Losing Weight by Thinking Green

Now more than ever, people are trying to lose weight by
thinking green. Green tea is one of the hottest products on the
market today. Its medicinal qualities have been known for years.
But can green tea actually enable you to shed those unwanted
pounds?

Research conducted for the American Journal of Clinical
Nutrition states that a green tea diet can speed up your
metabolism and oxidize fat without increasing your heart beat.
This means that you can achieve a fast metabolism with green tea
without suffering heart trouble. In other words, green tea
enables you to increase your expenditure of energy without
causing adverse health effects.

If you find the taste of green tea difficult to swallow, you
can obtain green tea extract in a pill. The 500-milligram
capsules should be consumed two or three times each day in order
for you to receive maximum benefit.

Of course, you might be wondering at this point how much green
tea is enough. Some medical experts recommend as many as ten
cups a day. Other health specialists say that two to three cups
are sufficient. Yet other medical experts recommend splitting
the difference, calling for four to five cups of green tea daily.

Green tea reduces your “bad” cholesterol count, while enhancing
your “good” cholesterol count. As a result, those who drink
green tea can substantially increase their consumption of high
cholesterol food, yet maintain a relatively low bad cholesterol
count. Green tea can also decrease your blood sugar, protecting
you against diabetes or at least reducing symptoms of diabetes.

A number of studies have been done in order to ascertain the
benefits of green tea. For instance, researcher William Rumpler
conducted a study in order to determine the effects of green tea
consumption on men. The results indicated that the energy
expenditure for tea-drinkers was three percent higher after they
ingested the tea. However, Rumpler and his colleagues believe
additional research needs to be conducted in order to determine
the full effect of green tea upon the human body.

Of course, in addition to weight loss, there are other
advantages to the GreenTea diet. It is believed to be effective
in preventing Alzheimer’s disease, combating flu and colds, and
boosting your immune system. As a result, a number of people
drink the beverage strictly for its medicinal value.

On a segment of the “Oprah Winfrey” talk show, Dr. Nicholas
Perricone said that if you replaced coffee with green tea, you
could lose as many as ten pounds in six weeks. Perricone stated,
“Coffee has organic acids that raise your blood sugar, raise
insulin. Insulin puts a lock on body fat. When you switch over
to green tea, you get your caffeine, you’re all set, but you
will drop your insulin levels and body fat will fall very
rapidly. So 10 pounds in six weeks, I will guarantee it.”

However, note that the physician is not prescribing green tea
per se, but rather calling it preferable to coffee. However, it
appears clear that green tea is a healthier beverage than
coffee. A study published by the American Journal of Clinical
Study reports that green tea promotes fat oxidation, and that
this process appears to be the result of more than just the
caffeine that is a component of the tea. In other words, there
appear to be qualities inherent in green tea that foster fat
oxidation.

It is interesting to note that some people wonder which is
preferable: loose-leaf green tea that you buy online or the
green tea that you can purchase at the supermarket. Generally
speaking, supermarket green tea is considered lower in quality
than green tea purchased over the Internet. It has been said
that green tea offered on the Web also enables you to get the
most out of your money.

It appears that green tea is more than just a passing fad. It
has emerged as a legitimate health aid–a product which can help
you lose weight over the long run. While there is no such thing
as a magic fix for weight loss, you should consider adding green
tea to your diet, not only for its weight loss value, but for
its medicinal properties as well.

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