Black tea with lemon doesn’t often get the credit it deserves.
In addition to having many health benefits, this drink is also very satisfying and invigorating. Drink it hot to kickstart a cold and rainy day or make an iced version to refresh you on a hot summer afternoon.
It’s also a great in-between choice for lowering your caffeine intake without feeling “zombified” when you want to give up coffee.
Keep on reading to find out why you should start adding some lemon to your cuppa and check out my recipe for making perfect hot or iced black tea with lemon.
Benefits of Black Tea With Lemon Explained
You’re missing out if you’ve never squeezed a little bit of lemon into black tea.
First, the naturally fresh flavors of lemon help go well with the bold and earthy taste of black tea. It’s an element that brings your cup of tea to life by giving it a complex and refreshing tang!
While black tea is flavorful, some people find its slightly pungent taste a bit too strong on its own.
Of course, flavor is just a superficial benefit to adding lemon to hot or iced black tea.
Take a look at how combining black tea with lemon creates a “super drink” for health that costs just pennies per cup!
Black Tea Benefits
Black tea is a refreshing and calorie-free drink full of healthy polyphenols including catechins and flavonoids.
While regular tea bags are just fine, the best loose leaf black tea brands can provide you with even more beneficial compounds.
The science-backed benefits of black tea include:
1. Contains Antioxidants
Can you brew the fountain of youth at home?
Black tea comes about as close as we can get to that for now. The reason why, is because black tea is dripping in antioxidants that can give you energy, fight disease, and make your mind sharper.
The rich concentration of antioxidants in black tea also helps to fight free radicals that degrade the body’s cells. Research shows that drinking black tea one to six times daily significantly increases the plasma antioxidant potential in humans to decrease oxidative biomolecular damage.
The polyphenols in black tea also work like antioxidants in the body. According to researchers, tea polyphenols have beneficial effects against cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and other forms of illness.
2. Good for Heart Health
Black tea contains flavonoids that reduce the risk of mortality related to cardiovascular diseases and stroke.
3. May Lower Cholesterol
According to a 2015 study, black tea consumption significantly lowers the serum concentration of LDL cholesterol also called the “bad” cholesterol. The benefits are greater for people with higher cardiovascular risk.
4. Energy and Focus
Is black tea brain food?
A 2017 study confirms that it is!
The study shows that consumption of black tea can speed up performance, improve memory, and reduce the number of errors when performing cognitive tasks.
Black tea appears to produce the most notable benefits when it comes to attention, memory, reaction time, cognition, and visual search.
5. May Help Control Diabetes
Over 37 million Americans have diabetes and the amount is getting higher each year.
So wouldn’t it be great to have a natural remedy to combat this condition?
Well, the good news is that there is one!
A new global study indicates black tea consumption has a positive effect on diabetes prevention.
6. Antibacterial Benefits
The reason why black tea can help clear up a sore throat may come down to its known antibacterial benefits.
Black tea has significant antimicrobial activity at varying concentrations against different bacterial pathogens. And its antibacterial benefits may even help to balance out gut bacteria for improved digestive health.
Lemon Benefits
This zestful and flavorful fruit is one of the most popular ingredients used in desserts and beverages. It surely adds a bite that awakens the senses!
Here’s why adding some fresh lemon to your tea will make it even healthier:
1. Helps With Weight Management
When life hands you lemons, you can use them to lose weight!
Research shows that consuming lemon polyphenols can actually suppress body weight gain and body fat accumulation.
2. Cholesterol and Heart Health
Researchers have found that consuming citrus fibers regularly can decrease both serum total and HDL-cholesterol levels.
Following a 20-year study, researchers concluded that regular lemon consumption dramatically reduces stroke risk.
In addition, fruits that are high in vitamin C reduce the risk of acute coronary events. And of course, lemon offers one of the highest concentrations of vitamin C per squeeze!
3. May Prevent Kidney Stones
If you suffer from chronic kidney stones, you can follow the advice of researchers to use the high concentration of citrate found in lemons to inhibit the formation of kidney stones.
4. Helps to Boost the Immune System
The vitamin C in lemons can help to promote a strong, robust immune system.
Black Tea With Lemon Recipe
Making a healthy cup of black tea with lemon is easy. All you need is some hot water, black tea, and fresh lemon.
Here is how to prepare black tea with lemon:
- Heat water in a tea kettle or a saucepan until it starts boiling.
- Add black tea to a teapot. You can use about 1 teaspoon per cup of water.
- Pour the water into the teapot and steep for 3 to 5 minutes.
- Strain to a mug and add some freshly squeezed lemon juice or a slice of lemon.
- Enjoy!
Some Additional Tips and Recommendations
Add Some Honey
If you want a bit of sweetness and even more health benefits, this is also one of the best teas to pair with honey.
Rich in antioxidants and a much healthier sweetener compared to sugar, tea with honey is also a great natural remedy for cough and sore throat.
For maximum benefits, use high-quality manuka honey — it has superb antibacterial properties that set it apart from traditional honey.
Make It Iced
This recipe also works great for iced tea — especially with honey. Just let the tea cool down and put it in the refrigerator to cool it down.
If you are in a hurry, just make the tea stronger by using 2 teaspoons of loose tea per cup of water and cool it with ice cubes.
Squeeze the Health Benefits From Black Tea With Lemon
The benefits of black tea with lemon prove that you don’t have to spend a ton of money to get a powerhouse health drink.
You don’t always have to make it at home because you can also order lemon black tea in many tea and coffee shops. In fact, it’s one of my favorite drinks on the Coco Fresh Tea & Juice menu.
If you’re looking for an easy way to give up coffee, it’s a perfect drink that can help you avoid headaches by offering enough caffeine with the natural peppiness of lemon. This drink can also be a fun way to mix up what you’re drinking throughout the day.
You’re not going to find a cheaper, easier drink that packs a bigger punch without dairy, sugar, and other ingredients!
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