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alysiak

I drink green tea, but not to lose weight. Drinking green and black teas are an integral part of my family traditions.

There are antioxidants and health benefits in numerous beverages. Frankly, drinking enough good fluids is what any of us can benefit from - ditch the sugar-laden sodas, diet and otherwise, for water (with lemon, if you need a bit of flavor).

If you want to drink 3+ cups of green tea every day, don't add sugar, lol! I can't tell you how often I see people doing that. A little honey, pure maple syrup or Stevia would be okay. But, we purists drink it "unadulterated."

Sidebar: my boss adds sweetener to his water - yikes!

Coach Virginia

YES! YES! and another YES! Green tea contains polyphenols which are great to maintaining health. The secret of green tea lies in the fact it is rich in catechin polyphenols, particularly epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). EGCG is a powerful anti-oxidant: besides inhibiting the growth of cancer cells, it kills cancer cells without harming healthy tissue. It has also been effective in lowering LDL cholesterol levels, and inhibiting the abnormal formation of blood clots. The latter takes on added importance when you consider that thrombosis (the formation of abnormal blood clots) is the leading cause of heart attacks and stroke.

There is research to support the link between the effects of drinking green tea and the "French Paradox." For years, researchers were puzzled by the fact that, despite consuming a diet rich in fat, the French have a lower incidence of heart disease than Americans. The answer was found to lie in red wine, which contains resveratrol, a polyphenol that limits the negative effects of smoking and a fatty diet. In a 1997 study, researchers from the University of Kansas determined that EGCG is twice as powerful as resveratrol, which may explain why the rate of heart disease among Japanese men is quite low, even though approximately seventy-five percent are smokers.

There is also new evidence that green tea can even help dieters. In November, 1999, the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition published the results of a study at the University of Geneva in Switzerland. Researchers found that men who were given a combination of caffeine and green tea extract burned more calories than those given only caffeine or a placebo.

According to the National Institute of Health (NIH), green tea may help to loose and maintain healhty weight. The NIH has published articles about green tean on several small human studies conducted that addressed the use of green tea extract (GTE) capsules for weight loss or weight maintenance in overweight or average weight individuals. Although study results are mixed, ongoing research will continue to show the many benefits of green tea. I personally drink 8 cups of green tea per day to keep belly weight off. I also take daily supplements of EGCG. Here is the link to theNational Center of Complementary Medicine which is under the NIH organization. This is a great site to learn more about latest research underway with herbs and supplements http://nccam.nih.gov/health/greentea/

Anonymous

i personally drink around 10 cups of green tea at work each day, it has essentially replaced drinking water for me, and ever since I started this habit about 6 months ago, i've felt so much healthier. besides the antioxidant benefits, it also can be used to replace coffee for caffeine during the day, green tea isn't as addictive and at the same time you get the resveratrol benefits you'd get from more expensive products like resveratrol ultra, you should read up on the french paradox and resveratrol, links are being made between the effects of drinking green tea and the French Paradox

cazort

I more often see oolong tea promoted as a weight-loss tea than green tea. However, studies I've read seem to suggest that this effect is due only to the caffeine content of the tea--as caffeine does have effects on weight gain and loss. This first article studies green tea and finds that while caffeine has an effect, the tea itself does not have any additional effect:

http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid...

The following study essentially says the same thing for Oolong tea:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10094584

Yes, tea is very good for you and has many health benefits, both green tea and other varieties of tea...and yes, it does help you lose weight...but it may just be the caffeine is what is helping you lose weight, at least according to these studies.

Anonymous

Drinking 5-8 cups of green tea every day is very good for health. They help in curing major health problems like cancer, diabetes-2, obesity, teeth and gum health, etc. They are very good to skin and increases the metabolic activity in the body by which we could stay active every time.
Drink green tea and get benefited a lot.

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