Peppermint Tea

Peppermint tea is similar to ginger tea in that it promotes healthy digestion but in a different way. Peppermint tea gets its flavor from menthol, which promotes relaxation of the intestinal tract and can help with bloating. Menthol also has a similar effect on the smooth muscles of the throat, making peppermint tea the ideal way to soothe a sore throat or prepare for any occasion where you’ll be speaking for a while, like at an important meeting.

Hibiscus Tea

Like the other teas on this list, hibiscus contains boatloads of antioxidants and has a lengthy history of being used medicinally across the globe to treat everything from upset stomachs to serious medical issues.

The antioxidants in hibiscus tea help to fight inflammation, which can lead to lower blood pressure, along with all the health benefits that come with lowering blood pressure to an ideal range. But honestly, our favorite reason to drink it is that it tastes like Sweet Tarts if you serve it over ice with a little sugar!

Come Visit Kate’s Kitchen for More Than Just Tea!

If one of the easiest ways to improve your health is by having a cup of tea every now and then, we say take the easy win! This is your sign to begin a flavor exploration through the wide world of tea: try a few different flavors of a few different styles until you find a new favorite.

Come visit the family at Kate’s Kitchen for your breakfast or lunch favorites and add a cup of tea to your order—hot or iced, there are no wrong choices here!

Take a look at our breakfast menu!

Give us a call if you would like to place a to-go order!

Kate’s Kitchen… (816) 436-7200

Ronnie’s Restaurant… (913) 831-8600