Who out there drinks tea for the health benefits?

I don’t. Flavour all the way.
I don’t generally believe in that sort of ‘miracle food’. If you eat healthily and varied and make sure you get your excersise every day, I don’t believe all these extra health benefits in tea or any other product really have all that much of an impact. And if you don’t eat healthily and varied and get your excersise, drinking tea or eating guava or whatever is not going to be enough to compensate. I find it a little off-putting when something is made trendy by supposed experts and especially the media (various women’s magazines hold a great deal of blame here. At least they do in Denmark). A couple of years ago it was blueberries this and blueberries that everywhere around here. Certain media went so overboard that it almost sounded like they thought blueberries could allegedly make people live to be 300 years old and cure everything from the common cold to terminal cancer. Every time you bought blueberries people automatically thought it was for all these super-powers, not because you just happened to think that a blueberry is a pretty yummy berry. And then of course it all fell apart over a couple of days when it was discovered that the blueberries actually sold in Denmark was not the right sort of blueberry. Food, in my opinion, doesn’t have to be a chemistry lesson.

So no, I can’t be bothered with the health benefits and chemistry lessons. I’ve even skipped those chapters when reading the literature that I’ve got, mostly because it’s OMG so boring. And I’m a lab tech, you would think it would be right up my alley… Maybe that’s actually the reason I remain sceptical about miracle food come to think of it.

I do, however, very hypocritically and ironically, keep some licorice root and chamomile tisanes around that I use when I’m feeling poorly, trying to placebo myself into feeling better. It helps pass the time until I actually do start feeling better, and I’m not above lying to myself that it happens quicker. I’m not certain this really counts in answer to this specific question, but I rather suspect that it does. :) It definitely feels soothing on a sore throat to drink, but possibly anything warm would do that. In such situations I tend to find that real tea takes on a quite unpleasant side-flavour, so it’s easier to deal with a tisane. Even if I don’t even like the tisane in question that much.

I drink tea because I love the wide variety of choices, never boring, perfect a mood drinker and eater. Plus I love what I have tasted and even if I run into something I don’t care for I am not detered and will try another new tea again. As for healthy benefits… Well if I am getting them then great but I don’t drink tea exclusively for that purpose. If there are in fact some that is a bonus. I don’t have any guilt when I drink tea assuming there are health benefits which is better than if or when I crave a pop. So I suppose for me the health benefit is I don’t feel guilty drinking tea and can indulge myself as I feel knowing it most likely should be alright. Trust me I have tested my limits and have yet to have seen a side effect. :)

I don’t drink tea particularly for health benefits. But I do believe we should follow the instructions of our body and chose the tea we feel most comfortable with. Here is something I wrote a while ago about my view of health benefits :-D
http://gingkobay.blogspot.com/2010/10/tea-and-inner-climate-of-body.html

Not much scientific information though. Basically I believe what’s showed health benefits on me may or may not does the same on you, and vice versa. So you are the only person who can find out what’s good for you :-D

I do not like plain water. Can’t stand it. Out of all of the other beverages in the world I have chosen it for it’s wide flavor varieties, the culture, the health benefits, and the fact that it is calorie and sweetener free. So while it is definitely at the bottom of the list it is definitely a factor as I do not drink pure tisanes.

I do. It’s not the only reason, but it’s one of them. My adrenal system is a little shot so tea helps regulate my energy swings. When I’m crashing I go for a black or green. I find the caffeine in them to work much better than coffee. It’s a smoother , longer lasting energy increase vs coffee’s initial jolt and more immediate consequent crash. Oolongs are good for energy too, though I also use them for their balancing properties. I also brew tisanes of course, like chamomile, peppermint, ginger, etc for their medicinal properties.

I do not. I drink tea because I love tea. Other than water, it is the only thing I drink on a daily basis. I don’t care for soda for the most part, and will only drink it when I’m out to eat and I don’t want to try what they (the restaurant) thinks will suffice for tea. I generally do not drink alcoholic beverages (maybe once a year … maybe?), and I can’t drink coffee. So tea and water are my main sources of hydration. The fact that tea is a healthy beverage is a bonus.

I actually started drinking tea because I was trying to lose weight when it was right around the time when green tea started being touted as a weight loss aid. First grocery store brand green, the Yogi, then at some point I discovered Teavana and it was all over from there, haha.

The health benefits are definitely something I keep in mind. For example if I’m having a heavy meal I’ll make a cup of oolong with it, as I’ve read that oolong can help block fat absorption. I drink ginger or peppermint tea for stomach aches, though I guess those would be classified as herbals. I like black tea in the morning for the caffeine boost. Plus drinking a lot of tea always helps my skin look better (whether this is tea itself or simply that I’m well-hydrated, I’m not certain). I also occasionally fall into the trap of Republic of Tea’s wellness teas – their digestion one is good and quite helpful. And detox teas do help with hangovers.

In conclusion: yay health benefits! They brought me in, they keep me around. And all the dessert teas in my cupboard are beneficial because they keep me from overindulging…that counts, right? ;)

I drink for so many reasons… health benefits, caffeine, flavour…
I’m a mood drinker, taking into account all sorts of factors when choosing a tea.
Also, I can’t stand eating processed food so try to stay away from it as much as possible, which is partially what drew me to loose-leaf teas in the first place, but then I just fell in love with the variety and richness in flavour.
So in short, I don’t drink tea to be healthy, but it certainly fits into my lifestyle preferences.

I originally got into tea because I had this weird throat problem where I had to clear it all the time, and tea was the only thing that would make it better- I would drink it after every meal, and before I went to class (so as not to drive the people around me crazy). So I suppose you can say I got into tea for health benefits… but not weight-loss related things. I eventually figured out what had been causing it, and have learned to steer clear of sugar and dairy products accordingly (or be sure to have a mug of green tea around for afterwards!), but by that time I was hooked.

However, since I started drinking tea in place of the soft drinks I used to have all the time, I’ve lost about 20 lbs… so that’s definitely been a bonus!

Wow! Thank you everyone for responding. I enjoyed reading your posts, and I relate to much of what was written. Now I understand a little better where some of you tea enthusiasts are coming from and see I am not alone out here in Steepster cyberspace.

If you choose to read on, here is my disclaimer: I enjoy writing, and some judge it is lengthy. I did my best to make this as clear and concise as possible:)

A little about how I came to tea.

Nine months ago, loose-leaf tea was barely even on my radar. At that time I was looking for a natural way to supplement what I was already doing to help relax and focus my mind (my mind races like you wouldn’t believe). After many hours searching the Internet I eventually stumbled upon an article telling me about the existence of a wonderful little amino acid in green tea called theanine. After more digging, I found all kinds of research on the effects of theanine on the human body. As some of you may know, Chinese Buddhist monks have been drinking green tea for thousands of years to help them to stay awake and alert during meditation. Certainly, while that doesn’t mean drinking green tea will have that same effect on me, it makes me take notice, especially when their habits support the mounds of scientific data.

That one article was my entry point into experiencing the wonders of green tea. Since that fateful day I discovered through my own experiences that drinking green tea does indeed help to me to relax and focus. Clearly though, what matters most for my health and mental attitude are basic things like eating a well balanced diet, daily exercise, getting plenty of sleep, avoiding unhealthy foods/behaviors, and relaxing and enjoying life (certainly tea is a big part of that for me right now). Tea simply and beautifully complements all of those other things.

Without my wanting to find something to help me to relax naturally, I probably would have never discovered the wonders of loose-leaf tea. That is what I call Serendipity, where everything belongs.