The health benefits of switching to green tea have been harped about for a long time. But the goodness of green tea can only be derived if you make it properly. An original, truly refreshing cup of green tea made from high-quality green tea leaves is what we are talking about. Here are a few tips for making green tea from the scratch:
Choosing Green Tea Leaves
First of all, throw out the Green tea bags and Green tea balls. Go to your nearest grocery and get packaged green tea leaves or better go to a Chinese herbal store and get loose and fresh green tea leaves. Green Tea leaves have less shelf life, so make sure that the packaged green tea leaves you buy have not been on the shelf for more than 6 months. Try to buy green tea leaves that are from the first harvest.
The quality of the green tea leaves declines with each successive harvest. If you are purchasing packaged green tea leaves, buy those that have oxygen free packaging. There are many high-quality green tea leaves that you can choose. I prefer the Sencha Green Tea which is a classic and economical green tea or the aromatic Kabusecha Green Tea which is known as the best green tea as it is taken from the first harvest.
Making Green Tea
For making a single cup of Green Tea you have to brew only a single teaspoon or 5 ml of green tea leaves.Choose a green tea teapot or any well designed stout teapot that allows the tea to expand when being made.Fill the green tea teapot with one cup water, and heat it to 80 C. DO NOT boil the water.Place the green tea leaves in an empty mug and then pour the water over it.Steep the green tea leaves for a maximum for 2 and 1/2 minutes. For certain green tea varieties, you might have to steep for a longer time. It also depends on how strong you like it. The longer you steep the green tea the more bitter it will be.
Making Flavored Green Tea
You can experiment with your green tea flavours to suit your taste. Some of the most common ingredients that are added to make better and flavoured green tea are honey, lemon juice, spearmint, or sliced ginger. Some even add gin and tonic or other fruit juice concentrates to the green tea. For Iced Green Tea, simply add some ice cubes.
I love my Ginger iced green tea especially because of the wonderful flavour of lemon and ginger. Some of the green tea drinks that you can make are Green Tea Soda, Ginger Green Tea toddy, or the Srinagar Green Tea.
Origins of Green Tea
Historically, the Chinese have been using green tea as a medicinal drink. The general consensus is that Chinese Emperor Shen Nung discovered green tea when he was boiling water and leaves from a tree fell into the pot! Green tea comes from the plant called Camellia Sinensis.
The green tea has the health benefits because of the way it is processed. Green tea is steamed while processing and thus preserving its natural antioxidants. The black tea processing involves full oxidation and thus does not have the health benefits of the green tea. Both green tea and black tea still have the caffeine so if you are consuming this at night, then this will keep you awake. Caffeine can be harmful to the body since an excess of it can cause heart palpitations, hypertension, and insomnia. Because green tea diets contain only very low levels of caffeine, there is no danger of experiencing these side-effects.
Health Benefits of Green Tea
- It prevents Cancer. Green tea contains catechin polyphenols especially epigallocatechin gallate or EGCG. This is a powerful antioxidant that is known to not only destroy cancer cells but also prevent cancer. The latest studies on green tea were able to prove that green tea diet can effectively protect the skin from damage due to ultraviolet light radiation. Green tea is also widely recognized as a substance that can protect against different types of cancers such as stomach cancer, prostate cancer, ovarian cancer, oral cancer, cancer of the colon, breast and cervical cancers.
- EGCG reduces LDL cholesterol (the harmful cholesterol). This prevents the blood from forming clots, which is a leading cause of heart attacks! The study on green tea diets was conducted in China using 240 people with high cholesterol levels as volunteers. They were placed on a green tea diet of one capsule (equivalent to seven cups of green tea) or were given one placebo every day. After twelve weeks, those who were on a green tea diet dropped sixteen percent in their cholesterol levels.
- The weight loss (or fat loss) is because EGCG in green tea diet increases the 24-hour energy expenditure of the body. A research on green tea diets conducted by American and Swiss scientists in the University of Geneva showed an additional increase of four percent in the body’s natural energy expenditure. People who were on a green tea diet were more likely to use up more fats than those not on a green tea diet.
- Green tea can also be a potential cure for obesity. The catechin polyphenols present in green tea diets can delay the reaction of gastric and pancreatic lipases in the body. These enzymes convert calories in the body into fats. By delaying this enzymatic activity, green tea diets can prevent fat from being stored and hence prevent obesity.
As mentioned earlier, green tea contains caffeine that makes it a mild an appetite-suppressant. However, caffeine content in green tea diets is not as high as those found in other caffeine-based beverages, like coffee. In conclusion, green tea has many health benefits including weight loss and fat loss. This method is proven and is natural. There are variations of green diets like the green tea pills, green tea capsules, green tea patches etc. These make it convenient for you to carry them while travelling and could be more concentrated. If possible, try to consume green as a drink.
Health Benefits Of Green Tea: The Things You Need To Know
Nowadays, green tea has become among the most widely used health beverages on earth. In China and also surrounding nations, it has been long regarded as a health beverage. The West appears to be making up ground only a short while ago. It can be hard to separate fact from fiction due to the numerous statements associated with green tea.
To properly determine the health benefits of green tea, we must take a look at what it really comes with. All kinds of tea carry catechins – an antioxidant present in plants. Freshly harvested tea leaves are composed of 30% catechins if you measure its dry weight. Due to the variation in processing, green tea is found to contain a lot more catechins than black tea. We can say that black tea is good for you but green tea is best.
Green tea contains Epigallocatechin otherwise known as EGCG which is said to be the most active catechins in green tea. Furthermore, it has caffeine even though in small amounts. There are many scientific studies that point out that green tea is good for your health but remember that most of these scientific studies are done in the lab. According to the National Institutes of Health or NIH, more ‘real world’ studies must be carried out to prove the effectiveness of green tea conclusively. Experts express that green tea is observed to be useful in treating various illnesses.
Green tea is regarded as beneficial to the heart. It’s observed to lessen hazards of coronary heart disease and stroke. Lowering cholesterol is also yet another thing that it could do. The FDA did not say yes to the move of tea producers to put the heart benefits of green tea in the packaging, nonetheless. Printing health promises on product labels are serious business and the Food and Drug Administration is naturally being careful.
The impacts of green tea in human beings with cancer have been extensively studied. The final results, however, seem to be contradictory. At the same time, the potency of green tea in dealing with cancer has been proven in numerous lab tests.
Weight loss is also one more thing that green tea can help you with. The different studies conducted to learn the impact of green tea on weight loss, nonetheless, are inconsistent. Some studies claim that green tea can help in dealing with diabetes. Once again, the outcomes of these scientific tests are not conclusive when it comes to people.
You must drink a minimum of 3 cups of tea every day to gain the most health benefits. Although not conclusively confirmed, it is said that adding milk to your green tea can stop the health benefits of green tea. Caffeine found in green tea may be transferred to breast milk and so expecting and nursing mothers are urged not to drink green tea. You can find websites that explore natural remedies and you can uncover additional information regarding green tea on these websites.
Green Tea And Prostate Cancer
Recent reports have suggested that varied components found in green teas can possibly reduce the chance of men getting prostate and different forms of cancers. Scientists based in the USA have determined that green teas have an ingredient that will cut the amounts of a protein that is linked to the development of cancer.
Taking Chinese tea may lower the onset of prostate cancer and reduce the expansion of tumours.
In the stringent study, guys diagnosed with prostate cancer that was localised to the area drank either six doses of Green tea or water every day over a six week period and then had a radical prostatectomy.
The scientists then checked the tissue that had been removed for levels of a compound called Epigallocatechin-3-gallate. This compound was only discovered in the tissue taken from the men that drank the tea. Further tests showed that the tea drinkers had lower amounts of proteins connected to the growth and spread of prostate cancer.
It has been discovered that the compound provides an antioxidant effect, getting rid of harmful and free radicals. With numerous Green teas out in the marketplace, how do you pick which one to purchase? One proven Green tea product is called Tava Tea. It incorporates a rather rare formulation of three of the most effective teas known to man, these are Sencha, Puerh and Wuyi Cliff Oolong.
Matcha Green Tea Powder: A Herbal And Organic Product From Japan
Japan has rich tradition of its tea culture and there are several locations in Japan which are famous for their tea production. Matcha green tea has centuries ago relevance in Japanese tea culture and so, it has historical significance also.
This is the major reason why this variety is so popular among Japanese people Drinking ginger green tea is good for health as it combines the health benefits of both ginger and green tea; it gives a complex taste with the mix of the spicy sweet ginger and the brisk astringent green tea. It is also significant to note that both green tea and ginger have been used for various medicinal purposes. Talking of the benefits of ginger tea would be best supported with discussing the health benefits of both green tea and ginger.
Green tea contains polyphenols that are actually antioxidants or substances that neutralize free radicals and help prevent damage to the cells. Research proves that polyphenols have helped protect the body from various disease and ill health conditions; this important antioxidant protects the body against high cholesterol level, coronary artery disease and against various forms of cancer. It is still more significant to understand that green tea is the best protective agent against inflammatory bowel disease, diabetes, and liver disease.
Talking of ginger that is an important ingredient of ginger green tea it is significant to note that this underground rhizome stem has been used not only in culinary applications but it also in herbal cures. Ginger root has for long been known to help women that suffer from morning sickness and hyperemesis gravidarum. It is also significant to understand that ginger root has the property to stimulate the appetite and also helps get over the various discomfort of the stomach like nausea and vomiting.
It is true that both ginger and as well as green tea are super foods; they are rich in antioxidants. Antioxidants in the form of polyphenols; a plant based chemical helps to neutralize free radicals in the body that are unstable molecules that damage organs of the body. Since both ginger, as well as green tea, neutralize the high amount of free radicals, ginger green tea plays a prominent role in reducing the oneâs risk of developing cancer.
It is again significant to understand that the rich source of antioxidants in both ginger and green tea helps guard against blood clots; ginger green tea removes the free radicals in fattening food that leads to the formation of blood clots. It is also good to note that ginger green tea is a unique combination tea that helps to control blood pressure.
Ginger green tea is a unique combination of 2 very useful and healthy things; the high level of antioxidants in this tea proves to be a boon in boosting the immune system of the body and guarding it against several health hazards. Ginger green tea gives a real advantage for oral hygiene also; the combination of polyphenols and catechin in it helps to prevent and reduce oral bacteria and to prevent gum diseases.
The health benefits of drinking ginger green tea do not end at this; ginger green tea also helps in getting over stress and it elevates the mood. It is also to be known that ginger green tea gives the advantage of strong anti bacterial and anti oxidative properties that are vital in the care of cold, cough and fever.
Matcha Green Tea
If you are someone seeking for real goodness and health benefits of green teas, then buying, matcha green tea powder is a superior alternative to some green teas. With green teas, you consume brewed water which is simply an infusion of green tea leaves. When you consume such teas, you get only a fraction of nutrients and loose the rest when the leaves are discarded.
However, matcha is a green tea powder which once, whisked up mixes well with hot water consistently. So, when to take matcha you consume the leaf as a whole and there is no nutrient loss. On daily consumption of matcha green tea, you remain healthy and happy. The nutrients present in matcha tea include antioxidants, amino acids, vitamins, fibre, minerals and more.
No other existing beverage offers you such a unique combination which prevents cancer, helps in weight loss, maintains sugar level and metabolism and provides several other health benefits. Matcha green tea can be consumed both in a traditional and modern way to relish the real taste of good quality green tea leaves.
Although Japan is also famous for its flavoured green teas and other varieties, matcha is its most popular product. The best quality organic matcha green tea powder comes only from Japan. So, if you buy a green tea powder sourced from some other part of the world, then it is not a ceremonial grade matcha powder. There are some agencies which have reputed business of selling the best quality, ceremonial grade matcha green tea powder directly sourced from Japan.
As a customer, you conveniently make an online purchase. Here, matcha tea powder will be available to you at affordable rates and there will be no compromise with the quality. Some of the reputed suppliers also offer free shipping service no matter what may the size of the order. Also, you won’t have to go out of budget if you want to enjoy this tea on daily basis.
Matcha powder is also known as to speed up your metabolism and this helps you in a long way to speeding up weight loss. You can consume this as an ingredient in tablets or in the form of tea. However, if you want to ensure that you get maximum benefits from this, it is advisable to take in the form of tea. This is simply because it offers you an opportunity to control the purity level and in long run assure you to reap maximum benefits from the venture.
There are also several other benefits which are associated with the use of this green tea and some of those are pointed below:
For starters, this tea helps you in reducing your weight. This is one of the major reasons of the great demand for this tea. It also helps in lowering the blood cholesterol levels by a large margin. Furthermore, this tea also ensures to fight against heart and cancer diseases. This tea is fully packed with high antioxidants that ensure to provide anti-aging effects and a chance to enjoy overall good health. In a pill form, green tea for weight loss is usually taken one to two pills at a time. It is recommended to take them with food. Drinking the traditional tea versus swallowing it in pill form daily doesn’t seem to be significantly different as far as weight loss goes. However, green tea does remain in the body longer when taken in a pill rather than drunk.
There is yet another option for those of you who do not care for the taste of green tea or prefer not to take pills. The green tea patch is a new option to use the benefits of green tea for weight loss without having to brew up a pot of tea. The patch is used as a weight loss aid that sticks to your skin all day. Remember that if you have any allergies, especially adhesive allergies, to consider what is used in making the patch stick.
You have several choices when it comes to green tea for weight loss. But before starting any program to lose weight, consult with your doctor to decide what is the best way for you to reach your health goals.