Why is green tea good for you

Green tea has been known as a natural remedy and possible prevention for many health issues. It had been identified by civilizations as an herb with potential health benefits, thousands of years ago. It was perhaps the Chinese who started using the green tea leaves as an herb with medicinal properties. Coming back to a more recent time, National Cancer Institute had published through its journal in 1994, the fact that the Chinese people were much less susceptible to esophageal cancer due to their regular consumption of green tea. this fact was further established when the University of Purdue confirmed later that green tea contains properties that acts against the development of cancerous cells within the human body. Research have been going on since on the health benefits of the green tea and some have even warranted that drinking green tea can also lower LDL levels to reduce heart risks. Although not every one of its benefits have been established through research, there are other benefits of consuming green tea as well. Apart from reducing the chances of cancer and heart diseases, green tea can also help reduce the chances of developing rheumatoid arthritis. There have been evidences that the polyphenolic catechins within the green tea extracts have antimicrobial properties that prevent infections in general from transpiring. Emphasis on the green tea have also been in relation to its ability to burn fat since the “American Journal of Clinical Nutrition” had published back in 1999 that coffee and green tea together can benefit one’s slimming aspirations far more greatly than coffee alone.

The catechin polyphenols are obviously the key beneficial ingredients in green tea as they are known to be effective against a variety of health problems, but even among them, epigallocatechin gallate is the most potential one. Otherwise known as EGCG, the epigallocatechin gallate is an antioxidant that is not only good at preventing cancer but is also good at clearing cancerous cells in particular. Most other benefits of the green tea like prevention of thrombosis and reducing LDL levels are also attributed to the EGCG. Other Chinese teas like the oolong also have health potentials in them but none is as beneficial as the green tea and the reason for this phenomenon lies mostly in the way in which it is prepared. Green tea leaves are not fermented like the leaves of most other form of tea, instead, they are steamed. The steaming process allows the epigallocatechin gallate within the tea leaves to remain in its natural state and thus the antioxidant properties of the compound is not lost before it enters the human digestive system.