January can be a pretty cold month, so it’s important for people to drink plenty of hot beverages to stave off the cold. One of the beverages that we recommend for doing just that is hot tea.

This beverage has been used around the world not only as a way to warm a person up but also because of its calming qualities. Tea is packed with antioxidants that protect our bodies from toxins, just the right amount of caffeine to stimulate the brain without making a person jittery, and science has shown that there’s a link between this beverage and a healthy heart.

Those are just a few of the reasons why people have enjoyed this beverage throughout history. It’s also the reason why January is National Hot Tea Month.

The History of National Hot Tea Month

National Hot Tea Month has been celebrated for over seven decades. It was first created in 1950 by The Tea Council of the United States and has been celebrated annually in January ever since. This isn’t surprising considering that there are over 160 million Americans who drink tea regularly, and the U.S. consumes over 3.8 billion gallons a year.

Fun Facts About Tea

People feel like they know tea, and that’s understandable because it can be found anywhere in the world. However, we’re pretty sure that there are still a few things most people don’t know about tea, so we decided to dig up some obscure facts and see if we can list something new that tea lovers haven’t seen below. The following list is what we’ve recently learned about tea.

• Emperor Shen Nung allegedly invented tea in 2732 BC, according to popular legend.
• There are over 1,500 different tea varieties in the world.
• Over 25 countries cultivate tea as a plantation crop.
• Darjeeling Tea is considered to be the champagne of tea.
• Green tea has been used medicinally for thousands of years.

Observing National Hot Tea Month

Grab your favorite teapot and get some tea brewing all this month. When choosing a tea, you have a lot of options available to you, so just choose the one that you like best. While you’re observing this month, be sure to let us all know using the hashtag #NationalHotTeaMonth. And while you’re celebrating this month, might we recommend a nice scone or jam-covered piece of toast to go along with your tea? It sure sounds good to us.