Green Tea – the Ultimate Drink

Green Tea – the Ultimate Drink

-By Srishti Sachan

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Green tea is no ordinary tea. With health benefits ranging from weight loss and prevention of liver disorders, dental cavities and chronic fatigue to boosting memory, it would not be an exaggeration to say that it is, in fact, the 'ultimate beverage'.

Native to China and India, green tea was used extensively in ancient Chinese and Indian medicine to control bleeding and heal wounds, improve digestion, heart and mental health and also to regulate body temperature.

In spite of the fact that tea is the most consumed beverage after water, the percentage of green tea drinkers worldwide is only about 20%. But, with the growing awareness of the various health benefits of this tea, this percentage is on the rise. So, let's know more about one of  'the most healthy drinks in the world'.

What is Green tea?

Green tea is a zero-calorie beverage made from un-oxidized, dried leaves of the Camellia sinensis bush. Since these leaves go through minimal processing, they are loaded with antioxidants (the super-healthy chemicals that can slow or prevent cell damage) and beneficial polyphenols, which give this tea its anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic properties.

Now, let's take a look at some of the health benefits this wonder-drink has to offer:

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• Prevents Cancer

It is has been proved by scientists that green tea decreases tumour growth and also protects against ultraviolet UVB radiation. Also, those who consume green tea are less likely to develop pancreatic cancer, with women being 50% less likely to develop this disease. This is because the high amount of polyphenols present in this tea help in killing the cancerous cells and stop them from growing. With the number of cancer patients constantly on the rise, it might not be such a bad idea to start drinking this wonder-drink.

• Lowers Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

Because of the high amount of flavonoids present in the tea (which act as antioxidants), green tea helps prevent the formation of clots, known to be primary reason behind heart attacks. These flavonoids also keep the heart arteries pliable and relaxed, thereby enabling them to better withstand the fluctuations in blood pressure. So, if you want to keep your heart healthy, you might just want to go green.

• Weight Loss

It's those super-healthy antioxidants to the rescue again! Green tea contains caffeine and EGCG (Epigallocatechin gallate), both of which help in burning fat and boosting metabolism. What these substances really do is increase the levels of norepinephrine, the hormone that sends a signal to the fat cells to break down fat. This fat then gets released into our blood and becomes available for use as energy. Thus, green tea has been proved to increase the body's metabolism by 4%, even while resting. Studies show that this effect becomes even stronger if one consumes green tea before exercising.