Bottled Tea Lacking in Antioxidants

Many bottled teas have been touted as healthy, convenient alternatives to fresh-brewed teas. However, it appears that quite a few bottled teas have very few antioxidants and may not be much better for you than sugar water. Here's some of the recent news coverage of the dearth of antioxidants in bottled teas:

• NPR talks bottled tea and suggests an alternative
• Live Science on watered-down bottled teas
• Natural News on bottled teas that contain "virtually no" antioxidants

It's not the first time people have noted low antioxidant levels in bottled teas. In fact, About.com's Chinese Food Guide talked about low antioxidant levels in bottled teas years ago. However, this recent study on antioxidants in bottled teas shows the levels in many "RTD teas" or "ready-to-drink teas" to be shockingly low.

What can you do about it? Brew your own tea or buy fresh-brewed tea. Visit a local coffee shop or tea house and buy freshly steeped tea there. Explore tea recipes (or cold tea recipes) for ideas on creating your own tea drinks. You can even sneak more antioxidants into your diet by cooking with tea.

Do you have tips for replacing bottled tea with fresh-brewed tea? Share them with other About readers in the comments!

Photo (c) Marko Goodwin
Do you tweet? Follow About Coffee/Tea on Twitter.
Are you on Facebook? "Like" About Coffee/Tea.
Interested in learning more about tea? Sign up for the free, easy Tea 101 e-course.