There are many foods that can help you lose weight, but few have been proven to be as effective as green tea. Green tea has been used in China for thousands of years to promote weight loss and reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer, and high blood pressure by lowering cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and triglyceride levels in the body. It’s also full of antioxidants that can help fight free radicals that cause damage to cells and lead to aging and chronic diseases.
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What Is Green Tea?
You may have heard that green tea is packed with powerful antioxidants that help you lose weight. But how does it work? Well, a study published in 2012 found that green tea extract may actually increase energy expenditure by 4% and fat oxidation by 17%. That’s because green tea contains ECGC (epigallocatechin gallate), a powerful antioxidant compound. The same researchers also found that drinking ECGC-rich extracts cause a small amount of weight loss over 12 weeks in rats fed a high-fat diet—but it’s not clear what doses were used or if results would be comparable in humans. The good news is, there are tons of other ways to use green tea for weight loss!
How to make green tea at home?
Green tea is loaded with antioxidants and is a perfect option for those looking to lose weight. It’s all in how you make it. For example, steeping green tea for 5 minutes instead of 3 can increase catechins by about 33 percent, according to a 2014 study in Consumer Reports. Moreover, adding oil of bergamot—an orange-flavored citrus fruit—to your brew increases levels of a compound called limonene by 20-fold, which helps boost weight loss even further. Limonene can also be found in grapefruit, lemons, and limes; it acts as an appetite suppressant that curbs hunger pangs while keeping your body burning fat over sugar calories.
Health benefits of green tea including weight loss
While it might seem unlikely that sipping on a hot cup of green tea could help you lose weight, research shows it may actually be able to. One study published in The Journal of Nutrition suggests that drinking two cups of green tea per day is linked with lower levels of obesity, belly fat, and waist circumference. The researchers found evidence that catechins and caffeine in green tea extract were responsible for improving insulin sensitivity and energy expenditure. A study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition also found consuming one or more cups of green tea per day led to significantly less abdominal fat among Japanese adults over a six-year period. These are just two examples; scientists have also shown links between drinking green tea and lowering blood pressure, total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides.
What is better, loose leaves or bags
Loose leaf tea is better because bagged tea tends to have higher levels of chemicals like lead and cadmium. While these chemicals aren’t necessarily harmful in small doses, they can be a problem for those who drink green tea on a regular basis. Using loose leaves prevents these issues. However, if you’re not a fan of loose leaf tea or don’t have access to it, bags are still a great option – especially if you’re just starting out with green tea and need something easy and convenient.
How much caffeine is in green tea?
A cup of green tea contains about 20 mg of caffeine, which is roughly half of what you’ll find in a cup of coffee. Caffeine is beneficial for weight loss for two reasons: It increases your metabolism (the rate at which your body burns calories) and suppresses appetite. A study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition revealed that both green and black teas significantly reduced weight gain when combined with a healthy diet and regular exercise—so put down that Frappuccino and chug some green tea instead.
What are different kinds of green tea?
If you’ve never tried green tea, you’re missing out. It’s one of those magic drinks that can boost your health and even melt fat from your body. There are many different kinds of green tea on the market, but only certain types have weight loss properties.
Though each differs slightly in flavor or composition, they all share common health benefits. To make weight loss green tea at home, you’ll want to use one of these varieties.
Matcha
The term matcha describes a specific type of powdered green tea. Matchas come in many grades and quality, so it’s important to make sure you know what you’re buying. The highest-quality matchas are grown and prepared with care, meaning they use only fresh leaves, shade-grown tea bushes, clean water sources, and sustainable farming practices. All authentic matchas are carefully sorted and de-stemmed before grinding into fine powder.
Matcha, for example, is a high-quality type of green tea leaves that you can steep as if it were a cup of coffee. The leaves go into an extractor where they’re crushed and then heated in water until they turn into powder. Then all you need to do is add a bit of milk or honey and drink up! You’ll get all kinds of antioxidants without having to worry about caffeine jitters—plus you won’t experience a crash like you would with coffee or other caffeinated drinks.
Bancha
This type of green tea is sold in large bags, but it’s not as widely available as sencha or gyokuro. Bancha is made from stalks and leaves that haven’t gone through shincha (new tea) processing. It’s dried and roasted with less care than other teas, so it tends to have a stronger flavor than others. The same could be said for taste since bancha contains caffeine. This can make for a pleasant surprise when first trying bancha.
Hojicha
You may already be familiar with matcha tea. But hojicha is a little different: It’s made from roasted buckwheat seeds rather than ground green tea leaves. Studies have shown that both kinds of teas can help you shed extra pounds. A 2014 study published in Obesity Reviews found that drinking either green or hojicha tea lowered body weight and improved metabolic function.
Sencha
It’s no secret that green tea offers a ton of health benefits. There’s a reason it’s been around for centuries, and why celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow swear by it. But if you can’t stomach plain old green tea—or you simply want something new—try sencha instead. Sencha has more caffeine than other teas, according to data from Oregon State University, but it has roughly half as much caffeine as coffee.
Read more about all kinds of green tea here.
Conclusion
Weight loss green tea has become a popular beverage for people who are trying to lose weight, whether it’s with a pill or by simply trying to drink less sugary drinks. It has even proven in some studies that drinking it may help you drop one or two sizes quickly and safely. You can learn how to make weight loss green tea on your own, but if you have time, try finding an herbalist or a tea shop where they’ll brew it for you. Their quality is likely better than what you could make in your own kitchen and they know their ingredients much better than you do! Just be sure not to overdo it!