The world’s most consumed beverage—not counting water, which has no equal—is a dark horse, the kind you don’t suspect. It’s not coffee, as Brazilian kids learn at an early age, nor Coca-Cola, as some grew up hearing in America. It’s surprisingly not even beer. The world’s most consumed hot beverage is tea. Tea predates coffee by about 3,000 years, and is thought to have first been harvested in 2700 B.C. by the emperor Shen Nung who was known as “the divine healer.” Tea is the national drink of China and India, each of which has more than a billion people. It’s generally cheaper to buy and packed with more antioxidants.

Source: National Geographic