Active Ingredients in Green Tea

Tuesday, July 21st, 2009

Green tea is derived from the Camellia Sinensis  plant, which has been cultivated in Asia for at least 5,000 years. In recent years, medical science has found that green tea can aid weight loss, but what exactly is it about green tea that causes weight loss?

The main active ingredient of green tea is an antioxidant called epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). EGCG is responsible for green tea weight loss by increasing metabolism and the body’s ability to burn fat.

Green tea has other health benefits outside of weight loss including preventing heart disease and cancer. The active ingredients associated with those effects are EGCG as well as carotenoids, tocopherols, Vitamin C, Magnesium, Zinc, and phytochemicals.

In order to experience optimal results, green tea must be consumed regularly and in sufficient quantity. Some weight loss studies have had subjects drink as much as 5 to 8 cups of tea a day.  The quality of the tea is also an important factor in its efficacy. Loose leaf, organic teas are ideal, but are rarely available in grocery store chains.  Occasionally organic green tea bags may be found in stores, but the best way to obtain green tea is through internet suppliers or by locating a tea specialty store in your area.

Another way to obtain the benefits of green tea is to take green tea extract supplements. However, the quality of these supplements can vary as well as the amount of active ingredients they contain. Drinking green tea is probably the best way to achieve green tea weight loss.

Green tea should be steeped for 2 to 3 minutes and consumed while still warm. Do not add milk, sugar, or lemon as they render EGCG ineffective.  In order to speed up consumption of green tea, brew ‘tea shots’ which is tea steeped in a small amount of water that can be consumed in just 1 to 2 gulps.  Drink tea throughout the day to facilitate weight loss, but reduce consumption in the afternoon due to the caffeine content.

If caffeine is  a concern, decaffeinated green teas are still effective and can be made by buying high quality green teas and reusing the bags. Caffeine is extremely water soluble (i.e. it dissolves easily in water) and green tea releases 80% of its caffeine content when brewed the first time, so simply reusing the tea bags will result in decaffeinated tea.

Tags: EGCG, epigallocatechin gallate, green tea weight loss, how to brew tea
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