13 Health Benefits
of Green Tea
by Arina Nikitina
Copyright
2005 Arina Nikitina
Green tea has been enjoyed by people in China and Japan for thousands
of years. Over the time it has become widely known in the West.
A lot of people nowadays have heard that green tea benefits the
overall health, but not a lot know why exactly. And believe me
after I've learned all the health benefits of green tea, I get
completely different feeling every time I drink it. I not only
enjoy the taste of it but I also get the moral satisfaction knowing
that I am doing something right and extremely healthy for my body.
I want you to have exactly the same feeling I have, so here are
the benefits that you get while sipping delicious cup of tea.
Green tea contains anti-oxidants that:
1. Helps to prevent cancer.
The is some strong evidence that green tea included in you every
day diet can reduce bladder, colon, esophageal, pancreas, rectum,
and stomach cancer up to 60%. An antioxidant known as "epigallocatechin
gallate" (EGCG for short) is at least 100 more times more effective
than vitamin C and 25 times more effective than vitamin E at protecting
cells from harmful influence.
The amazing thing about it that EGCG it not only inhibits the
growth of new cancer cells it also kills some of the existing
cancer sells without harming the healthy ones.
2. Lowers "bad" cholesterol (known as LDL) and improves the ratio
of "good" cholesterol (known as HDL). It explains why tea-drinkers
can eat almost twice the foods containing cholesterol as those
who don't drink green tea, but still have an equal cholesterol
count.
3. Stops the unnatural formation of blood cloth which if not taken
care of will cause thrombosis. It takes on added importance if
you consider that thrombosis is one of the main causes of strokes
and heart attacks.
4. Reduces high blood pressure by repressing angiotensin II which
causes constriction of the blood vessels causing high blood pressure.
5. Lowers blood sugar (polyphenols and polysaccharides are the
two main antioxidants are especially effective in lowering blood
sugar). That helps prevent and relieve type-two diabetes.
6. Protects liver against toxins like alcohol and chemicals in
cigarette smoke.
7. Promotes oral health by suppress the process of plaque formation
and destroys the bacteria that forms plaque. It also destroys
bacteria that causes bad breath, so after eating something sweet
I suggest you drink a cup of green tea.
8. Destroys free radicals that cause aging.
9. Boosts your immune system function (because of its high concentration
of polyphenols and flaveboids).
10. Possess antibacterial and antiviral properties. Recent studies
show that green tea inhibits the spread of disease, speeds up
recovery from cold and flu. It also kills seven strains of food
poisoning bacteria including clostridium, botulus and staphylococcus
(which makes it a good treatment for diarrhea).
11. Helps your body to maintain healthy fluid balance and relieve
fatigue and stress often caused by dehydration.
12. Blocks main receptors that produce allergic reactions.
13. Stimulates metabolism, calorie burning process and is wildly
being used as an important part of a healthy diet.
It is important to know that black tea, even though it comes from
the same plant as a green tea, will not give you the same benefits.
Black tea during fermentation process loses most of its medical
benefits.
The best way to preserve all the disease-fighting nutritions is
to drink your tea freshly brewed. All the decaffeinated, ready-to-drink
bottled or instant teas will give you very little of natural health
compounds. It is better to let your tea steep for about 4-5 minutes
before drinking it.
I hope that after reading this article you will include a cup
of green tea in your daily ratio. After all it is a rare case
when something that good for our health can be also that delicious.
About the Author
Arina
Nikitina is the owner of the website GreenTeaSecrets.com, where
you'll find a lot of free information about green tea, learn how
green tea can benefit to your health and how it can help you lose
weight. Visit: http://www.greenteasecrets.com
