'By drinking green tea you live longer and prevent obesity'
Drinking green tea is very healthy. Tests on mice show that green tea slows down weight gain and also has a life-extending effect.
Green tea has been drunk in China for about 5000 years and used as a medicinal remedy. Green tea comes from the same plant as black tea. The difference is that green tea leaves are lightly steamed before being dried. As a result, the so-called fermentation enzymes are not activated and fermentation does not occur. Green tea, unlike black tea, is therefore not fermented and therefore contains many more valuable polyphenols. These polyphenols are very powerful antioxidants, they protect our body against free radicals that damage our body and accelerate aging processes
Various studies on unfermented green tea show strong evidence that green tea has a protective effect in a number of serious conditions. About one third (30-40%) of green tea consists of polyphenols. These polyphenols seem to play the most important role in these health effects. A cup of green tea contains on average about 50-150 mg of polyphenols. Green tea has been found to have the following positive health-promoting properties:
- Antioxidative effect, 'catches' free radicals.
- Antiviral and Antibacterial Activity: The polyphenols have been found to have antibacterial properties.
- Positive effect on heart, blood pressure and blood clotting and cardiovascular disorders. Research shows that green tea appears to have a mild protective effect in cardiovascular disease. It appears to lower cholesterol levels, have a beneficial effect on platelets and lower blood pressure.
- Blood sugar lowering effect.
- Liver-protective effect: green tea appears to protect the liver against various toxins or poisonous substances.
Overweight and green tea
Green tea may be a new weapon in the fight against obesity. This is the conclusion of American researchers based on experiments with mice. During the study, the diet of overweight mice consisted of a lot of fat. A group of mice that were fed an ingredient from green tea (EGCG) in addition to the high-fat food gained significantly more weight than their peers without the tea. Weight gain slowed by 45 percent. The green tea did not suppress the appetite.
In addition, the faeces of the mice on the EGCG contained 30 percent more fat. “That shows that EGCG ensures that less fat is absorbed,” concludes Penn State researcher Joshua Lambert. “In addition, EGCG seems to increase the ability to use fat.”
The amount of EGCG used in the mice is equivalent to ten cups of green tea per day for a human. According to Lambert, however, previous studies show that a few cups a day can also help control body weight. However, Lambert emphasizes that little research has been done into the effect in humans in this area.
Drink green tea instead of water
Another study in mice shows that green tea can have a life-extending effect. Researchers at the Japanese National Institute for Longevity Sciences discovered this when they did experiments with male C57BL/6 mice. This type of lab mouse often develops lymphoma at an advanced age and, like other rodents, often develops kidney problems.
The researchers used a standardized green tea extract that you also find in supplements. They added 80 milligrams to a liter of water and gave it to their mice. Administration started when the animals were 13 months old. A control group received drinking water without additives. Mice that drank green tea lived on average 6 percent longer than mice that drank water. The reduction in mortality between the 20th and 30th month of life was particularly significant.
If you have just entered your second half of life, you are more likely to die from cancer. According to one theory, this is because the immune system becomes less effective and therefore fails to clear up cancer cells. The researchers speculate that the polyphenols in green tea repair that defect.
The researchers do not know exactly how green tea works. More importantly, they have confirmed that green tea works, they write. “Even if the basic mechanism is not fully elucidated, the confirmation of the present study may provide a rational approach for the nutritional interventions in aging and age-associated disorders in humans.”
Sources: Health Net and Ergogenics
About this blogger
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Known as Khun Peter (62), lives alternately in Apeldoorn and Pattaya. In a relationship with Kanchana for 14 years. Not yet retired, have my own company, something with insurance. Crazy about animals, especially dogs and music.
Enough hobbies, but unfortunately little time: writing for Thailandblog, fitness, health and nutrition, shooting sports, chatting with friends and some other oddities.
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