Scientist have confirmed what many of us have known for a long time...that tea doesn't need sugar to be delicious.
Yup, researchers from University College London and the University of Leeds have found that cutting sugar out of tea doesn't make people any less fond of a brew.
Sixty-four male participants were split into three groups - those who gradually reduced the amount of sugar in their tea, those who went cold turkey on the sweet stuff and a control group who continued to drink tea sweetened with sugar.
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At the end of the study it was found that both the group who slowly removed sugar and the group that cut it out in one go were able to ditch sugar and still enjoy the drink.
Thirty-six percent who sacked off sugar in one step were able to get rid of sugar for good, whereas a whopping 42 percent of those in the gradual group quit sugar in their tea - so if you are looking to cut down on sugar, it might be a good idea to remove it slowly from your cuppa.
The researchers said: "Reducing sugar in tea doesn't affect liking, suggesting long-term behaviour change is possible.
"Excess sugar intake is a public health problem and sugar in beverages contributes substantially to total intake. Reducing sugar intake from beverages may therefore help to reduce overall consumption."
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The study comes as health officials urge Brits to cut down on their sugar intake. The NHS recommends adults have no more than 30g, or around seven teaspoons, of a sugar a day, but that the average Brit is having almost double that.
Sharing the results of the study, the researchers added: "Individuals can successfully reduce the amount of sugar consumed in tea using two different behavioural strategies.
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"Similar interventions could be used to reduce intake of sugar in other beverages such as dilutable fruit juices (such as squash), as well."
Tam Fry, chairman of the National Obesity Forum, added that cutting down on 'table sugar is a very good idea', as we get 'all the sugar we need from other food sources'.
He continued: "Reducing the sugar gradually, allowing the taste buds to become acclimatised to the new formula, might be less of a sudden shock to the system but, as the study reports, the end result is the same.
"The bigger trial suggested by the authors may not be necessary either: one of the successes of the imposition of the sugary drinks levy a year ago is that people have already given up drinking six-packs of substantially sweetened colas and switched to buying more of the zero-sugar brands."
Featured Image Credit: PA