Green Tea Benefits
Green tea has been consumed throughout the ages in India, China, Japan and Thailand, and used in traditional Chinese and Indian medicine. Practitioners often used green tea as a stimulant, astringent, and to help improve heart health. The benefits of green tea have been extensively studied in people, animals, and laboratory experiments.
Green tea has been around since ancient times, and has always been known for its health benefits. There are many different green tea benefits that are known, including but certainly not limited to: treatment and prevention of cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, high cholesterol levels, cardiovascular disease, infection and impaired immune function.
Why Is Green Tea So Special?
Green tea is a truly incredible substance, not only because of the green tea benefits that are offered, but because it is a delicious, flavorful beverage as well. The main secret to green tea and the recognized green tea benefits lies in the fact that it is rich in catechin polyphenols, particularly epigallocatechin gallate, which is a powerful antioxidant that not only inhibits the growth of cancer cells, but which is also able to kill cancer cells without harming healthy tissue in the process.
Green tea has also been shown to be beneficial for lowering LDL cholesterol levels, as well as inhibiting the abnormal formation of blood clots, which takes on added importance when you consider the fact that thrombosis is the leading cause of heart attacks and stroke.
Another one of the most recognized green tea benefits is one that involves weight loss. There are some dieters who have had incredible difficulty losing weight and keeping it off. Some of these people have tried green tea as part of their weight loss regime, and many have seen great results from this practice.
The Flavor of Green Tea
The green tea benefits are truly remarkable, but it is also a delicious and relaxing beverage to drink; one that you can include during any time of the day. Most green tea products are sold as dried leaf tea, but there are also extracts that are made from the leaves and leaf buds. Typically, the average cup of green tea will contain between 50-150 mg polyphenols, while decaffeinated green tea products contain concentrated polyphenols.
A Few Words of Caution
Remember that although the use of herbs is a time-honored approach to strengthening the body and to treating disease, at the same time you do have to proceed with caution. Herbs do contain active substances that are able to trigger side effects and interact with other herbs, supplements and medications, so you want to make sure that you speak with your doctor before starting yourself on green tea or any other herb or herbal supplement.
Written By The Tea Lady
The Tea Lady carefully tends to The Official Website for Tea and sends an occasional Tea Newsletter to ardent and casual tea lovers around the world.
