Believe it or not, more and more often you'll find green tea (or green tea extract) included in the compilations of many of the more popular weight loss supplements today, and why are supplement makers so hasty to include green tea in their weight loss products?
Well, the benefits of green tea are numerous. In fact, if you were to go to PubMed.com and do a search for green tea, you'd find over 2,000 studies performed on green tea and its components (eg, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), theanine, etc). Possible benefits are being investigated for weight loss, cancer prevention, antioxidant activity, cognitive enhancement, general good health and well being... and the list goes on and on.
But why is green tea included in most popular fat burners today?
Many reasons: First of all, green tea extract is a source of caffeine, and is often used as the caffeine component of many popular fat burners.
Caffeine, of course, is a decent fat burner with a well-established track record (see Am J Clin Nutr. 1989 Jan;49(1):44-50, Am J Clin Nutr. 1980 May;33(5):989-97).
That makes it a decent quality fat burner in and of itself. However...
If that's all green tea did, this would be a pretty short article. Luckily, it provides additional benefits, far and beyond what plain caffeine could do.
First, it's a powerful anti-oxidant. Yes... just like vitamin C and beta-carotene! But researchers have suggested that the active ingredient EGCG (called epigallocatechin gallate ), may be up to 200 times more powerful than vitamin E as an oxidant.
And there's more. Specifically for those of you who are looking to green tea for weight loss.
Green tea may be useful as a glucose regulator, meaning it slows the rise in blood sugar following a meal.
It does this by slowing the action of a particular digestive enzyme called amylase. This enzyme is pivotal in the breakdown of starches (carbs), that can cause blood sugar levels to soar following a meal (see Am J Clin Nutr. 2006 Sep;84(3):551-5).
This is pretty exciting stuff. Along with chromium, and possibly a vanadyl supplement, green tea might be the missing link in proper glucose management.
Green tea has also helped aid weight loss by increasing the metabolic rate, causing those who use it to experience greater calorie burn (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 1999 Dec;70(6):1040-5)
A recent study further validates green tea's effectiveness. Published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (Am J Clin Nutr; 81:122-129), it indicated the ingestion of a tea rich in catechins (catechins are a major component of green tea extract) leads to both a lowering of body fat AND of cholesterol levels.
Additionally, green tea may inhibit fatty acid synthase (see Life Sci. 2004 Mar 26;74(19):2389-99, Int J Cancer. 2003 Oct 10;106(6):856-62 , Biotechnol Appl Biochem. 2006 Jan;43(Pt 1):1-7, Curr Med Chem. 2006;13(8):967-77).
Fatty acid synthase is an enzymatic system that is involved in the process of turning carbohydrates into fat.
Early animal studies suggest the inhibition of fatty acid synthase can lead to dramatic weight loss.
If that weren't enough, there's also evidence that consuming green tea high in catechins reduces cardiovascular risks in addition to reducing body fat (Obesity (Silver Spring). 2007 Jun;15(6):1473-83).
In short, green tea's weight loss benefits are a result of several mechanisms.
As discussed, these include an increased metabolism, a positive effect on blood sugar and insulin regulation, and possibly the inhibiting of certain enzymes which are required for the processing of carbohydrates and fats. It also has been shown to lower LDL levels (that's the "bad" cholesterol) as well as triglyceride levels.
(See Mol Nutr Food Res. 2006 Feb;50(2):176-87, Am J Clin Nutr; 81:122-129, Journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity. 2000 Feb;24(2):252-8, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 1999 Dec;70(6):1040-5 -- for additional proof of green tea's weight loss effectiveness).
The combination of caffeine with green tea -- found in many popular fat burners -- also seems to encourage weight loss (Obes Res. 2005 Jul;13(7):1195-204), and therefore is a smart addition to any fat burner compilation.
Despite what seems to be mounds of positive, clinical evidence, one thing needs to be emphasized...
Green tea may "work", but its effects are subtle at best. For instance, while one study (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 1999 Dec;70(6):1040-5) indicates taking this supplement contributes to an elevated metabolism, the amount it is actually raised it (4%), is not a lot, and amounts to about 100 calories per day for the average person.
Obviously, if you have 20-30lbs. to lose, this isn't much of a help. Of course, green tea may help in other ways too. Personally, I found it helped eliminate cravings for sweets somewhat. If this helps you to avoid making detrimental snacking decisions throughout the day it helps your diet plan along—indirectly, in that you're consuming less calories.
Of course, none of this means you should not consider supplementing with green tea. With its potent antioxidant action and numerous documented benefits, you really can't go wrong drinking a couple of cups of this stuff a day. What you should be, however, is realistic about your expectations.
If you'd like to try green tea, you have three choices...
1) Drink a high quality green tea purchased from a reputable source
And I'm not talking the regular store-bought stuff. I'm talking the loose leaves, direct from the source.
This is a good way to get the benefits of green tea.
It is, for instance, highly unlikely that supplement manufacturers are using the highest grades teas (which are expensive) for use in their supplements. Plus, if you don't know where in China the stuff is sourced from, you run the risk of it being contaminated with all sorts of nasty chemicals.
It's a quite a difference to the store-bought stuff you may have tried. The teas come right from the most pristine tea fields in China. Shipping is surprisingly fast, and the product is of high quality (it comes loose, in packages -- you just need to buy a "tea diffuser" to use it. You can get these anywhere—even your local Wal-mart!).
Buying tea in this manner might seem expensive, but since you only need a tiny amount of tea to brew a cup, and since each tea can be diffused several times, it is actually pretty cost effective!
2) Buy capsules of green tea: Many popular brands now provide green tea in this format now. It's pretty cheap, and best of all, it's easy and convenient!
It's a pretty potent product, standardized for 50% EGCG.
If there's a downside to capsules, it's that you can't determine the source of the tea, the quality—or even if it’s likely to be contaminated. And, if you like drinking green tea, you miss out on that experience, too.
3) Your absolute best choice would be to try FIX energy tea.
FIX uses Japanese Ceremonial grade matcha tea. This is the tea they use in the Japanese Tea ceremony and what the Zen Buddhist monks drink to help them focus through their meditation. It is grown exclusively in Japan. They grow it in the shade so it produces way more phyto-nutrients. They then dry and grind the meat of the leaf to a super fine powder. So, unlike a weak infusion of the leaf, you actually ingest the whole leaf with all of the powerful antioxidants, phytonutrients, and stimulants.
A single serving of FIX energy tea is the equivalent of 137 cups of a regular loose leaf green tea. The stimulation you get can last up to six hours because the natural molecules are so much larger and complex than the much simpler caffeine molecules which are absorbed and metabolised very quickly.
FIX has been further enhanced and fortified with yerba mate, ginseng, eluthero and a whole host of super fruits from around the globe to create a great tasting, incredibly healthy, metabolism boosting power drink that gives you a quarter of your daily antioxidants in a single cup and leaves you feeling fantastic for hours!
In closing... it certainly appears that green tea is a darned good health-promoting supplement, and it shows some real promise for promoting weight loss as well. It's one of the few natural supplements that has some decent clinical proof validating its claims. It's well worth trying, especially if you've got a good diet and exercise program under way.
If you haven't enjoyed FIX tea yet click here & we'll happily arrange to send you a FREE sample while suplies last.
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