The benefits of Chai Tea

As an imperfect environmentalist, my goal is not only to live more sustainably and with as little impact on the environment as I can but also to live more healthily with as much of a positive impact on my own body. So part of my new year's resolution is to care for my body better inside and out....how am I accomplishing this...pushing off the coffee and brining on the Chai Tea. This little miracle drink feels me with utter peace and joy, it mellows me, smooths out all the rough edges and just brings me a little peace in a crazy day. Not only that but I found a write up that explains many additional benefits as well. Look for yourself:

Chai tea not only tastes delicious but has numerous health benefits. Black tea (the tea used to make chai) contains plenty of disease-fighting antioxidants, which in tea are called flavanoids. Flavanoids are not affected by whether or not you have milk in your chai – they still work effectively. It is thought that tea contains ten times the amount of antioxidants as you would find in fruit and vegetables and that is great news for tea lovers because antioxidants slow the aging process and are beneficial for your body. Chai tea helps to prevent and fight cancer, high blood pressure and high cholesterol and Alzheimer's. Chai tea is also thought to boost the immune system and prevent heart attacks and strokes. The extra ingredients added to chai tea also have their own health benefits. Ginger is thought to strengthen and heal the respiratory and digestive systems, fight off colds and sore throats and decrease congestion. People also take ginger to prevent motion sickness. Cloves are restorative and invigorating. They help to generate heat in the body so are good to take if there are colds or flu going around. Cinnamon is a stimulant and makes the other herbs work faster in the body. Black pepper gives warmth. Cardamom stimulates the mind and refreshes you. Nutmeg adds a rich, delicious flavor to your brew. If you crush the spices using a mortar and pestle, the flavors really emerge. Flavanoids and fluorides in tea are believed to be beneficial for the teeth, reducing cavities and preventing the development of plaque. Tea does not stain the teeth as long as you brush them regularly. Chai tea does not have a diuretic effect like coffee, unless you drink it excessively.