The Green Tea Diet

Green tea has been a favorite beverage for thousands of years. More recently, medical studies have connected drinking green tea with preventing a broad range of diseases. Now green tea is getting attention as a weight loss aid. Here's what you should know.

Green tea is the preferred beverage for millions of people. It has long been promoted for its positive impact on acne, glaucoma, cancer, leukemia and digestive issues. It is said to reduce the impact of ageing. On top of everything else, it can help you control your weight!

Green tea is made from the leaves of the Cameliea Sinensis plant. These same leaves also make black and oolong teas. The teas differ in their treatment of the leaves after picking.

A lot of medical attention has been paid to a component in green tea with the mouth-numbing name of epigallocatechin gallete, or EGCG. EGCG is a type of polyphenol, an antioxidant that can bind with free radicals (think damaged molecules) to prevent cellular damage. This antioxidant that is credited as responsible for most of the healthful aspects of green tea. But does EGCG promote weight loss?

It turns out that EGCG, although wonderful for other benefits, plays no role in helping you lose weight. In fact, there is no medical evidence that green tea encourages weight loss in any way. So what is behind these claims?

Green tea contains caffeine. It contains less caffeine than coffee, but there's still enough to give you a nice boost. It is this boost that can help you to lose weight. The caffeine jolt can help you to get off the couch and exercising. It also raises your metabolism, causing you to burn more calories, even from the couch.

Is the green tea diet for everyone? The caffeine can give you the jitters and accentuate anxiety disorders. If you have kidney, heart or stomach issues, a green tea regimen is probably not for you. But if you don't have these concerns, green tea has so many other health benefits, why not give it a try?