What is the point of drinking tea?

I switched from coffee to tea (both without sugar) because coffee was too acidic and was contributing to my heartburn issues. Drinking tea also keeps you in the practice of holding up your pinky, which is not something one does while drinking coffee.

It tastes good. If you like it. You don’t seem to, and that’s okay!

Can you think of anything you enjoy drinking, apart from pop? Unless it’s alcohol or lighter fluid, go with that!

It’s warm, and cosy, in autumn and winter.
I drink licorice (root) tea.
I don’t drink coffee (anymore).

I like green tea-good for ya
Peppermint tea-good for stomach aches
Chamomile-I brew my own from the plants I grow. That is a good tea to use to relax. Nice flavor IMO
Those are my favorites.
Once you get past the expectation of them being sweet like pop, you might enjoy the different flavors.
As a potter,I have made teapots & tea bowls. It can turn the whole tea drinking thing into a nice,relaxing ritual.
There also special clays that are used to make teapots and one should only brew the same kind of tea in them as they take on the flavor of the tea and enhance it somehow.
I have not used this clay but want one of these teapots badly. :)

If you like pop, and want something with less sugar, or chemicals that diet pop has,look into Zevia pop it has zero preservatives, no artificial colours, is sweetened with stevia, Mrs Squeeky and I love it, you can find it at most food stores,Super Store, and health food stores sell it as well.
Health food stores sell it by singles as well so you can try one and not have to buy a six pack.

Funny I just made tea right now. Citron Green. 41 degrees outside. I’m in it for the taste. And variety from soda, juice and coffee.

A hot cup of nice tea is enjoyable and relaxing for me, esp since I hate plain water and easily dehydrate. It may take awhile for all the sugar and toxins to leave your body and taste buds. Horrid stuff, soda, please keep trying.

@all I ordered Tealyra – Cream Earl Grey from Amazon for $19 and the tea bags for them.

What are you trying to get from it?

@Darth_Algar EDIT Mild caffeine drink to wean me off sugary and heavy caffeinated drinks like Coke. Also trying to figure out the novelty of drinking tea, then maybe latter coffee.

Ah, well unless it’s decaffeinated then tea often has more caffeine than soda does. So if you’re trying to cut down of caffeine then non-decaffeinate tea isn’t a good choice. And I get the impression that most of what you drink is heavily sugared drinks like soda and juices. You’re probably not going to be able to just straight up switch over to something like tea right away. When you’re use to sugary drinks then tea becomes something of an acquired taste. You can try adding sugar to it and gradually reducing the amount of sugar you put in it as you become more accustomed to the flavor of the tea itself.

@Darth Good point. Body may be craving both for awhile.

This may shock some of you, me being english & all, but I don’t drink tea, not done for years.
I grew to loathe the taste & changed to coffee, black, two sugars (sweetener) never looked back.
Oh & coffee & scones on the lawn after a spot of croquet is still ok what what!

@ucme Bahaha! The ‘what what’ kills me. Only read in books!!

Find a tea you like. There are many kinds and qualities, and many ways to season them to taste.

I like Earl Grey with a bit of milk and sugar. I’m not very picky but better fresher teas are better.

The “POINT”, as you put it, might be considered to be that it’s enjoyable (IF you enjoy it, which make take some practice to find what you like and acquire and develop the taste for it), to have something to drink, to have a drinking habit that’s better for you than alternatives (definitely much better than soda pop), that it’s nice an hot and can melt sinus congestion, and can have other soothing or even remedial properties (varies by the tea). It can also be a lot less expensive than some beverages, and can be enjoyable and comforting and relaxing, and/or part of a nice ritual or social experience.

If you’re used to drinking caffeinated drinks, then yeah you might like to stick to caffeinated teas.

As for other alternatives to soda pop, my favorite routine beverages other than tea are coffee and a mix to taste of apple juice (or when it’s hot, lemon juice) with fizzy water. Again finding the types you prefer is important.

(I’m hooked on mixing Trader Joe’s apple juice mixed with fizzy water, though I imagine you don’t have Trader Joe in Red Deer?)

@KNOWITALL Well now you’ve read it here lol
Of course, the olde english folk from way back in time when we ruled the empire when wanting tea, would say…”care for a spot of tiffin m’dear what what?”
Silly old buggers :D

@ucme Yes, with the monocles and tophats. I love that period! About now they close up and head back for the London season of balls and fashion. Sigh…what a dream.

@KNOWITALL Trust you to dream of balls :D
Now stop that this instant & have a cup of tea.

I like the cheap lipton tea. It is the trailer park of teas. But it is pretty good if you put in a lot of sugar. Here is the thing, I can add a ton of sugar to the point it is sickening and it still won’t have nearly as much sugar as a can of soda. Three teaspoons makes it really sweet, a can of coke somehow manages to pack in 12 teaspoons. And at least with tea you can use real sugar and not that diabetes sugar they use in soda.

I like tea but if I want the fizz of soda without the caffeine or sugar, I buy a flavored fizzy water or seltzer. No calories, no caffeine, no sugar but it has some of the mouth feel of soda.

@johnpowell

Pretty sure that diabetes makes no distinction between “real sugar” and “diabetes sugar”.

The earl grey should have plenty of caffeine, unless your pop was Mountain Dew? That’s very high in caffeine. I think you miss the fizzy part maybe.

@Darth_Algar True,that

There are many variety and flavors of teas out there. Many people prefer tea over coffee, because coffee doesn’t do well with them or their stomachs. Or they just don’t like the taste of coffee. Certain teas have some health benefits, especially green tea. I like coffee in the morning and tea at night to relax on. It’s especially good on cold winter nights. And yes a little sugar or honey does fine and well in tea. :)

@Darth_Algar :: I’m talking high-fructose corn syrup.

What about MiO? Has any one tried it? My nurse suggested it last week. I might buy a small amount next time I go shopping.

@johnpowell

Yes, I’m quite aware of what you’re talking about, and I don’t think diabetes makes any distinction. Glucose is glucose, as far as the body is concerned.

I love tea. I drink it every day. Mostly iced tea, because it is always warm where I live, even in November. I drink regular caffeinated tea in the daytime, and decaf in the evening.

I love hot Earl Grey tea, but rarely drink hot tea, simply because it is always warm here, save for a handful of days.

Tea has a very delicate, yet distinct flavor, and should never be drank with sugar added to it. That just ruins it, in my opinion.

Tea is loaded with antioxidants, and is very good for you, as long as you don’t over do it with the caffeinated kind.

Soda pop is one of the most unhealthy things you can put in your body. Your best bet is to simply give it up cold turkey, and drink good, filtered water for several months, then you could try tea again. Tea is meant to have a very delicate, slightly sweet flavor, fresh flavor, and the different brands and types taste quite distinctive from each other. It isn’t meant to be super sweet like candy, the way soda pop is.

Here is a tea primer if you want to know more about tea:

https://danielmiessler.com/study/tea/

Some attributes of tea:
You can choose to have it weak or strong.
You can have caffeine or not.
You can purchase a great many different flavors, but there are many things also which you can add. Some take it with a cinnamon stick in it, or lemon, or a sprig of peppermint or spearmint. You can sweeten it a little, a lot, or not at all.
It is good hot or cold.
You can make one cup or a full pot.

Taking all this, and what others have said into account, I would say its greatest draw is versatility.

@RedDeerGuy1 Are you putting some sugar in your tea? Also, do you like the earl grey? I personally don’t like it very much, I prefer simple Liptons tea, or really good English or Irish breakfast tea. Really good Chinese black tea also.

Update: Tea arrived. Am making a pot. Will try when It cools off a bit. Two sugar cubes.

@RedDeer Hope you love it. Maybe lemon or a dollop of cream, whatever suits you is far better than those chemicals. Great job!!

@RedDeerGuy1 Try it without first, or maybe one sugar cube. I drink tea mainly rather than coffee because I can tolerate it without sugar. And even if it has more caffeine supposedly, it doesn’t make me jumpy the way coffee does.

The average cup of coffee has more caffeine than tea. It can easily be twice as much, but it also depends on which tea and which coffee, and how dark each is.

Sometimes I don’t stir in the sugar so the last sips at the bottom are sweeter. If you are using a straw for iced tea then your straw is at the bottom so that doesn’t work then.

Update: Tried with and without the sugar. I prefer 2–4 sugar cubes. Goal is to get a replacement for the soda. Will have a pot out over night just in case. EDITED

@RedDeer You can always try to lower it as time passes.
How long off of soda now? Today or ??

@KNOWITALL One day off soda. One can left in fridge. Will see how long I can go without drinking it.

I miss the teas I used to get from my favorite casino as incentive to keep coming. They were great!
There were several flavors. The raspberry was very strong, and best with a cold. I didn’t care for the lemongrass.
There are so many options. Just experiment. If you find a favorite way, still try others, so you don’t get bored with one option.

@Patty_Melt I went online with Amazon chat help. He recommended the loose tea and separate tea bags. I was looking for nice taste with caffeine. When I go shopping for groceries I will see what flavors to try.

This is a great time to find sampler sets. Walmart has them, some malls have tea shops, but those run more expensive. Amazon has some nice samplers available too.

Enjoy the adventure!

@all I went back to drinking pop. Coke helps my drooling, and dry mouth.

@RedDeer Booo!! Haha. My husband is obsessed with soda, so I get it. Sugar is highly addictive.

I think the point is, drinking tea is much more pleasant, than using it as an enema.

@all Update I have stopped drinking pop for 3 months now. I drink more water. I still drink Kool-Aid Jammers and chocolate and regular milk.