We all know that tea is often served with hot and spicy meals but that's not the only reason to drink it. If you want a more healthful drink than your usual morning coffee but don’t want to give up the all of the caffeine, try tea.

Tea comes packed with compounds that can fight cavity-inducing enzymes and the bacteria that cause bad breath. Green tea has significant research which indicates that it can neutralize garlicky smells. Any tea will keep breath fresher than coffee, so if you are attending a meeting opt for tea with lemon instead of coffee, forgo sugar and milk for the freshest breath. Another good reason to drink tea with spicy foods.

According to research from the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, regular tea drinkers are more likely to survive heart attacks.

Another study conducted by Oregon State University has found that these compounds which are called polyphenols may shrink colon tumors.

You can get the full benefits polyphenols (the compounds) by drinking of black, Oolong, green or white* tea. Herbal teas don’t contain polyphenols, decaffeinated teas contain only a few.

Adapted in-part from Ladies’ Home Journal

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*White tea is the least processed form of tea. Its brews slightly sweet and does not have the grassy taste that green teas may have. When brewed it is pale yellow or a lightish red color. It is also more expensive than other teas.