Decaffeinated green tea is an excellent choice for those trying to lose weight, but not for the reasons you might think. Drinking green tea has known health benefits, and drinking decaf green tea offers many of those benefits without the drawbacks of caffeine. Consuming green tea as part of a healthful, weight-loss plan that includes exercise and lifestyle changes can help support you as you work toward your goal. However, no beverages can make you lose weight.
Weight Loss Facts
Weight loss is largely a matter of taking in fewer calories than you burn off on a steady basis. It takes a deficit of 500 calories every day to lose 1 lb. per week. Drinking diet sodas that are loaded with sodium can interfere with weight loss. Designer coffees are often very high in calories and fat, and full-sugar sodas are also high in calories. Substituting green tea for any of these beverages can help you maintain an appreciable caloric deficit, but it will not make you lose weight.
Green Tea Facts
Green tea is made from the dried leaves of the camellia sinensis plant, which is native to China. Green tea contains a higher level of catechins than any other food. Catechins are powerful antioxidants that are known to fight the damage to your cells that is caused by free radicals. This damage is associated with some of the troublesome side effects of aging as well as with certain cancers. Green tea contains caffeine, which can raise your heart rate a little, but it cannot make you lose weight.
Caffeine Facts
Caffeine is believed to help suppress appetite, help speed the metabolism of fat and is known to act as a diuretic, according to Katherine Zeratsky at MayoClinic.com. However, none of these traits have been proven in clinical trials to promote weight loss. If caffeine is the ingredient in green tea most closely associated with weight loss, than drinking green tea will certainly not make you lose weight.
Warning
Drinking decaffeinated green tea as part of a healthful, plant-based diet is an excellent way to support a healthful weight-loss plan. But, green tea is not an appropriate meal substitute because it does not have enough calories for energy, and provides no real nutrition. Beware of any tea labeled "dieter's tea" because they typically contain powerful laxatives.
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