Health Tips - Kalusugan mo

Everyone knows that drinking tea is very good for you". How often have we all heard that phrase? But what exactly are the top health benefits for getting out your teapot? We thought we share this list of health benefits of settling down with a cuppa. We've grouped them into three categories - the preventative powers of tea, the appearance improving powers of tea and the mood-boosting powers of tea, so you can save a fortune on supplements and health care whilst you're enjoying a cuppa.


Tea can protect you from some major diseases


Benefit 1: Tea protects you from cancer. Conclusive research has linked regular green tea drinking to lower rates of cancer, and the clearest research suggests that tea is especially effective against breast, prostate and lung cancer.



Benefit 2: Tea protects you from heart disease and strokes. Research has found that drinking tea protects you from three of the major killer disease in Australia.
The naturally occurring chemicals in tea prevent blood clots from forming, with some studies finding that regular tea drinkers were 70% less likely to have a deadly heart attack.

Benefit 3: Lowers high blood pressure and bad cholesterol. If you're already on a low fat diet to get your cholesterol under control try adding tea to it. A Chinese study found a 16% drop in 12 weeks from adding tea to cholesterol management diets. Tea also contains catechin and polysaccharide, which have considerable positive effects on blood pressure.

Tea makes you healthier, and more attractive

Benefit 4: Tea helps you lose weight. Sounds too good to be true right? But tea boosts the metabolism and is a healthier alternative to milk heavy coffee. Tea also contains no fat and most blends have very low sugar so it makes a great snack or hunger filler.

Benefit 5: Tea improves your smile. Regular tea drinking actually improves your smile, as tea contains fluoride, the chemical placed in Australian water 20-30 years ago that saw an enormous boost in dental health nationwide. So adding a teapot full of this plague combating potion to your dental regime might be all you're missing!

Benefit 6: Tea has anti-aging powers. Tea is packed full of anti-oxidants, which can help slow down the aging process of your skin. Anti-oxidants help repair and renew cells, so as your natural bodily processes slow with age, tea can give them the boost you need to stay younger looking longer.

Benefit 7: Tea keeps you hydrated. Although tea contains a small amount of caffeine, studies have found that unless you're drinking 6+ cups a day it won't dehydrate you. This means 5 cups equals over a litre of water, which will keep your whole body singing and your skin, hair and eyes bright and shiny.

Photo: romainguy

Tea can make you feel better

Benefit 8: Tea makes you calmer and less anxious. Tea contains amino acid L-theanine which boosts brainwaves and relaxes the attention networks in your brain. The combined effect of this makes you calmer, but better able to concentrate.

Benefit 9: Tea helps you stress less. A study found that drinking 4 cups a day for two months lowered cortisol (a stress hormone) by 20%! Red tea also combats a lot of stress symptoms including headaches, irritability, insomnia and nervous tension and has been used in Africa for hundreds of years.

Benefit 10: The Teacup moment. The very act of choosing to take a moment, grab your tea pot and favourite tea cup out of the cupboard and brew a cup of tea is one of the favourite moments of many people's day. Whether you're a busy mum who snatches 5 minutes, a group of mates catching up or a worker taking a moment to refresh yourself before you launch back into your task list, grabbing that cup of tea is a moment of reflection and relaxation unparalleled in today's hectic world.

So what are you waiting for? Start drinking tea today to get be healthier, more attractive and more relaxed.