Studies suggest that green tea has many health benefits because of its high concentrations of antioxidants called polyphenols, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center's website. Researchers have found that it takes three to five cups to reap the benefits of the polyphenols. Green tea extract delivers the same amount of polyphenols in either liquid or pill form but in much smaller doses.
History
Tea has been around for thousands of years, but tea extract is fairly new. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center's website, Chinese and Indians used green tea as herbal medicine to help heal wounds, improve heart health, promote digestion and regulate body temperature and blood sugar. Herbs have long been a part of medicine and now herbal supplements are available as well. The Life Extension website reports that tea extract is in demand and extraction technology is catching up.
Ingredients
Green tea is made of the unfermented leaves of the evergreen tree, Camellia sinensis. Because the leaves are unprocessed, green tea has high concentrations of the antioxidant polyphenol, which is known to fight free radicals. The most active polyphenol in green tea is EGCG, or epigallocatechin gallate. According to the Life Extension website, the antioxidant activity is 25 to 100 times more potent than vitamins C and E.
Benefits
The benefits of green tea extract are far-reaching. According to the World's Healthiest Foods website, in 1994, a Japanese study followed 40,000 adults for 11 years. The researchers compared participants drinking less than one cup of green tea a day to those drinking five or more a day. They found that five or more cups a day of green tea significantly lowered the risk of death, specifically from cardiovascular disease. It is important to note, though, that other factors may have contributed to a lowered risk.
Studies
The World's Healthiest Foods website reports that as of 2004, the PubMed database contained about 1,000 studies with more than 400 published. Green tea extract can raise metabolism and burn fat and is often used in conjunction with weight-loss programs. As stated on The Colon Therapists Network website, a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that green tea extract increases metabolism by 4 percent during a 24-hour period. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, small clinical studies found that green tea extract powder lowered blood sugar levels in people with borderline diabetes.
Concerns
Green tea extract has low levels of caffeine, but an excess amount could cause unwanted side effects. As with all supplements, consult your doctor before adding any to your diet. Green tea can potentially react negatively with other medications, supplements and even existing health conditions. Green tea is an herb and might cause an allergic reaction.
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