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by Shirley Bragg
for About.com

Top 8 Reasons To Drink/Use Tea

Guide Picks

Not a tea drinker? This week's article just might send you to the supermarket.

1) Polyphenols

This is one ingredient that puts tea into the beauty category. It fights plaque causing dental bacteria. Green and black tea even helps to fight cavities. Polyphenols is also an anti-oxident that protects you from free radical damage.

2) Green Tea

In a recent study, people who drank green tea burned more calories than those who consumed caffeine alone. Now is that a good reason or what!

3) Nettle Tea

This tea boosts circulation and hair growth while adding shine. Brew a half cup, allow to cool and then massage into the scalp, leave for 5 minutes or so and then rinse.

4) Rosemary Tea

Brew a cup and then allow to cool. Saturate hair for five minutes or so and then rinse with cool water. All the residue that has been dulling your hair will disappear.

5) Creating Highlights

I have actually seen this work. My niece actually darkened her blonde hair with tea. If you have red hair, green tea is the color of choice. Chamomile tea will add blonde highlights, black tea will add a glow to dark hair and for gray hair, try ginseng.

6) More Notes on Color

In India, women combine strong Indian tea with cloves to darken greying hair. In Jamaica, rum is added to the tea to bring out highlights. Now this might be folklore, I'm not sure, but one source claimed that gypsy women would happily drink nettle tea to keep their hair black and glossy. From that, I have to wonder about the taste or could it be a warning of something else??

7) Be Sure To Rinse

Even though tea has lots of anti-aging properties, it can still stain your teeth. After each cup, be sure to rinse. Nothing is worse than yellow teeth.

8) The Anti-Aging Part

In the last tip I mentioned anti-aging, so I thought that I would elaborate just a little. It seems that regular tea drinkers have a reduced rate of heart disease. And this study claimed a whopping 44% reduction.

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