Ah, tea… Where would I be without it? Although I love my coffee, nothing replaces a nice hot cup of green tea with lemon, honey and a pinch of ginger powder. Did you know that second to water, tea is the MOST consumed beverage around the globe? Yeah… And you thought it was just the Brits that drank this stuff.

But there is a damn good reason (more than one actually) why tea is so popular – It has a ridiculous amount of health benefits attached to it! Some of these include weight loss, anti-stress characteristics, antioxidants, reducing blood clots, reduce cholesterol… And on and on. Some teas are showing promise as cancer fighters. Hoorah!

But herein lies the question, Which type of tea should you drink? Well in short, you should go out and try ALL of them, but to make this process a little more “scientific” while smothering you in valuable education, I will be going into detail on the different types of teas that you can make or find in a grocery store.

Before we being, let’s cover some tea basics. Generally speaking, white tea receives the least amount of processing or treatment because the leaves are just gently dried… And that’s about it. Because of this, white tea’s have the most antioxidants. The next in line is green tea, this type of tea gets a bit more attention as the leaves are momentarily steamed or heated, then dried. Let’s not forget that green tea has shown promise in preventing diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Then after green tea we have Oolong teas, these teas have been oxidized which gives them a more robust flavour than green tea, but not quite as much as black tea.

After Oolong we have… (you better have guessed it) Black tea, it is the most processed because the leaves are rolled, oxidized (to develop a concentrated flavour) and then dried. Because black tea is so oxidized, it’s antioxidant levels drop but the levels of thearubigins and theaflavins increase. These 2 flavonoids have shown promise against fighting of human cancer cells, so don’t think that black tea is bad.

Then after all of these teas we have mixed teas – which are technically known as “infusions”, this means they mix and match ingredients before you brew your beverage but for sanity’s sake, and because I think its totally retarded to call it an “infusion”… I’ll just called it tea. I know you agree.

Now let’s get into specifics:

Rooibos

A tea is from South Africa and comes from the Aspalathus linearis plant, which looks like a red bush (insert sexual joke here). This tea was traditionally used to promote healthy skin, and relief from allergies and asthma. It is also very rich in antioxidants and is usually caffeine-free which means you can take it before you head off to bed. Nice.

Valerian

Made from the dried roots of the valerian plant, it is used to help with relaxation. Studies done on this root confirm this fact as they found it to be effective at inducing sleep and also improving the quality of your sleep. Some women may notice that this tea helps them with menstrual discomfort. You can find this tea by itself, but because of its potent flavour it usually comes mixed with other teas.

Ginger

One of my favourite spices, ginger kicks some SERIOUS ass. This spicy root has been used for thousands of years to relieve sore throats, help with stomach discomfort, relieve nausea, help with diarrhea and may have blood thinning and cholesterol lowering properties. You can either cut up a piece of ginger and use an infuser to make your tea, or do what I do: Make some green tea, then use a juicer and make some ginger juice. Add about a tablespoon to your green tea and then sweeten with Stevia or Honey. Viola! (ginger powder is also very potent and effective if convenience is an issue)

Yerba Maté

This stuff is slowly and steadily finding it’s way into energy drinks and fat loss pills – and for good reason. Made from the Ilex paraguariensis leaves, it has been used for hundreds of years in South America to combat physical and/or mental fatigue. But here’s the REAL kicker… The caffeine effect with Yerba Maté has been shown to be jitter and crash-free! The reason is unknown, but hey… I’ll take it!

Chamomile

Related to the daisy, it is grown in western Asia and Europe. It is sweet tasting and in the past, it has been used to help with digestive problems, menstrual cramps and as a natural sedative. A study in 2008 pointed out that drinking chamomile tea with your meals everyday could help prevent the progression of hyper-glycemia or diabetic problems and/or complications.

Lapacho

Also known as Taheebo, is comes from the bark of the South African lapacho tree. This tea stimulates and heightens your immune system just like echinacea and ginger, and can be used to pre-empt a cold or flu. This tea also has antimicrobial properties and is used for Candida or yeast infections.

Fennel

This herb has a licorice type flavour and has been used as traditional medicine in Europe & China for many digestive disorders such as flatulence, infant colic and a bunch of others. If you cannot find tea bags, crush 2 teaspoons worth of seeds and then add boiling water and steep for about 10 minutes. You can also add other tea leaves to this and then add honey/stevia to taste.

Peppermint

I love this tea, particularly because of the flavour. Its strong, mildly sweet, refreshing and best of all, it can be enjoyed hot or cold. Peppermint has shown to be effective in reducing abdominal pain, flatulence & diarrhea and irritable bowel syndrome. You may use fresh peppermint leaves and make your own tea by using an infuser or buy some of the many types of peppermint teas that come in tea bags.

A Word On Tea Bags…

If you’re gona be tea-baggin it, (insert sexual connotation here) make sure you avoid the cheap/shitty brands that tightly pack the paper tea bags together. You’ll know it’s cheap because when you open up the box, you’ll see some white dust or powder that rubs off on your hands. Luckily, I know that a few companies (like Lipton) have been using a new type of teabag which I highly recommend. It’s basically a netted pyramid that lets ALL the flavour through because the tea isn’t so tightly packed together. Sure it costs a bit more, but FJ says it’s well worth it! The extra flavour and not to mention, the extra anti-oxidants that you’ll get out of every cup will more than make up for your extra dollar that you happened to dish out.

A Word On The Ultimate Tea…

I was feeling adventurous and decided to make some SUPER TEA. You see when I was a lil boy, I used to LOVE mixing drinks. Every time I went to a restraunt or an eatery, Id take my cup and go from one end to the next mixing together every type of drink available. This is called gutter water, and only truly weird kids will be accustomed to the taste.

So I let the kid in me come out, I took all dried tea leaves from above and packed them into ONE massive tea bag and steeped it for 15 minutes. The results were… Interesting. Personally, I wouldn’t recommend it, but I don’t think you could argue with the health benefits of my awesome creation! So the whole point is… Mix and match you own tea and if you come up with something awesome, post it in the comments below.

To Being Fit & Sexy 4 Life… Cheers!

-Fit Jerk

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