Green Tea Diet and Health Benefits

6 Green Tea Diet Plans

2010-11-05T03:52:00.000-07:00

Eating and dieting these days do not usually involve your favorite beverages like green tea and coffee. But this is not always necessarily the case. With some bit of planning and a lot of discipline, your diet plan and weight regime can include your morning cups of coffee or green tea.

South Beach Diet Plan

An idea formulated by Dr. Agatston, the South Beach Diet plan is not low-carb, nor low-fat. According to its originator, the South Beach Diet plan “teaches you to rely on the right carbs and the right fats.”

This diet plan is comprised of three phases – Banishing your Cravings, Reintroducing Carbs, and A Diet for Life. Using artificial sweetener and low-fat milk in your coffee or green tea during all three phases is one way to go on losing weight without having to give up your brewed cup. Going decaf with your coffee might also be a good idea since the objective of this diet is maintaining even insulin levels. If you’re a green tea drinker, then there is less worries for you. Green tea contains only very few amounts of caffeine.

The Zone Diet Plan

The Zone Diet plan was developed by Barry Sears, a former biotechnology researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. This diet plan is based on the maintenance and consistency of insulin levels. Because this diet plan also concerns itself with insulin control, the issues that arise are handled similarly as that with the South Beach Diet plan. Taking decaffeinated coffee and green tea is all right as long as these beverages don’t spike up your insulin. The eating program of the Zone Diet plan requires you to use artificial sweetener and low-fat milk in your coffee or green tea.

Atkins Diet Plan

Another low-carb diet plan variety, the Atkins Diet plan works best with caffeine-free coffee and green tea. For best results, artificial sweeteners in your green tea and coffee are advised to keep your carbs down.

Blood Type Diet Plan

The Blood Type Diet plan is a weight loss regimen where the foods you eat are based on your blood type. The eating program of the Blood Type Diet plan is more restricted compared to the South Beach Diet plan, the Zone Diet plan, and the Atkins Diet plan. For instance, for people with blood types A and AB, coffee is highly advised. But for those with blood types O, adding coffee to the Blood Type Diet plan should be avoided. Green teas on the other hand are acceptable for any blood types. However, adding natural sweeteners like sugar, honey, stevia, or maple syrup in green tea should be avoided in this diet plan.

Sugar Busters Diet Plan

The name of the diet plan says it all. Subscribers to this diet plan are highly cautioned against sugars. Coffee and green teas are perfectly fine but only use artificial sweeteners.

Paleolithic Diet Plan

Also called the Stone Age Diet plan, this diet plan is based on the consumption of simple, unprocessed foods that our Neanderthal ancestors would have eaten. This diet plan is perfect for green tea drinkers. Green tea is simple and 100% natural steamed dried leaves from the Camellia sinensis plant. If you’re a coffee drinker, you might be in for a tougher choice since you might have to give up coffee all together with this diet plan. Sugars in green teas are still a big no-no, especially the refined kind.

The History of Green Tea

2010-11-04T06:37:00.000-07:00

For most people, the Chinese green tea is a stuff of legends. Chinese green tea has been known to be very beneficial to human health. For thousands of years, Chinese green tea has been talked about and written about because of its countless positive effects.

According to legend, the first person to ever taste Chinese green tea was the Emperor Shen Nong in 2737 B.C.

It was said that while boiling some water for drinking, some leaves fell into his pot from a tree nearby. Chinese green tea leaves when boiled smelled and tasted so wonderful that Shen Nong even urged his people to drink it. The fame of the Chinese green tea did not stay at one place for long. It is believed that in A.D. 800, Chinese green tea was brought to Japan by monks who studied Buddhism in China.

What makes Chinese green tea different from all other teas?

Chinese green tea is produced from Camellia sinensis, the same plant where the oolong and black tea are derived. Yet, even though they all come from the same herb, the Chinese green tea truly stands out as an exceptional health drink. So what makes Chinese green tea different?

The difference lies in the method by which Chinese green tea is produced. Oolong and black tea leaves are traditionally oxidized and then dried while the Chinese green tea leaves are steamed and then dried. This method of producing Chinese green tea actually preserves most of the beneficial antioxidants present in it.

Chinese Green Tea for Health

While it is already common knowledge that Chinese green tea has several health benefits, modern scientists were able to provide several concrete proofs of the positive effects of Chinese green tea. Chinese green tea antioxidants are said to be the ones responsible for making the Chinese green tea very beneficial.

Recent findings show that the antioxidants in Chinese green tea can reduce cholesterol levels in a person; can improve how blood vessels function; and can reduce blood lipids. It was also discovered that Chinese green tea can have an anti-inflammatory effects and may provide protection against cardiovascular diseases.

Today, Chinese green tea is widely available as a beverage and as an ingredient for weight loss products.

Weight Loss Benefit of Green Tea

2010-11-02T06:00:00.000-07:00

For 4,000 years, Asians have regarded green tea as something more than just a beverage. Green tea was used as herbal medicine and treatment for everything from headaches to depressions and even to weight loss.

Researches have been conducted over the last few years to identify what compound present in green tea makes it a potent health drink. The scientists have found that green tea contains several antioxidants which are responsible for many of green tea’s health benefits, including weight loss benefit.

A research study by American and Swiss scientists on the weight loss benefit of green tea was concluded and the results of which were published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition and Urology (the paper can be found here). During the course of their study, they have found that green tea contains certain compounds that contribute to its weight loss benefit.

Lead researcher, Dr. Abdul Dulloo, said in a press release that there are only two ways to achieve weight loss – either reduce energy intake or increase energy expenditure. Green tea, it seems, has compounds that can increase the body’s normal metabolism rate, thus giving it its weight loss benefit.

At the University of Geneva, where the study was conducted, Dr. Dulloo and his colleagues experimented on ten healthy young men. They theorized that the main contributor to green tea’s weight loss benefit is its caffeine content. To test this hypothesis on green tea’s weight loss benefit, they placed the study’s participants on a typical “Western” diet which is about forty percent fat, thirteen percent protein, and forty-seven percent carbohydrates.

Thrice everyday, the researchers measured their subjects’ energy expenditure (the measurement used in determining the number of calories burned in 24 hours) and monitored their respiration quotient to find out how well they utilized their carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.

When they interpreted the data they collected, they found out that the men receiving regular dosages of green tea extract showed a significant increase in their 24-hour energy expenditure and a reduction in their respiration quotient (which means that more fat is burned, thereby achieving maximum weight loss). On the other hand, those men who were only given caffeine or placebo with every meal showed only minimal increases in their metabolism rates.

The scientists construed that the substance catechin polyphenol present in green tea adds to its weight loss benefit. These substances in green tea may alter how the body uses the hormone norepinephrine which is responsible for increasing the metabolism rate, thus leading to weight loss.

In their conclusion, the scientists inferred that green tea owes its weight loss benefit to the presence of antioxidants and the substance catechin polyphenol. These substances help increase fat and calorie burning and optimize weight loss.

Weight Loss Supplements

2010-10-31T22:44:00.000-07:00

Who here wouldn’t love a pill to melt away their fats?

Although weight loss supplements are not likely to work miracles, dieticians and weight-loss experts alike agree that most weight loss supplements greatly helps the dieter in his continuing battle for curves and muscles. Of the three commonly used weight loss supplements in the market today, green tea extract seems the most promising. (The other two weight loss supplements are protein and ephedra.)

Green tea is the common name for Camellia sinensis, a plant cultivated by the Ancient Chinese as a remedy for headaches, indigestion, and depression. In recent studies, it was found that green tea can be a potential cure for cancer and several other major diseases as well.

However, the merits of green tea is not only restricted to medicine. It has been found that certain properties found in green tea makes it an excellent organic alternative to weight loss supplements.

The use of green tea extract in weigh loss supplements was spurred by the recently concluded study by American and Swiss scientists at the University of Geneva. Published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, their study showed that green tea has a lot of antioxidants that can cause an increase in energy expenditure of the body. This led them to surmise that green tea extract can become a potential weight loss supplement.

Green tea weight loss supplements contain both caffeine and the chemical epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). When these two substances in green tea react to each other, metabolism rates increase along with the body’s 24-hour energy expenditure. Green tea’s EGCG also triggers the release of the hormone noradrenaline, an appetite-suppressant.

Green tea weight loss supplements can boost the body’s metabolic rates, thereby increasing the rate by which fat and calories are burned. Green tea weight loss supplements can also stimulate the body into burning fats faster, leading to more fats being turned into energy. According to a recent study published in Phytomedicine, a journal on the health benefits of plants, people who take in green tea extract as weight loss supplement ideally lose about two-and-a-half pounds a month.

Green tea weight loss supplements come in standardized tablets or capsule forms. For best results, choose a green tea weight loss supplement that contains ninety milligrams of EGCG and fifty milligrams of caffeine. Green tea weight loss supplement is normally taken three times a day before meals. Even though green tea weight loss supplements have no adverse side-effects, it is still advisable to consult medical advice before taking them.

Green Tea Weight Loss Pills

2010-10-31T02:35:00.000-07:00

People have always been known to want to do and achieve things instantly. The same thing can be said in diets and weight loss. Impatience usually leads a dieter to resort to taking supplements or weight loss pills to try to get rid of those fats faster.

But recent controversies on the use of diet and weight loss pills have made several people hesitate or stopped using them. Several weight loss pills are based on certain substances, like ephedra, that may be harmful for the body. This is why researchers are trying to come up with other potential resources to make weight loss pills that are safer to use.

A study conducted at the University of Geneva was recently published and it concerned itself with the weight loss benefits of green tea extract. It said that green tea has certain antioxidants in them like catechin polyphenols and flavonoids that help in increasing metabolic rates of the body. The publication of the study’s results prompted several pharmaceutical companies to incorporate green tea extract into their weight loss pills.

Green Tea, the Plant

Green tea is the common name for the herb Carmellia sinensis. The green tea plant came from China originally where it was cultivated specifically for its various health and medicinal benefits. Today, green tea is known to possess certain substances that can cure several diseases such as cancer, arthritis, and even ulcers. Because of its thermogenic properties, pharmaceutical companies are also using extracts of the green tea plant as one of the main ingredients in weight loss pills.

Green Tea, the Weight Loss Pill

The theory of weight loss pills is based on the fact that losing weight is done in two ways: retard fat intake or expedite its burning. Weight loss pills are known to do both these things.

Ingredients in weight loss pills such as Hoodia Gordonii can suppress hunger and stop food cravings. Another important ingredient in weight loss pills is glucosamine which can delay the effect of insulin, thus directly transforming sugar into energy instead of fat. Other components of a typical weight loss pill include cocoa extract (a diuretic), citrus fiber, vanadium, and glucomannan, all of which have anti-hunger properties.

The addition of green tea extract into weight loss pills has become common practice among pharmaceutical companies. Like cocoa extract, green tea is also an effective natural diuretic. Green tea can help rid the body of extra water that contributes to bloat and puffiness of the body.

But aside from being a diuretic, green tea is also a major contributor to fat-burning. The catechin polyphenols found in green tea effectively increases the metabolic rates of the body and also reduce food intake. Green tea also contains the substance flavanoid that fight free radicals that might be harmful for the body. Because of these properties, green tea therefore makes for an excellent and healthy component of weight loss pills.

Green Tea Weight Loss Patches

2010-10-31T01:48:00.000-07:00

In the mood for a sticky diet?

The hysteria on low carb diet has brought the onset of several dieting products that are based on low carb approaches. One of the newest products to hit the dieting market are weight loss patches.

Inspired by the success of nicotine patches marketers struck on the idea that weight loss patches may work the same way. Weight loss patches are basically designed for people who forget to take their regular dosage of weight loss supplements or capsules. With weight loss patches, a person will no longer need to take pills as he will have a 24-hour supply of weight loss substance stuck to his skin.

Weight loss patches are commonly made from such ingredients as algae and seaweed which are known appetite-suppressants. Later studies on weight loss and diets led to the use of green tea as a weight loss patch.

Green Tea as Weight Loss Patches

As far back as the Ming dynasty and perhaps even earlier than that, green tea has been used as herbal remedy and overall health drink in China. In recent times, speculations on the use of green tea as a possible remedy for cancer have arisen due to the discovery that the polyphenol substance found in green tea can stop cancer cells from growing.

The polyphenols in green tea weight loss patches also have other uses. A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition shows that green tea polyphenols can speed up the metabolic rate of the body. With this recent discovery, several companies specializing in pharmaceutical products have started introducing green tea into the market as a supplement either in the form of diet pills or weight loss patches.

Green tea weight loss patches are a better alternative to other products since they have no adverse side-effects. Other substances that induce weight loss like ephedra may increase heart rates which could lead to cardiovascular complications.

Green tea weight loss patches are good for people with high LDL, the bad cholesterol found in the body. Because the antioxidants in green tea weight loss patches destroy LDL cholesterols while at the same time enhancing the good cholesterol levels in the body, a balance in the body is achieved which could only lead to overall good health and well-being.

Green tea weight loss patches works in two ways. First, they suppress appetite naturally and safely. A study at the University of Chicago showed that rats when injected with green tea can lose up to 21% of their bodyweight. This is due to the fact that a substance present in green tea acts as a natural appetite-suppressant that staves off hunger.

Green tea weight loss patches also increase metabolism. With their high epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) content, green tea weight loss patches have a distinct advantage over stimulant diet drugs which can be harmful to individuals with hypertension and heart complications.

Green Tea for Weight Loss?

2010-10-31T01:28:00.000-07:00

Green tea has always been known to have several health benefits, but who knew that it could contribute to weight loss as well?

A recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition show that green tea extract can increase metabolism and fat oxidation of the body. In theory, scientists believe that the weight loss benefits of green tea extracts are due to their caffeine content but the results of the study show otherwise as they discovered that green tea extracts have weight loss benefits beyond that of caffeine.

In their study, the researchers administered alone the same amount of caffeine as that in green tea extracts but found that it did not make any significant changes in the body’s overall energy expenditure. This led them to conclude that green tea extracts have ingredients in them that actively interact with each other, promoting increased metabolism and fat oxidation that lead to weight loss.

Further findings indicated that a certain compound found in green tea extracts might be the ingredient that causes weight loss. These green tea extract compounds called Flavonoids may alter the way the body uses norepinephrine, a hormone that monitors how calories are burned. When flavonoids interact with other green tea extract ingredients, more calories are burned thus contributing to weight loss.

Another ingredient that actively contributes to the weight loss benefits of green tea extracts is the compound catechin polyphenols. These compounds also interact with other green tea extract ingredients in order to promote weight loss by fat burning and thermogenesis (a process of losing energy by daytime heat).

The great thing about the weight loss benefit of green tea extracts is that it does not have any adverse side-effects. Unlike other herbal products like ephedra and prescription drugs for obesity, green tea extract does not increase the speed of heart rates or raise blood pressure. In this regard, green tea extract is an effective and safer alternative to other weight loss products which may cause harm to the user.

The study conducted by the University of Geneva on the weight loss benefit of green tea extract implicated that green tea extract can also help thyroid patients. According to dietitian Lynn Moss, M.S., R.D., green tea extract is a healthier choice for people with thyroid who may be too sensitive to stimulants. Green tea extract can promote weight loss by increasing metabolism without over stimulating the adrenal glands.

A common beverage all throughout Asia, green tea has recently gained popularity in the West. Further researches were conducted to identify other health benefits of green tea extracts aside from weight loss. It was found that certain green tea extract compounds can significantly reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer, and even ulcers.

Miracle in a Cup?

2010-10-30T22:52:00.000-07:00

How do you fit a miracle in a cup?

For 4,000 years, the Chinese people have been using green tea as treatment for everything from headaches to depression.

Today, studies are conducted in Asia and the west in order to produce hard evidence of the health benefits of green tea. In the 1994 edition of the Journal of National Cancer Institute, the results of an epidemiological study stated that one of the health benefits of drinking green tea is that it can reduce the risk of esophageal cancer in Chinese men and women by up to 60%.

The rich presence of catechin polyphenols, particularly epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) is the reason why green tea has so much health benefits. A powerful antioxidant, EGCG can not only inhibit the growth of cancer cells but can also destroy them without harming healthy cells.

The University of Purdue has also concluded a research on how a certain compound present in green tea can stop cancer cells from growing. Still another health benefit of green tea is its ability to lower down cholesterol levels and improve the ratio between good (HDL) cholesterol and bad (LDL) cholesterol.

The EGCG in green tea is a health benefit substance that can lower down LDL cholesterol levels and stop blood from forming abnormal clots (thrombosis), a leading cause of heart attacks and strokes.

Green tea has more health benefits compared to other Chinese teas like oolong and black tea, all of which come from the plant Camellia sinensis. What makes green tea different is the process by which it is made. Green tea owes much of its health benefits to how the Camellia sinensis leaves are steamed. The steam process keeps the EGCG health benefit of green tea from oxidizing. With oolong and black teas, however, the leaves are fermented instead of being steamed, thus causing the EGCG health benefit to transform into another less medicinally potent form.

Aside from medicinal value, green tea can also offer other health benefits, especially in the fitness field. Drinking green tea can cause a person to burn down more calories. A recent study on the health benefits of green tea shows that the drink can help dieters. According to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 1999, men who take both caffeine and green tea burn down more calories than men who only take caffeine or a placebo.

Another health benefit of green tea is its bacteria-destroying properties. The health benefit of green tea in this area is that it can help prevent food poisoning and also prevent tooth decay. The substances found in green tea kill the bacteria causing food poisoning and those that cause dental plaque to form.

Well known for its countless medicinal and health benefits, green tea is nothing short of a miracle.