If you got a chance to read my latest post, The Art of Marriage With Kids, you probably saw that one of our favorite ways to unwind each day is by having a cup or two of tea in the evening! It’s a nice way to relax together even if we don’t have a lot of time to do it! Plus, drinking tea (without a ton of milk and sugar in it) has more health benefits than you probably realize!
To make it even easier, we have this AMAZING electric kettle from Rosewill* that boils our water within a couple minutes. It is easy to use, easy to clean, and fast which is ideal when you’re trying to have some quick alone time with a toddler running around chasing the poor dog.
The kettle holds 1.5 liters of water and keeps the water super hot for a good long time! I forgot I boiled water one afternoon and when I opened the kettle hours later, it was still warm. The best part is that the outside of the kettle stays completely cool so there’s no chance of my clumsy self scalding my hand. It’s also really nice not having to use the microwave to boil a couple of cups of water and no need to get a pot out to boil water on the stove. This mama likes simple and quick! Plus, the less mess I have to deal with, the better.
My husband has also started using the kettle to boil water for his oatmeal in the mornings. It’s quick and easy and it has encouraged him to eat a more filling breakfast each day without having to sacrifice too many minutes of sleep each day! Winning all around! :) I would totally take this kettle to work to keep at my desk, but, I like having to get up to walk over to the hot water dispenser when I need it! If I took this kettle to work, I’d probably never leave my desk besides going upstairs to the bathroom because of all the tea I was drinking!
I know this kettle could be used for SO MANY things besides just hot water for tea and oatmeal, but, those two things are the most popular in our household!
Now, onto those health benefits that I mentioned earlier (thanks to Today.com!)…
1. Tea contains antioxidants. Like the Rust-Oleum paint that keeps your outdoor furniture from rusting, tea’s antioxidants protect your body from the ravages of aging and the effects of pollution.
2. Tea has less caffeine than coffee. Coffee usually has two to three times the caffeine of tea (unless you’re a fan of Morning Thunder, which combines caffeine with mate, an herb that acts like caffeine in our body). An eight-ounce cup of coffee contains around 135 mg caffeine; tea contains only 30 to 40 mg per cup. If drinking coffee gives you the jitters, causes indigestion or headaches or interferes with sleep — switch to tea.
3. Tea may reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke. Unwanted blood clots formed from cholesterol and blood platelets cause heart attack and stroke. Drinking tea may help keep your arteries smooth and clog-free, the same way a drain keeps your bathroom pipes clear. A 5.6-year study from the Netherlands found a 70 percent lower risk of fatal heart attack in people who drank at least two to three cups of black tea daily compared to non-tea drinkers.
4. Tea protects your bones. It’s not just the milk added to tea that builds strong bones. One study that compared tea drinkers with non-drinkers, found that people who drank tea for 10 or more years had the strongest bones, even after adjusting for age, body weight, exercise, smoking and other risk factors. The authors suggest that this may be the work of tea’s many beneficial phytochemicals.
5. Tea gives you a sweet smile. One look at the grimy grin of Austin Powers and you may not think drinking tea is good for your teeth, but think again. It’s the sugar added to it that’s likely to blame for England’s bad dental record. Tea itself actually contains fluoride and tannins that may keep plaque at bay. So add unsweetened tea drinking to your daily dental routine of brushing and flossing for healthier teeth and gums.
6. Tea bolsters your immune defenses. Drinking tea may help your body’s immune system fight off infection. When 21 volunteers drank either five cups of tea or coffee each day for four weeks, researchers saw higher immune system activity in the blood of the tea drinkers.
7. Tea protects against cancer. Thank the polyphenols, the antioxidants found in 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. 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. 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. 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.
*Crunchy on the Weekend sometimes receives complimentary items to review on the blog. The items marked by asterisks above are products that I have received complimentary in exchange for my HONEST review. All opinions are my own and were not influenced by any other factors. I decide which items I will post reviews of and I will never recommend an item that I wouldn’t use myself. My reviews are just that- my reviews. If you are unhappy with an item that I have reviewed on my blog, I will not be held liable. If you have questions, please contact me at crunchyontheweekend@gmail.com.
