10 Proven Benefits of Green Tea (No.

3 is Very Impressive)

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10 Proven Benefits of Green Tea (No. 3 is Very Impressive)

By Kris Gunnars | 2,749,700 views

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Green tea is the healthiest beverage on the planet.

It is loaded with antioxidants and nutrients that have powerful
effects on the body.
This includes improved brain function, fat loss, a lower risk of
cancer and many other incredible benefits.
Here are 10 health benefits of green tea that have been
confirmed in human research studies.

1. Green Tea Contains Various Bioactive

Compounds That Can Improve Health
Green tea is more than just green liquid.
Many of the bioactive compounds in the tea leaves do make it into the final drink, which contains
large amounts of important nutrients.
It is loaded with polyphenols like flavonoids and catechins, which function as powerful antioxidants
(1).
These substances can reduce the formation of free radicals in the body, protecting cells and
molecules from damage. These free radicals are known to play a role in aging and all sorts of
diseases.

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10 Proven Benefits of Green Tea (No. 3 is Very Impressive)

One of the more powerful compounds in green tea is the antioxidant Epigallocatechin Gallate
(EGCG), which has been studied to treat various diseases and may be one of the main reasons green
tea has such powerful medicinal properties.
Green tea also has small amounts of minerals that are important for health.
Try to choose a higher quality brand of green tea, because some of the lower quality brands can
contain excessive levels of fluoride (2).
That being said, even if you choose a lower quality brand, the benefits still far outweigh any risk.
Bottom Line: Green tea is loaded with bioactive compounds that can have various beneficial
effects on health.

2. Compounds in Green Tea Can Improve Brain Function and Make You
Smarter
Green tea does more than just keep you awake, it can also make you
smarter.
The key active ingredient is caffeine, which is a known stimulant.
It doesnt contain as much as coffee, but enough to produce a
response without causing the jittery effects associated with too
much caffeine.
What caffeine does in the brain is to block an inhibitory neurotransmitter called Adenosine. This
way, it actually increases the firing of neurons and the concentration of neurotransmitters like
dopamine and norepinephrine (3, 4).
Caffeine has been intensively studied before and consistently leads to improvements in various
aspects of brain function, including improved mood, vigilance, reaction time and memory (5).
However green tea contains more than just caffeine. It also has the amino acid L-theanine,
which is able to cross the blood-brain barrier (6).
L-theanine increases the activity of the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA, which has anti-anxiety
effects. It also increases dopamine and the production of alpha waves in the brain (7, 8, 9).
Studies show that caffeine and L-theanine can have synergistic effects. The combination of the two

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10 Proven Benefits of Green Tea (No. 3 is Very Impressive)

is particularly potent at improving brain function (10).

Because of the L-theanine and the smaller dose of caffeine, green tea can give you a much milder
and different kind of buzz than coffee.
Many people report having more stable energy and being much more productive when they drink
green tea, compared to coffee.

Bottom Line: Green tea contains less caffeine than coffee, but enough to produce an effect.
It also contains the amino acid L-theanine, which can work synergistically with caffeine to
improve brain function.

3. Green Tea Increases Fat Burning and Improves Physical Performance

If you look at the ingredients list for any fat burning supplement,
chances are that green tea will be on there.
This is because green tea has been shown to increase fat burning and
boost the metabolic rate, in human controlled trials (11, 12).
In one study in 10 healthy men, green tea increased energy
expenditure by 4% (13).
Another study showed that fat oxidation was increased by 17%, indicating that green tea may
selectively increase the burning of fat (14).
However, Id like to point out that some studies on green tea dont show any increase in
metabolism, so the effects may depend on the individual (15).
Caffeine itself has also been shown to improve physical performance by mobilizing fatty acids from
the fat tissues and making them available for use as energy (16, 17).
In two separate review studies, caffeine has been shown to increase physical performance by 11-12%,
on average (18, 19).

Bottom Line: Green tea has been shown to boost the metabolic rate and increase fat burning
in the short term, although not all studies agree.

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10 Proven Benefits of Green Tea (No. 3 is Very Impressive)

4. Antioxidants in Green Tea May Lower Your Risk of Various Types of

Cancer
Cancer is caused by uncontrolled growth of cells. It is one of the
worlds leading causes of death.
It is well known that oxidative damage contributes to the
development of cancer and that antioxidants can have a protective
effect (20).
Green tea is an excellent source of powerful antioxidants, so it
makes perfect sense that it could reduce your risk of cancer, which it
appears to do:
Breast cancer: A meta-analysis of observational studies found that whomen who drank
the most green tea had a 22% lower risk of developing breast cancer, the most common
cancer in women (21).
Prostate cancer: One study found that men drinking green tea had a 48% lower risk of
developing prostate cancer, which is the most common cancer in men (22).
Colorectal cancer: A study of 69,710 Chinese women found that green tea drinkers had a
57% lower risk of colorectal cancer (23).

Multiple other observational studies show that green tea drinkers are significantly less likely to get
various types of cancer (24, 25, 26).
It is important to keep in mind that it may be a bad idea to put milk in your tea, because it can
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10 Proven Benefits of Green Tea (No. 3 is Very Impressive)

reduce the antioxidant value (27).

Bottom Line: Green tea has powerful antioxidants that may protect against cancer. Multiple
studies show that green tea drinkers have a lower risk of various types of cancer.

5. Green Tea May Protect Your Brain in Old Age, Lowering Your Risk of
Alzheimers and Parkinsons
Not only can green tea improve brain function in the short term, it may
also protect your brain in old age.
Alzheimers disease is the most common neurodegenerative disease in
humans and a leading cause of dementia.
Parkinsons disease is the second most common neurodegenerative
disease and involves the death of dopamine producing neurons in the
brain.
Multiple studies show that the catechin compounds in green tea can
have various protective effects on neurons in test tubes and animal
models, potentally lowering the risk of Alzheimers and Parkinsons (28, 29, 30).

Bottom Line: The bioactive compounds in green tea can have various protective effects on
neurons and may reduce the risk of both Alzheimers and Parkinsons, the two most common
neurodegenerative disorders.

6. Green Tea Can Kill Bacteria, Which Improves Dental Health and Lowers
Your Risk of Infection
The catechins in green tea have other biological effects as well.
Some studies show that they can kill bacteria and inhibit viruses like
the influenza virus, potentially lowering your risk of infections (31,
32, 33, 34).
Streptococcus mutans is the primary harmful bacteria in the mouth.
It causes plaque formation and is a leading contributor to cavities

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10 Proven Benefits of Green Tea (No. 3 is Very Impressive)

and tooth decay.

Studies show that the catechins in green tea can inhibit the growth of streptococcus mutans. Green
tea consumption is associated with improved dental health and a lower risk of caries (35, 36, 37, 38,
39, 40).
Another awesome benefit of green tea multiple studies show that it can reduce bad breath (41,
42).

Bottom Line: The catechins in green tea may inhibit the growth of bacteria and some
viruses. This can lower the risk of infections and lead to improvements in dental health, a
lower risk of caries and reduced bad breath.

7. Green Tea May Lower Your Risk of Type II Diabetes

Type II diabetes is a disease that has reached epidemic proportions in the
past few decades and now afflicts about 300 million people worldwide.
This disease involves having elevated blood sugar levels in the context of
insulin resistance or an inability to produce insulin.
Studies show that green tea can improve insulin sensitivity and reduce
blood sugar levels (43, 44).
One study in Japanese individuals found that those who drank the most
green tea had a 42% lower risk of developing type II diabetes (45).
According to a review of 7 studies with a total of 286,701 individuals, green
tea drinkers had an 18% lower risk of becoming diabetic (46).

Bottom Line: Some controlled trials show that green tea can cause mild reductions in blood
sugar levels. It may also lower the risk of developing type II diabetes in the long term.

8. Green Tea May Reduce Your Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

Cardiovascular diseases, including heart disease and stroke,
are the biggest causes of death in the world (47).

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10 Proven Benefits of Green Tea (No. 3 is Very Impressive)

Studies show that green tea can improve some of the main
risk factors for these diseases.
This includes total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and
triglycerides (48).
Green tea also dramatically increases the antioxidant capability of the blood, which protects the
LDL cholesterol particles from oxidation, which is one part of the pathway towards heart disease
(49, 50, 51).
Given the beneficial effects on risk factors, it is not surprising to see that green tea drinkers have up
to a 31% lower risk of cardiovascular disease (52, 53, 54).

Bottom Line: Green tea has been shown to lower total and LDL cholesterol, as well as
protect the LDL particles from oxidation. Observational studies show that green tea drinkers
have a lower risk of cardiovascular disease.

9. Green Tea Can Help You Lose Weight and Lower Your Risk of Becoming
Obese
Given that green tea can boost the metabolic rate in the short
term, it makes sense that it could help you lose weight.
Several studies show that green tea leads to decreases in body
fat, especially in the abdominal area (55, 56, 57).
One of these studies was a randomized controlled trial in 240
men and women that went on for 12 weeks. In this study, the
green tea group had significant decreases in body fat percentage, body weight, waist circumference
and abdominal fat (58).
However, some studies dont show a statistically significant increases in weight loss with green tea,
so this needs to be taken with a grain of salt (59).

Bottom Line: Some studies show that green tea leads to increased weight loss. It is
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10 Proven Benefits of Green Tea (No. 3 is Very Impressive)

particularly effective at reducing the dangerous abdominal fat.

10. Green Tea May Decrease Your Risk of Dying and Help You Live Longer
Of course, we all have to die eventually. That is inevitable.
However, given that green tea drinkers are at a lower risk of cardiovascular
disease and cancer, it makes sense that it could help you live longer.
In a study of 40,530 Japanese adults, those who drank the most green tea (5 or
more cups per day) were significantly less likely to die during an 11 year period
(60):
Death of all causes: 23% lower in women, 12% lower in men.
Death from heart disease: 31% lower in women, 22% lower in
men.
Death from stroke: 42% lower in women, 35% lower in men.

Another study in 14,001 elderly Japanese individuals aged 65-84 years found that those who drank
the most green tea were 76% less likely to die during the 6 year study period (61).

Take Home Message

If you want to buy quality organic green tea (or green tea extract), then there is an excellent
selection with thousands of customer reviews on Amazon.

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10 Proven Benefits of Green Tea (No. 3 is Very Impressive)

In order to feel better, lose weight and lower your risk of chronic diseases, then you might want to
consider making green tea a regular part of your life.
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