Tea fun

Here are some interesting facts about tea to hand out with each cuppa!

• Eighty per cent (over three quarters) of office workers now claim they find out more about what’s going on at work over a cup of tea than in any other way.

• Tea was created more than 5,000 years ago in China.

• Ninety six per cent of all cups of tea drunk daily in the UK are brewed from tea bags.

• Ninety eight per cent of people take their tea with milk, but only 30 per cent (nearly a third) take sugar in their tea.

• Tea is a natural source of fluoride that can help protect against tooth decay and gum disease.

• Approximately 40 per cent (nearly half) of the nation's fluid intake today will be tea.

• Tea without milk has no calories. Using semi-skimmed milk adds around 13 calories per cup, but you also benefit from valuable minerals and calcium

• Tea with milk provides 21 per cent of the daily calcium requirement in four cups.

• Tea contains some zinc and folic acid.

• Tea with milk contains Vitamin B6, Riboflavin B2 and Thiamin B1.

• Tea is a source of the minerals manganese, essential for bone growth and body development, and potassium, vital for maintaining body fluid levels.

• The average cup of tea contains less than half the level of caffeine than coffee. One 190ml cup contains only 50mg.

• Tea is a natural source of fluoride and drinking four cups makes a significant contribution to your daily intake.

• Green and black teas are from the same plant, Camelia sinensis, and contain similar amounts of antioxidants and caffeine.

Tea history facts courtesy of the The Tea Council.

• Organise your own Tea Break