The typical grocery store beverage aisle is stocked with carbonated sodas, neon-colored “juices,” energy drinks and bottled teas both large and small. If the multi-colored labels on each bottle don’t make you dizzy, the prices definitely will.
Beverages are part of everyday life – just as you get hungry, you’ll inevitably get thirsty. Instead of reaching for a sugary drink, why not go with an all-natural, zero-calorie option to quench your thirst? Tea! It may just be better for your body, better for your wallet and better for the planet!
Think about it. An average bottled tea sweetened with sugar can contain more than 60 calories per eight-ounce serving. Most bottles usually contain at least two servings and, let’s be honest, who only drinks half a bottle anyway? Combine the drink’s calories with an average of 20 grams of sugar per serving and you have a beverage option that will help you pack on the pounds in no time.
As an alternative, you can “Unbottle Your Tea” and stick to freshly brewed tea made with tea bags. It’s naturally zero calories and if you select a flavored tea like Salada’s Pomegranate Berry Green Tea, you’ll still get a sweet taste without all of that sugar.
Freshly brewed tea is also a lot cheaper than bottled tea. While the average bottled iced tea can cost $1.60 or more, a similar serving size of home brewed Salada tea will cost you only about $0.36. Imagine if you were to pick up a few bottles of iced tea each week. You would end up spending more than $200 over the course of a year. Replace those bottles with freshly brewed tea, and you’ll spend only about $50.
Above and beyond the calories and sugar, nickels and dimes, do you really want what you drink to negatively impact the planet?
Billions of single-use beverage bottles end up in the landfills in the United States each year. Avoid adding to that total by pouring your freshly brewed tea into a travel mug or reusable bottle. It’s an easy beverage on the go. Not to mention, the tea bags make a great addition to backyard compost piles and flower beds.
So, why do I know so much about tea? Well, I only just recently discovered the benefits of selecting freshly brewed tea made with tea bags over bottled tea myself. National green tea company Salada Tea was holding a contest to find its first-ever consumer spokesperson and, as I learned more about the company’s Unbottle Your Tea program, I became more and more excited about the opportunity. Many of the tips and ideas that Salada discusses in that program correspond to what I tell my nutrition clients. After creating a crazy submission video and encouraging everyone I know to vote for me, I was named Salada Tea’s first-ever consumer spokesperson to help spread the Unbottle Your Tea message.
So now you know. You can easily avoid the added calories, cost and environmental impact of bottled teas when you Unbottle Your Tea with freshly brewed tea made with tea bags!
And remember, a few small steps can lead to big changes.
Article first appeared on prevention.com and unbottleyourtea.com.
