Have you ever noticed that you can often find green tea or its extracts being sold near other weight loss products? Perhaps you never thought twice about it, but they don’t sell coffee, milk or other such beverages there, so why green tea? Let’s take a look at green tea and weight loss.

While it may not be 100% perfect (nothing is), you will see that green tea does have some pretty impressive benefits; not only on how much you weigh, but on your overall health as well. Ancient cultures have been aware of these properties for ages, but it is only recently that Western medicine and science have started to see how much this unassuming plant can do.

Before we get to the good stuff, it’s only fair to offer a few warnings. First, green tea contains caffeine, so those who can’t tolerate it, or have to avoid it for spiritual or health reasons shouldn’t drink it. Second, you should talk to your doctor before making any changes to your diet. Finally, none of the information in this article is meant to be medical advice of any kind. Always consult with your doctor and follow their advice. Okay, now on to the good stuff…

Green tea contains catechin polyphenols, which are powerful antioxidants. These appear to be the source of a lot of the health benefits associated with drinking green tea. Furthermore, the catechin increases your metabolism. Some studies have shown that green tea can boost your metabolism by as much as 4% for a full 24 hours after drinking it. Imagine drinking a cup or two of tea and then burning extra calories for a day afterwards.

The better metabolic rate is only the start of the good news about green tea and weight loss. One of the biggest problems with going on a diet is that you always seem to feel hungry. But green tea comes to the rescue yet again! How? First it helps to regulate blood sugar levels, which play an important part in how full we feel. Next, the polyphenols in green tea may suppress the body’s production of the enzyme leptin which makes us feel hungry. So, it not only makes you feel fuller, it also makes you less hungry at the same time.

So far it’s easy to see how green tea is a natural ally in the fight for losing weight, but we’re not quite done yet. As if increased metabolism and feeling full weren’t enough, there is also some evidence that compounds found in green tea reduce how much fat the body absorbs. The catechins, caffeine and theanine work to inhibit the lipase enzymes that signal the body to store fat.

Add to all of this the fact that tea has zero calories, and there should be no doubt that green tea and weight loss go together. Just drink a cup or two every day, and you should start noticing the positive effects before you know it.

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