Tea Drinker? You Might Be Drinking Plastic...

Plastic free!

I know what you're thinking, "For real? Plastic in tea bags?" The short answer to that is, yes.

It's highly likely that the tea bags you use on a regular basis are releasing microplastics into that beautiful cup of tea that's bringing a smile to your face and caffeine to your bloodstream. Often we don't realize this because our tea bags seem to be made of paper, stored in individual paper bags, and come in cardboard boxes. However, many of those "paper" tea bags are sealed with plastic to keep them from opening. After adding the boiling water, this released microplastics, unable to be seen by the naked eye, to our cup of tea. Those cute little pyramid, silky tea bags? Typically made from nylon. More money, more plastic, more health concerns.

The easiest way to ensure that the tea you're drinking is free of plastic is to opt for loose leaf. While it may be less convenient for on the go use, it actually ends up taking less time than you'd expect to brew a cup of loose leaf tea at home. Once you get down to your regular routine, knowing how much tea to use for one cup, having all the necessary parts clean and ready to go, it's much easier than I used to think.

If you're in need of an actual tea bag, do a little deeper research before re-purchasing your go to brand. I was DEVASTATED when I found out that my beloved Barry's tea hasn't yet transitioned to fully plastic-free bags. This week, I found a replacement (though I'm hopeful that Barry's will step it up in the near future!), Clippers. If you're a strong tea drinker, this is a great option for you! The bags are plastic-free, unbleached, and the flavor is similar to that of a Barry's Irish tea.

​Check out this article on Because Health for some more information about plastics in tea. They list some plastic-free brands and common brands that unfortunately, are not as great as we may have thought they were. 

Have you found plastic-free teas that you love? Let me know in the comment over on our Facebook page!

- jamie

*Some information from this article was taken from becausehealth.org and usatoday.com.