green tea weight loss

The Health Benefits of Drinking Green Tea

by admin on October 25, 2010

Over the past 10 years there has been a variety of studies conducted that have proven the potent health benefits of green tea. Even though the Chinese have known of these green tea benefits for 5000 years, recent research results have boosted the sales of this beverage exponentially! 5000 years back green tea was originally taken as a medicine, before it evolved into a common place house hold beverage.

There are many reported health benefits of drinking green tea, and these benefits are attributed to the powerful antioxidants that are found in green tea called catechins. As antioxidants, catechins are considered many times more powerful than other highly regarded antioxidants such as vitamins C and E.

Cancer Prevention
Catechins have a strong effect at inhibiting the growth of tumours at the DNA level by neutralizing a harmful cancer-promoting oxidant known as peroxide radical. Some studies also show that green tea also helps to kill some cancer cells while promoting the grow of healthy cells in their place.

Managing Diabetes
One effect of green tea is its ability to slow down the rate at which some digestive enzymes breakdown the carbohydrates in the food we eat. So when taken just before, during, or just after a meal, green tea slows the rate that sugar (the simplest form of carbohydrates) moves from the stomach and into our bloodstream. This is, of course, a great aid to diabetics who have trouble moving excess sugar out of the blood stream.

Heart Health
Green tea benefits the heart and cardiovascular system greatly, and along with red wine is one of the best beverages on earth for promoting overall heart health. Green tea helps to prevent plaque build ups in the main arteries leading to the heart, helps to lower blood pressure, reduces blood clotting and lowers LDL “bad” cholesterol levels while simultaneously raising HDL “good” cholesterol levels!

Weight Loss
Beside the many other health benefits of drinking green tea, green tea’s ability to help us lose weight accounts for the majority of the interest in this tea by consumers. The catechins in green tea boost the metabolism by 4% when we drink 5 cups of green tea a day, that means an extra 80 calories are burned every day! To learn more about green tea weight loss visit weight loss tea.

{ 0 comments }

Benefits of Green Tea

by admin on July 19, 2010

Green Tea has long been recognised by the Chinese for its health benefits; they’ve been drinking it of over 4000 years. But its only relatively recently that it has travelled to the west and word of its various healing properties have been given any credence. Over the last 30 or so anecdotal evidence that green tea benefits are able to combat everything from weight loss to cancer has started to be backed up by scientific proof. Of course everyone is different and there is no guarantee that individuals will all experience the same results but there is definite evidence that drinking green tea on a regular basis can help cure or prevent any number of ailments including:

Reducing cholesterol
Shrink tumors/cause cancerous cells to die
Improve blood vessel function
Slow the passage of glucose in diabetics and regulate insulin levels
Lower blood pressure
Reduce triglycerides
Provide protection against heart attack and stroke
Act as an anti-inflammatory and promotes the growth of good bacteria in the intestine
Staves off Alzheimer’s – investigations taking place suggest it may work on Parkinson’s as well
Inhibit viral infections
Fight bad breath
Prevent aging
Trigger weight loss

Pretty impressive. But how can a simple drink whose origins are as distant as the mountains from which it has sprung provide so many benefits? Well here’s the science bit….

Antioxidants.

Green tea is full of them. Antioxidants are the ingredients we find in fruit and vegetables on a daily basis (and we know how healthy they are), but green tea carries almost 8-10 times as many as you’d find in your daily apple. It is these same antioxidants that are able to combat the effect of ‘free radicals’ on our bodies. A free radical is a complicated scientific term for the atoms in our bodies which contribute to aging, damage skin, liver disease, emphysema and some types of cancer.

Overall then it seems that there is growing support in the west for the benefits to be gained from drinking green tea, and after all 1.3 billion chinese people can’t all be wrong!

{ 0 comments }

The Green Tea and Weight Loss Connection

by admin on March 11, 2010

In recent years, studies have uncovered a connection between green tea and weight loss causing its popularity to increase substantially. With this increased popularity has come an increase in the diversity of products available. Green tea comes in many forms, there are tea bags, supplements and powders.

The recent popularity is well founded – and why not, if it is possible to lose up to 7 pounds each year simply by drinking the recommended amounts of green tea, who wouldn’t give it a try? But how much is enough? Scientists have determined that in order to draw benefit from green tea consumption, one must have between 3-5 cups each day.

There are an abundance of antioxidants in green tea. Polyphenols and catechins (such as ECGC) have been shown to increase metabolism. Not only are these antioxidants effective in helping us to lose weight, but they are also said to be powerful cancer fighters. Drinking green tea daily can help to prevent cancer, which seems to be at epidemic levels.

The beneficial catechins abundant in green tea can slow fat absorption and inhibit the movement of glucose into fat cells. Blood sugar spikes can be prevented by the regulation of glucose. When insulin levels are under control, fat storage in our bodies is inhibited.

But what if you don’t like green tea? No worries, there are products available in any health food store that can be taken in supplemental form. Always be sure that when you are choosing a product, you read the labels and know what you are getting. Steer clear of those that contain ingredients that cannot be identified or that you can’t pronounce.

The link between green tea and weight loss has been well established and is quite encouraging. However, it is not a panacea. For long term success in any weight loss program, one must make appropriate lifestyle changes in order to succeed. Cut down or eliminate processed junk foods, white flours and refined sugars. These “foods” are devoid of nutrition and make weight loss difficult.

Shift toward organic vegetables, fruits, whole grains and deep water fish, such as salmon that is high in omega 3 fatty acids. A lifestyle that has an emphasis on proper diet and enough exercise is beneficial for us all. Green tea weight loss can be achieved when incorporating it into a healthy lifestyle.

{ 0 comments }