green tea

The Wonderful Health Benefits of Green Tea

green teaWhat comes to mind when you think of healthy food and beverages?

There are a number of healthy food and drink options that you should add to your shopping cart. But they’re not all fruits and vegetables.

Drinking green tea is one of the best decisions you can make for your body. It’s one of the healthiest beverages on the market and it is filled with powerful antioxidants and nutrients.

There are a number of health benefits that go along with regularly drinking green tea. As a result, more people around the globe are filling their mugs with this beverage made from unoxidized leaves.

Here are a few benefits of drinking green tea. Read on to learn more.

What’s in Green Tea?

Green tea is a beverage that originally hails from Asia. For some, this healthy beverage is still shrouded in mystery.

There are many different types of green tea available – from the Japanese gyokuro to the Chinese gunpowder tea.

They may have differences, but they are all very similar in their makeup and health benefits.

Green tea is made from the dried leaves of the Camellia sinensis bush. It contains polyphenols that serve as antioxidants.

The polyphenols can protect the body from harmful diseases. Antioxidants like Epigallocatechin Gallate and catechins can treat diseases and even protect the body from cell damage.

Despite its many health benefits, many people still avoid green tea. In fact, green tea only comprised 16 percent of the U.S. tea consumption in 2016.

Brain Function

Tea is already known for having myriad health benefits including lower blood pressure, illness prevention, and anxiety relief.

Green tea takes it a step further. One of the best side effects of drinking tea is that it increases brain function.

Green tea contains caffeine and L-theanine which have known benefits to brain function. Caffeine acts as a stimulant and can impact mood and memory. While green tea doesn’t contain as much caffeine as coffee, it’s overall a healthier option for increased energy.

L-theanine is an amino acid that increases dopamine levels in the brain. This sends signals to other cells and increases brain function. It can also decrease anxiety levels.

Cancer

One of the best ways to prevent cancer is to stave it off with powerful antioxidants. Fortunately, green tea is chock-full of these antioxidants.

Polyphenols are believed to both prevent cancer cells from growing and to kill them off altogether. They can also prevent oxidative damage that can lead to cancer growth.

Green tea has been found to decrease the risk of everything from breast cancer to colorectal cancer. There is no perfect recipe to preventing cancer. However, drinking green tea may lower your chances of getting this harmful disease.

Alzheimer’s

One byproduct of increased brain function is a lowered risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

Alzheimer’s is a commonly found disease that is also linked to dementia. Green tea’s catechin can help to deter the onset of this disease.

The catechin in green tea can create a barrier for neurons, which are integral in brain function. Green tea can also stave off harmful proteins that can trigger neurogenerative diseases. As a result, this can lower the risk of Alzheimer’s in older adults.

Basically, green tea consumption could be instrumental in keeping your brain functioning at high levels.

More Health Benefits

Green tea can help increase brain function, prevent cancer, and protect against Alzheimer’s. That’s just the tip of the iceberg.

There are numerous other health benefits related to drinking tea. Green tea has also been found to help with everything from stress to fatigue.

Put down the coffee, soda, and alcohol and opt for green tea instead. By doing so, you just may be on the right track to a healthy life.

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