The Ultimate Tea Diet

Mark "Dr. Tea" Ukra has written a book that is, you guessed it, all about tea. The Parent Bloggers Network is reviewing his new book, so sit back, grab a cup of you know what, and see if this is for you.

The Ultimate Tea Diet is a book that talks about a lot more than just drinking tea to get healthy and/or lose weight. If it were that simple, my skinny jeans would fit a lot better by now.

Dr. Ukra takes tea to a whole new level. If you weren't already aware, here are some of the amazing properties in that product that filled the Boston Harbor, as spelled out by Dr. Ukra.

* Boosts the immune system
*Lower blood sugar and cholesterol
*Prevent cavities and tooth decay
*Decrease high blood pressure
*Prevent arthritis
*Sharpen mental focus and concentration
*Reduce the risk of stroke, heart didease, cancer and more...

Sounds like a wonder drug, doesn't it? So what does Dr. Ukra recommend we do to take advantage of these miracle-like properties?

Eat or drink tea with virtually every bite placed in your mouth. This book has pages and pages of recipes that incorporate tea in ways I never thought plausable or palatable. Craving something sweet and bad for you? Have a cup of caramel flavored tea, instead.

Making chicken for dinner? Create a rub with some tea leaves and serve with Tea-bouleh, Tea-applesauce, and some iced tea to drink.

Every meal of every day can have tea in it of you follow this diet.

I decided I had to do it in baby steps.

First, I read and enjoyed thoroughly his discussion of tea versus coffee. I have long known that drinking a pot or two of coffee a day is not healthy. And I happen love tea, I just don't drink it all that often. So I have been enjoying a cup or two in the morning, and following it with my own favorite tea. According to the good Doctor, tea contains elements that help cancel out the negative effects of the coffee when consumed imediately following your java.

So since reading this book I have gone through four or five boxes of Tazo Zen green tea. And it has helped me largely kick my coffee habit. AMAZING. That alone is worth the price of the book.

As for the tea-infused food? I had to give it a try, too. I'll admit, I read his accounts of how we are supposed to eat if we are serious about tea, and it just looked too daunting. I don't think I could do it at this stage in my life. BUT, I did have a jar of loose white tea leaves, and so I made a spicy cayenne/tea rub for my normally boring chicken breasts and it was great. I didn't taste the tea, but I was supposedly reaping the benefits - a win/win.

If anything, I liked this book because he really is quite throrough about teaching what, exactly, makes tea so healthy. Trust me when I say L-Theanine is our friend. There are chemical compounds in tea that are truly wonderful and beneficial for our bodies, and I love that because of this book I am drinking green tea every day, instead of just once in a while.