“It’s the healthiest thing I can think of to drink,” says Christopher Ochner, Ph.D. He’s a research scientist in nutrition at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital. Of course, no one food will protect you from disease. Your health is wrapped up in your lifestyle and your genes, so even if you drink green tea all day long, you also need to take care of yourself in other ways, like not smoking, being active, and eating a healthy diet. Green tea’s biggest benefit? “It’s all about the catechin content,” says Beth Reardon, RD, a Boston nutritionist. Catechins are antioxidants that fight and may even prevent cell damage. Green tea is not processed much before it’s poured in your cup, so it’s rich in catechins.
What the Research Shows
Green tea has been shown to improve blood flow and lower cholesterol. A 2013 review of many studies found green tea helped prevent a range of heart-related issues, from high blood pressure to congestive heart failure.
What About Weight Loss?
Sorry, but no drink or food melts the pounds off. While some evidence suggests that the active ingredient in green tea, EGCG, may help you drop a few pounds, other studies show no effect. But green tea is a smart swap for sugary drinks.”All things being equal, if you sub 1-2 cups of green tea for one can of soda, over the next year you’d save over 50,000 calories,” Ochner says. That’s more than 15 pounds. Just don’t swamp it with honey or sugar!
By Paula Spencer Scott
Source: www.webmd.com
