The healthiest beverage on the planet is Green tea. Richly loaded with antioxidants and nutrients, it has powerful effects on the body. This has incredible benefits of green tea like improved brain function, fat loss, a lower risk of cancer, etc. Its content, polyphenols not only help you attain a healthy body, skin, and hair but also help to block the growth of cancer cells as well. The way it is processed also makes green tea a healthier option loudtronix. It is derived from the leaves of the plant, Camellia sinensis. To prevent the catechins from oxidizing, the green leaves for green tea are steamed, while black and oolong tea are made from fermented leaves. A majority of the people living in Western countries have switched green tea from black tea.
Why are antioxidants said to be good for us? There are certain molecules that are produced when our body breaks down food or even due to smoking or drinking called free radicals. They attack the healthy cells in our body that leads to several problems, including aging. Antioxidants protect our cells from the damage caused by the action of those free radicals.
Here are 20 health benefits of green tea by human research studies:
1) Improves Health
Green tea contains a large number of important nutrients in the bioactive compounds in tea leaves which makes it into the final drink. As powerful antioxidants, it is loaded with polyphenols like flavonoids and catechins. It can protect cells and molecules from damage by reducing the formation of free radicals in the body. Those free radicals play an important role in aging and all sorts of diseases. Epigallocatechin Gallate(EGCG) is one of the more powerful compounds in green tea. It has been studied to treat various diseases and may be one of the main reasons green tea has such powerful medicinal properties. Small amounts of minerals are also present in green tea which are important for health.
2) Improves brain function
A Swiss study has proved that green tea-drinkers’ brain has more activity in working memory area than those who do not consume green tea. It can make you smarter rather than keeping you awake. The key ingredient is caffeine which is known as a stimulant. Caffeine block an inhibitory neurotransmitter called Adenosine, and thus increases the firing of neurons and the concentration of neurotransmitters like dopamine and norepinephrine. Caffeine consistently leads to improvements in various aspects of brain function, including vigilance, reaction time, improved mood, and memory.
Other than caffeine, it also has amino acid L-theanine that helps to cross the blood-brain barrier. L-theanine increases dopamine and the production of alpha waves in the brain. It also increases the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA’s activity, which has anti-anxiety effects. It is proved that L-theanine and caffeine can have synergistic effects. The two particular combinations are potent at improving brain function. It is also the benefits of green tea
3) Weight Loss
One of the biggest problems challenging the world today is obesity. A deskbound lifestyle, with the craving for junk food and drinks, leads to several obesity-related complications like diabetes, heart disease, sleep apnea, hypertension, etc.
Given that in short term green tea can boost metabolic rate, This makes sense that it could help you lose weight. Studies show that green tea leads to a decrease in body fat, mainly in the abdominal area. In just one day it can help you to burn up to 70 calories. That makes 70 pounds in a year.
4) Reduce Risk of Cancer
The uncontrolled growth of cells results in cancer. It is one of the leading causes of death in the world. Green tea has antioxidant that is 100 times more effective than vitamin C and 25 times better than vitamin E. This helps to protect cells of your body from damage that is linked to cancer.
Breast cancer: An analysis of observational studies found that it had a 22% lower risk of having breast cancer for those who drank the greenest tea.
Prostate cancer: Another study found that it had a 48% lower risk of having prostate cancer for those men who drank green tea on a regular basis.
Colorectal cancer: In a study of 69,710 Chinese women, it was 57% lower risk of colorectal cancer for those who drank green tea.
5) Lower Risk of Type II Diabetes
In the past few years, Type II diabetes has reached epidemic proportions, and now about 300 million people are afflicted by it. It is the disease that involves having elevated blood sugar levels in the context of insulin resistance or production of insulin inability. Various studies show that green tea can reduce blood sugar levels by improving insulin sensitivity.
6) Reduce Heart Diseases
The biggest cause of death in the world are cardiovascular diseases like heart disease and stroke. health benefits of Green tea equip your blood vessels with the ability to withstand the formation of clots and changes in blood pressure which is the one cause of heart attacks. Green tea can improve the main risk factors for those diseases- total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides.
7) Improves Dental Health
Some studies show that catechins can kill bacteria and inhibit the influenza virus, lowering the risk of infection. The primary harmful bacteria in the mouth is Streptococcus mutans. It is a leading contributor to cavities and causes plaque formation and tooth decay. Catechins in green tea can reduce the growth of streptococcus mutants. Consuming green tea is associated with a lower risk of caries and improved dental health. Green tea can also slow down the growth of bacteria which leads to bad breath.
8) Improves Immunity
The immune system can be boosted by green tea. There is no wonder green tea is a favorite in many rehab centers. It has antioxidants, along with flavonoids and polyphenols, That help in improving the immune system of your body. It is also the health benefits of green tea. This makes you healthier by helping fight against infection. It also prevents you from getting flu or cold. By chance, if you catch an infection, vitamin C that is present in large amounts in green tea helps effectively treat the same.
9) Relieve Stress and Depression
Green tea can help fight depression. It is found that more green tea an elderly person drank in a day, the less likely she or he would be depressed. One of the important benefits of green tea is actually good for the brain. The primary fuel of brain-glucose is supplied in steady due to the polyphenols present in green tea. Apart from the antioxidants, it also contains theanine. It is an amino acid that helps in relieving anxiety and stress. Theanine is worked well as an anti-depressant. Caffeine in green tea is in lower percentage that makes and advantage for people suffering from anxiety disorders and other stress-related problems.
10) Anti-Aging
The antioxidants present in green tea known as polyphenols will fight against free radicals. This means that green tea would help to fight to age and promotes longevity.
11) Lower risk of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s
Alzheimer’s is a neurodegenerative disease that leads to the cause of dementia. Parkinson’s is that involves the death of dopamine-producing neurons in the brain. Many of the studies show that the compound present in green tea called, catechin can have numerous protective effects on neurons in animal models and test tubes, lowering the risk of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.
12) Soothe Stomach Problems
Green tea has that bacteria-destroying ability that not only makes it a great antiseptic but also prevents common stomach problems like stomach infection, food poisoning, etc. It is not advisable to have green tea excessively as the tannins present in green tea will increase the secretion of acids inside the stomach, which causes ulcers and acid reflux.
13) Green Tea During Pregnancy
During pregnancy period it is advisable to have green tea. The high antioxidant level helps to regulate blood sugar and insulin levels, recover from cell damage, and also controls hypertension. The common problems at the later stages of pregnancy are gestational hypertension and diabetes. The antioxidants in green tea help reduce those issues by boosting the immune system of the pregnant woman.
14) Helps Lower Blood Pressure
The caffeine present in green tea is not good for those suffering from hypertension. Since it has a lower percentage of caffeine, with good effects on the overall health of the heart check app iforgot apple, it helps to manage high blood pressure by managing diabetes and cholesterol. Green tea also suppresses the angiotensin 1 converting enzyme.
15) Healthy Liver
The antioxidants in green tea help to get rid of harmful free radicals and keeps the liver in a healthy shape. The risk of getting a fatty liver is also overcome by green tea.
16) Repairs Tissues
The rich source of vitamin C is lemons. They are also a highly powerful antioxidant. Mixing green tea with the juice of citrus fruit helps repair and develop different tissues in the body including the skin, blood vessels, teeth, bones, ligaments, and cartilage. This also helps to heal wounds.
17) Protects Skin from Sun Damage
For the exposure to UV rays, green tea can be used as a natural sunscreen. Free radicals settle between the skin cells which weakens the healthy production system of the skin and hence causes the formation of wrinkles on the skin. Green tea helps in preventing free radicals from settling between cells.
18) Prevents Osteoporosis
After menopause, it is observed that low bone density is a common problem amongst women. Increasing the risk of fracture, osteoporosis causes bones in the body to become weak and brittle. Green tea helps in keeping bones strong and slowing its breakdown by the high fluoride content in it. This reduces the chance of developing issues like osteoporosis.
19) Ease Rheumatoid Arthritis
Rheumatoid arthritis can be prevented by taking green tea. By blocking the production of the enzyme, chemokine, it protects the cartilage. Chemokines are the proteins that destroy the flexibility of the cartilage by promoting inflammation in the body, which is the common symptom of arthritis.
20) Healthy Hair Growth
DHT(Dihydrotestosterone) is that which hinders hair growth causing hair fall. The benefits of Green tea inhibit the growth of DHT. Making sure that the amount of testosterone in the blood is balanced, the components of green tea react with testosterone so that it will not react with 5-alpha reductase and convert to DHT. It also helps in curing and preventing common hair problems like psoriasis and dandruff by reducing the inflammation. This is also an important benefit of green tea