Green tea may have a lot of health benefits credited to its name, but one of the most popular benefits, which is most often associated with it, is its ability to aid in weight loss. Being one of the healthiest drinks that is full of antioxidants, with a natural, mild and pleasing flavor, a cup of green tea is a drink that one chooses without any hesitation when trying to lose weight. Weight loss can be a struggle for many, but adding green tea to your diet can certainly help give a boost to the process. Of course, green tea is no magic potion and when consumed without regular exercise and portion control may not serve the purpose you need it to. However, it is certainly a great addition to an overall healthy lifestyle and has many benefits beyond weight loss alone.
Green tea appears ‘green’ because of a very important difference between itself and black tea. This is due to the fact that green tea does not undergo the same oxidation process as black tea. Simply put, oxidation is the process that makes slices of apple turn brown when left exposed to air. Green tea leaves are quickly processed and packs upon plucking, and thus have minimal exposure to air.
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How Does Green Tea Aid In Weight Loss?
Taking into account that green tea doesn’t undergo oxidation, green tea offers a high concentration of antioxidants. On the other hand, the caffeine content in green tea is less compared to that found in black tea. Catechins, an important antioxidant present in green tea, have the ability to increase our body’s metabolism rate.
However, if you are looking for an efficient way of using green tea to shed some kilos, here are few things that you should note.
Green Tea & Weight Loss: How To Brew a Cup Of Green Tea At Home For Weight Loss?
There are recipes which you can use for making green tea at home which will aid in weight loss. In addition to that, these recipes are good to use during hot summer days as a refreshment.
1. Cinnamon Green Tea
In order to cinnamon green tea, you need 1 cup of water, 1 tsp of green tea leaves and a 1 inch cinnamon stick.
First, you must put the water in the pot and then add the cinnamon stick. Allow the water to boil for 10 minutes then let it cool down a bit. After that, add the green tea leaves and allow the water to absorb the taste from green tea leaves and cinnamon for 3 minutes. Then, pour the tea in the cup after straining.
2. Lemongrass Green Tea
To make lemongrass tea, you must follow the above mentioned procedure but instead of cinnamon stick, you have to add 2 tsp of chopped lemongrass, 1 cup of water, 1 green tea bag and 1 tsp honey to the tea and you must add the honey after it is brewed.
There are many more recipes of making green tea but in all of them, you follow the same procedure except the ingredients change. Here is a table of different recipes and the ingredients.
| Recipe | Ingredients |
| Lavender green tea | 1. ¼ tsp dried lavender 2. 1 green tea bag 3. 1 cup water |
| Iced green tea | 1. 6 green tea bags 2. 4 cups hot water 3. 2 cups cold water 4. ½ cup honey |
| Lemongrass and Ginger green tea | 1. 1 stock sliced lemongrass 2. 2 cups water 3. 2 tsp sugar 4. 7 slices ginger 5. 5 green tea bags |
| Mint green tea | 1. 1 cup water 2. ¼ tsp fresh mint leaves 3. 1 tsp green tea leaves 4. 1 tsp honey |
Green Tea & Weight Loss: 5 Most Important Things To Know
1. The Antioxidants In Green Tea Boost Metabolism
As mentioned before, the antioxidants present in green tea, called Catechin, helps in boosting our body’s metabolism. A normal cup of green tea (250 ml) contains over 50-100 mg of Catechin. The type of catechin found in tea is called Epigallocatechin Gallate (EGCG). Once your metabolism is at optimum levels, burning off excess calories leading to weightloss is easier.
2. Caffeine In Green Tea Helps You Stay Active
The caffeine content in green tea, however lower than that present in black tea, is significant enough to provide our body with the energy required to exercise, or stay active, without the risk of higher caffeine intake.
3. Green Tea Helps Reduce Stress
We have all heard of the phenomenon ‘stress induced weight gain.’ Well, thanks to a certain type of amino acid present in green tea called Theanine, which produces a sensation of calm and peace by interacting with our brain receptors, green tea helps in reducing stress, thus avoiding weight gain due to it.
4. Green Tea Can Be Flavorful!
If you think green tea cannot be tasty then think again! If want to avoid the grassy or bitter taste of the cup that you have prepared, then there are various flavors of green tea that are sold across the world, and it must be said that addition of flavors to a cup of green tea will not lower the benefits of green tea. But, if the flavors include additional sugar content, then it could increase the calorie intake. Markets are full of flavors of green tea you could try.
5. Brand & Make
It is also important to keep in mind that a specific brand is opted for, as some might contain different ingredients, while others, especially the ones with added flavor, might have less concentration of green tea, thus reducing its benefits.
How Many Cups Of Green Tea Can You Have | Required Consumption Per Day
As a regular cup of green tea (230 ml) consists of a specific amount of antioxidants and caffeine, the perfect balance occurs when the average consumption per day is limited to 2-3 cups. If followed, it would result in a higher consumption of antioxidants, which would be beneficial for burning your fat at a higher rate by increasing your metabolism, and also, 2-3 cups a day would not result in a higher intake of caffeine, but would be just enough to keep you energized.
Also Read: Best Time To Drink Green Tea: Easy Green Tea Time Table
Green Tea & Weight Loss: Is Green Tea Leaves Better Or Green Tea bags?
Green tea bags are made by chopping the green tea leaves and slicing them into small particles called fanning and dusts. When the tea leaves come in contact with oxygen and moisture, the tea breaks down which results in loss of caffeine and other nutrients which are responsible for various green tea benefits. Green tea bags are pocket friendly and are easily available. Still if you prefer green tea bags, then it will not harm your body in any way.
On the other hand, green tea leaves have all the medicinal properties of green tea, which makes green tea leaves a better choice. Their taste is also better than green tea bags. The major issue with green tea leaves is that they cost more and are not easily available.
As per a meta-analysis by NCBI (National Center For Biotechnology Information), Catechins present in green tea are responsible for weight loss and then maintaining it. You can read here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19597519 , to know more about this study.
The results would be in your favor once you include green tea in your diet and make sure you include enough rest and healthy food to your daily routine. Although, there might be a lot of ways to lose some pounds, but none could be healthier and more natural than a freshly brewed cup of green tea.