The University of Maryland Medical Center website reports that tea is the second most consumed beverage in the world. All teas come from the plant Camellia sinesis, and the difference between teas is in its processing. Green tea is made from the unfermented leaves. It has been around for approximately 5,000 years and contains the highest amount of antioxidants, called polyphenols, of all teas.
Heart Health
The World's Healthiest Foods website states that in the February 2005 issue of the Journal of Nutrition, a series of experiments found green tea to slow fat digestion, slowing the rise of triglyceride levels in the blood. According to the Harvard Medical School's Health Publications and the World's Healthiest Foods websites, a study published in July 2004 in the Archives of Internal Medicine "showed a 46 percent to 65 percent reduction in hypertension risk in regular consumers of oolong or green tea, compared to non-consumers of tea."
Cancer
A study published in a November 2004 issue of Mutation Research, according to The World's Healthiest Foods website, found that the antioxidants in green tea were 120 percent more effective against several carcinogens than vitamin C. In June 2007, a study followed 69,710 Chinese women over a period of six years, reported by the World's Healthiest Foods website, and found that women who drank green tea before the study were 37 percent less likely to develop colorectal cancer. The women who continued to drink it regularly during the study were 57 percent less likely to get colorectal cancer, compared to the women who drank green tea infrequently.
Diabetes
According to the University of Maryland Medical Center website, "green tea has been used traditionally to control blood sugar in the body." The World's Healthiest Foods website reports a study published in the August 2004 issue of BMC Pharmacology that found that after participants drank green tea, an oral glucose tolerance test showed an increase in the body's ability to utilize blood sugar.
Weight
Green tea has been shown to help with weight loss, specifically abdominal fat loss. It is believed that the components of green tea--catechins, caffeine and theanine--are responsible. According to the Colon Therapists Network website, a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition discovered that green tea extract increased metabolism by 4 percent. The same journal in 2005 reported that green tea significantly lowered body weight, body fat, body mass index and waist circumference, compared to oolong tea.
Considerations
Green tea has been shown to have many benefits. Most studies revealed it would take anywhere from three to five cups a day to benefit from it. However, green tea does contain caffeine, which could result in unwanted side effects if consumed in large amounts. You should take precaution because green tea can also negatively interact with other supplements, drugs or existing health conditions. Always consult your doctor before adding supplements to your diet.
Member Comments