Photo courtesy of Leah Bisch

LOS ANGELES—A wise old man once told me while chewing on his tobacco, “You can search high and low for therapy these days, but after a long hard day at work there ‘aint nothing like a good brew to make it all better.” Perhaps surprisingly, he wasn’t English either. Tea, often termed as a brew, or a “cuppa,” is an age-old tradition that has been around for centuries—and that wise old man wasn’t far from right.

Tea originated in the provinces of China and Burma in South East Asia and came from the Camellia Sinensis plant, an evergreen that thrives in tropical or subtropical climes. The name "Chai" was given by the Persians who took the tea from China, meaning "green juice," but it was the Dutch who named it "thee" translating to "tea" many hundreds of years later. Different types of tea stem from the various leaf sizes and bush types.  Echinacea is one tea that helps fight off infection and build up the body's tolerance to disease whilst peppermint tea can be consumed after eating to aid the digestion process. Chamomile tea aids restful sleep and green tea has long been hailed the tonic for youth and longevity. Earl Grey is a traditional distinct tasting tea, while fruit teas are good for refreshments throughout the day. Iced tea is also great during the hot summer months and is highly effective at rehydrating. Many other teas are popular around the world and originate from Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia and beyond.

The wonderfully abundant qualities of tea are renown worldwide and many medical studies have linked tea to everything from curing insomnia, fighting cancer and reducing obesity, to boosting the immune system and easing anxiety and stress. Tea is full of antioxidants that reduce the harmful free radicals in our body’s system, effectively cleaning us from the inside out.  Drinking two to three cups of herbal tea a day helps to keep the body cleansed and revitalized. Adding honey helps reduce the bitter taste of some teas while milk is commonly added in English breakfast tea. Caffeine in tea is actually higher than in coffee, gram per gram; however, much less dry tea is used to make an average cup than dry coffee, and therefore a cup of tea has less than half the caffeine of an equal sized cup of coffee.

Tea was used as a medicine many centuries ago and not surprisingly tea is often the only drink allowed to be consumed next to water in the homes and places of worship of the ancient healers and Tibetan monks. As a simple refreshment or as a daily morning ritual, tea can be enjoyed whenever and wherever the occasion. Civilizations who treat their body as a temple, both in mind, body and spirit have sung the praises of tea as being a magical drink since man first stepped foot on earth, and long may it continue.

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