Whether you like to start your day with a cup of Green Tea before yoga. Or fuel your 3pm slump with a cup of Earl Grey and a biscuit. There’s an art to making the perfect cup of tea which is far more than just boiling a kettle. And it will make all the difference to the taste.

After water, tea is the second most consumed drink in the world!

And considering that tea is approximately 98% water. You guessed it, the quality of the water you use is super important.

If you live in an area that has hard water, high in minerals like Perth or Adelaide where some areas have high levels of calcium. Or your drinking water is highly chlorinated, then this will affect the taste of your tea.

Now in a perfect world, according to the Chinese tea scholar, Lu Lu, it’s ideal to use the same water that’s used to water the tea plants of the region. Very difficult for the majority of us, unless we happen to live near a tea plantation!

However, we can make sure that the water quality is the best it can be, by using a water filter.

How to Make the Perfect Cup of Tea

According to Dihan Fernando, son of Dilmah Tea Founder, Merrill J. Fernando, there are a few steps to follow if you want to make the perfect cup of tea.

He says,  “Boil once, stir twice, experiment with spices and don’t upset Mr Fernando!” (That’s Mr Fernando Senior who has dedicated his life to producing Dilmah quality teas!)

Dihan also believes the quality of the water is very important and suggests, “Filtered water, boiled once, ideally because when you boil more times it becomes a little depleted of oxygen. Stir a couple of times, you need to stir unless the tea doesn’t come into contact with the water.”

Then when it comes to quantities – use one teabag per 200ml of water or 2.5 grams of loose tea per 250ml of water.

Brewing time is important too – three minutes for Black tea and two minutes for Green tea.

Also, there’s often debate about whether to add milk before tea or the other way around. To set the record straight, Mr Fernando says, milk should be added after the tea has brewed, rather than before. And forget adding sugar – if you have a sweet tooth, try adding honey to your cuppa. Or add a bit of ginger, lemon or mint leaves. (Source – Dilmah) 

So Why is Tea so Popular?

There are many health benefits to drinking a daily cup of traditional tea.

Less Caffeine

There’s no need to worry about the caffeine in tea. According to Dilmah their teas contain between 2.5-4% caffeine and you are fine to have up 5 cups a day. Especially if you start drinking your tea in the morning. Of course, herbal teas have no caffeine at all.

Stress Relief

How many times do you head for the kettle when you hit a problem? Or a friend offers you a cuppa in times of woe? It’s social. It’s a great excuse to sit down with friends and chat. A problem shared is a problem halved. Right?

Rich in Antioxidants

Tea is rich in antioxidants. These are the disease fighting compounds that neutralise the free radicals in our bodies and help protect our cells from disease. Green and Black teas have 10 times the amount of antioxidants than fruit and veggies.
John Weisburger, PhD, senior researcher at the Institute for Cancer Prevention in Valhalla, N.Y. says  “Studies of humans and animals show that the antioxidants in black and green teas are highly beneficial to our health.”

Tea May Help Reduce the Risk of Heart Attacks

Drinking tea may help the risk of heart attack and stroke.  If you take a look at populations in Japan and China where they drink a lot of tea. “They have much less heart disease and don’t have certain cancers that we in the Western world suffer,” says Weisburger.

Tea May help prevent the risk of Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia

Research conducted at the University of Newcastle shows that drinking tea could help improve memory and also slow the development of Alzheimer’s disease.

Tea is calorie-free

Drink it black and it’s simple. No sugar. No additives. The perfect healthy hot drink.

The Benefits of Herbal Teas

Then there’s herbal teas with very specific health benefits. Peppermint tea is good for helping digestive issues. Ginger tea helps with nausea, especially good for morning sickness. And if you have trouble sleeping, a cup of Camomile tea before bed will have you drifting off in no time.

So go on and make yourself a nice brew. And remember filling your kettle with filtered water is super fast with an inline water filter or if you want to save time and money invest in an instant filtered water system and have hot filtered water on demand.

Brew, drink and enjoy!

Cleopatra famously bathed in donkey milk. Celebrities like Beyonce and Serena Williams take baths in expensive bottled spring water. And Cameron Diaz washes her face with it. All in the name of beauty and skincare!

But you don’t have to go that far. We’ve a beauty secret that’s one of the best natural skin hydration treatments. And it’s far simpler and cheaper than you think…filtered water!

There’s no doubt that drinking the recommended daily amount of filtered water a day is good for your skin. Many report that drinking an increased amount of water gives their skin an extra glow. Take Elle MacPherson, she drinks 3 litres of water a day and swears by it.

But what about washing your face with it?

These days ladies spend hundreds on expensive face creams, serums and cosmetic procedures to save their skin. Many on a quest for eternal youth. Yet still wash their faces with tap water.

So what’s wrong with that? Well…tap water has chlorine in it. Fact.

The Effects of Chlorine on Skin

The chlorine is a necessity as it disinfects the water and kills harmful bacteria…. It’s what makes our tap water drinkable. Basically chlorine is a cheap way to treat water for mass consumption.

Although it’s only a small amount of chlorine, you can still taste it which is why we love the taste of filtered water. But did you know that chlorine has an effect on your skin too?

The chlorine in tap water is an irritant. It takes all the essential protective oils out of your skin causing dry skin, acne, rashes and eczema.

Many believe that the chlorine in tap water dehydrates the skin so much that it can lead to premature ageing. Yep. Say hello to fine lines and wrinkles.

It’s bad for your hair too

And it’s not just your skin. It’s also bad for your hair, as the chlorine can also strip away the hair’s natural colour and protective oils, making it dry and dull.

It’s not a good idea to wash your face in water that’s at the same temperature and water pressure as your body.

Why not?

Discovery Health claim that hot showers open up the pores allowing the annoying and irritating chlorine to seep into your skin and do damage.

Ms Scott, founder and co-director of The Clinic in Sydney’s Bondi says,

“A hot shower can cause and exacerbate fragile capillary networks in the cheeks leading to unattractive, visible capillary networks and worsened impaired skin conditions.”

The Best Way to Clean your face

So it’s easy to protect your skin. Avoid the shower and cleanse and rinse your face at the bathroom sink without the chlorine.

How do you do that? Simple.

Install an Inline Water Filter to your existing bathroom or ensuite tap. The WFA Vanity is brand new to the market and fits neatly under your bathroom vanity unit. You’ll have fast flowing filtered water to wash your face every day without the chlorine.

Hello healthy, hydrated and glowing skin!

And while you are at it…why not try these other beauty tips with filtered water

• • Fill a small bottle and spritz it on your face.
  • Fill a jug and rinse your hair. Without the chlorine your hair will feel more hydrated.
  • You can even brush your teeth with it too. The great thing here is that the filter keeps the fluoride in so you’ll have healthy teeth as well!
  • Let’s not forget to drink a glass of water before bed as water as this will help flush out toxins and you keep hydrated while your body is resting after a busy day.

It’s never been easier to make this natural beauty skin secret part of your daily routine!

Buy a WFA Vanity Water Filter today.