No tea will specifically target your stomach for weight loss, and yet all teas that help you lose weight will eventually help burn fat from your stomach. This is because spot reduction -- the idea that any specific weight loss practice can target your belly or another body area for weight loss -- is a fitness myth. You lose weight by burning overall body fat. Drinking certain teas can help you do this, but it won't accelerate weight loss specifically from your belly.
Tea Basics
Teas are made by drying the leaves or other components of a plant, then steeping those dried leaves in boiling water. The industry divides teas into two types: "true teas" made from the camelia sinensis plant, and "herbal teas" made from anything else. Different teas may or may not have different active ingredients that stimulate one or more body processes to help you lose weight.
Stimulants
Stimulants ramp up your metabolism and give you energy to be more active. In weight-loss terms, this means burning more calories over the course of the day. Depending on how much you eat, this can help produce the calorie deficit that leads to weight loss. Guarana and ginseng are two common stimulant ingredients in weight loss teas. Caffeine is also a stimulant, meaning that many regular teas not sold as weight loss aids can also create this effect.
Diuretics and Laxatives
Senna and goldenseal are two examples of diuretics and laxatives found in weight loss teas. Diuretics stimulate your body to urinate frequently and in greater volume than usual. Laxatives do the same with your bowel movements. In both cases, this offloading of what could politely be called "excess baggage" will make a short-term difference on your bathroom scales. However, this weight loss is temporary. It comes back once you get off the herbs that make you go to the bathroom more often. Cassia and black ear fungus teas are two examples that use this process.
Appetite Suppressants
Some stomach-soothing teas like peppermint and chamomile, as well as most stimulants, act as appetite suppressants. They reduce how often you feel hungry and how much it takes to feel full when you do eat. This can mean eating fewer calories in the day. If it reduces your intake to a point below the calories you expend through activity, you will burn fat and lose weight. Teas containing caffeine accomplish this effect.
Labeling Caution
The federal requirements for labeling and testing of dietary supplements -- including weight loss teas -- are not as strict as those for food and over-the-counter drugs. This means that the claims on packages of weight loss teas, and on their supporting websites, should not be taken as scientifically proven fact. Consider claims with a grain of salt, and confirm with your own investigation. As with any weight-loss plan, you should consult with your doctor before taking on a tea-based effort to lose fat from your stomach.
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