Green Tea Benefits: Drinking Your Way to Better Health

Dubbed as the ultimate health drink, green tea has been used in the Orient for more than more than 5,000 years for its numerous health benefits. Green tea has been claimed to be useful in treating or preventing cancer, liver disease, diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, and even halitosis. Green has also been claimed to be helpful in boosting weight loss.

For centuries, people outside the Asian rim have been unaware of the amazing health benefits or even the existence of green tea. Now, with the popularity of this slightly bitter beverage, more and more people have dedicated to studying the proposed health benefits of green tea.

Studies have shown that, as the ancient Asian cultures have claimed, green tea indeed protects the body from cancer – breast and prostate cancer to be more specific. Research showed that green tea contains an antioxidant that slows the growth of certain a cell receptor found in cancer cells. These same receptor cells are found in the mad cow disease. Other studies showed that green tea had properties that reduce the size and number of tumors and that green tea also had the capacity to suppress the growth of breast cancer cells.

Green tea has also been studied for its possible effects against diabetes. Epidemiological evidences show that drinking green tea helps prevent diabetes.

Clinical studies have also proven the claim that green tea helps in weight loss. These studies indicate that certain elements found in green tea speeds up fat oxidation by raising the metabolic rate. In relation to this, catechin polyphenols contained in green tea hasten the rate at which calories are used up, therefore an increase in energy expenditure results. This same element also inhibits the growth of bad-breath-causing bacteria.

Other positive effects of green proven by studies include its ability to boost the immune system and one’s mental alertness. The amino acid L-theanine in green tea boosts the disease-fighting ability of gamma delta T cells. It also raises the production of anti-bacterial proteins. The same L-theanine is responsible for increasing the brain waves, which induces a state of mental alertness.

Being on the subject of mental alertness, a study done in 2006 showed that people who drink more than two cups of tea per day have significantly lower chances of developing cognitive impairment as compared to those consuming less than 2 cups of tea a day. Caffeine found in green tea also increases short term memory and reduces the risk of having Parkinson’s disease.

According to other studies in clinical immunology, drinking green tea could relatively reduce the risk of acquiring HIV. Furthermore, certain elements in green tea slowed down the spread of HIV in the body. To be clear, green tea is not a cure to HIV, just a way of avoiding infection.

Green tea has definitely come along way since 50 centuries ago. You can now enjoy this drink in many refreshing ways. Bottled, shaked or frozen – whichever way you prefer, it has never been easier to drink to better health.