Thoughts on Green Tea?
 

I've heard/read that it somehow helps with weight loss, and my b.s. monitor automatically went up. I figured I would ask on here to learn if, anecdotally, anyone has noticed any positive effects from drinking green tea.

Also, I read somewhere that drinking green tea exacerbates anemia. Anyone know anything about that?

Don't quote me on this, but I believe the research indicates that green tea slightly increases metabolism. But only a little. Not enough to drink it if you don't like it. :)

I just drink it because I like it and its part of my food culture.

However on the PCOS faq front, green tea extract rates 3 stars for helping with blood sugar. Here's a deeper article -- listing other conditions besides PCOS that lists sources at the bottom.

http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/green-tea-000255.htm

A.

1) I believe the studies are fairly well supported but you have to drink a LOT of green tea for a fairly small boost -on the order of maybe 50 calories a day if you drink 4 tea bags worth of STRONG green tea. It has to be steeped much longer than most people do their tea . If you LOVE green tea go for it but remember it is a caffeinated beverage. I do not believe there is support for the extract/pills

2) Tannins inhibit the absorption of non-heme iron (iron from non meat sources) there are mixed opinions on whether it inhibits the absorption of meat iron. If you tend to the anemic you may want to use caution or avoid drinking the tea near your iron rich meals or supplements.

Thanks, you guys. And thanks for that link, astrophe. I read it with interest.

I just bought some organic green tea to mix with my favorite organic chai tea (Tazo). I don't dislike green tea on its own, but it's sort of just blah. So, I figured if I let a bag of it steep with a bag of my chai tea, I'll get the good taste of the chai with the [possible] benefits of the green tea. I only drink one cup a day, though, and even the studies mentioned in that article astrophe posted indicate that I would need to drink 3-5 to see the benefits. Oh well!

I drink tons of green and white tea (probably somewhere around 5-6 cups daily) and I do notice some positive effects associated with this habit. The caffeine, of course, gives me energy so workouts are better and I'm more inclined to be generally active throughout the day. In addition to that, drinking a mug before each meal helps me feel full so I don't overeat.. of course, this same effect can be achieved just from drinking a plain glass of water, but I love tea and the non-weight-loss health benefits so much that it's worth it. (Not to mention that my skin glows since I began drinking lots of the stuff)

If the goal in drinking it is weight loss alone and one does not actually like green tea, though, it's probably not worth it.

By the way, if the flavor of green tea is a bit boring to you on its own, have you tried regular green tea with lemon, or jasmine green tea? Jasmine green tea especially is heavenly. There are also lots of different flavored green teas.. those with spices, fruity flavors, other florals(like rose), etc. My favorite teas right now are green tea with jasmine, white tea with rose, and white tea with white peach.

Originally Posted by Horo:
By the way, if the flavor of green tea is a bit boring to you on its own, have you tried regular green tea with lemon, or jasmine green tea? Jasmine green tea especially is heavenly. There are also lots of different flavored green teas.. those with spices, fruity flavors, other florals(like rose), etc. My favorite teas right now are green tea with jasmine, white tea with rose, and white tea with white peach.

No, I haven't, but thanks for the suggestions. When I finish this box I just bought, I'll look for some flavored varieties. Although I don't think I'm drinking enough of it to reap the reputed benefits, drinking just a little will maybe help just a little? :)

Green tea is a delicious low calorie beverage, but don't believe all of the hype. It's gotten to the point where there are green tea supplements that you can buy. They're for people with more money than brains in my humble opinion. The weight loss associated with massive green tea intake appears to be statistically significant (from the studies I have read) but may only lead to 1-2 pounds lost in the 'real world'. You will get the best results if you drink green tea instead of a fattening beverage like soda or milk.

Bleugh.. I like green tea with cranberry but I'm generally not a fan. I drink peppermint tea after meals because I like it. Seems to help my digestion anyway, not sure about weight loss but definitely digestion. :)

I drink a lot of green tea periodically (in that I go through bouts where I love it and drink it all the time, and then less so, like in the summer). It's not to help me with weight loss per se (I don't think it directly makes me lose weight), but I like the taste and it curbs my appetite just a little bit. Sometimes it's the edge I need to not break down and eat.

It's also a snack that takes some involvement (boil water, steep tea, etc.) and so it keeps me busy when I want to snack.

So if you like it, I'd drink it. If you don't, I wouldn't. You might like some kind of tea better than green tea. I'd try some out and see.

I just talked about my love for green tea in another thread. Particularly cold green tea. I don't like tea bags or warm tea. It's helped me stop drinking soft drinks all together and I now love the taste.

ONLY unsweetened of course.

Tea's Tea is probably my favorite brand at the moment, particularly the green white tea. Also at whole foods there's a can of green tea made by some Japanese company with Japanese lettering. Honest Teas from whole foods are really good, some of them have some sweetener in it so I now avoid those, but I did begin with those.

First time I had unsweetened green tea I didn't like it, but after awhile I became accustomed to it and now I really really love it and need it! I don't drink coffee and the small amount of caffeine in it helps. It's great that it supposedely helps prevent cancer..it's just a bonus.

Originally Posted by LiannaKole:
. . . it curbs my appetite just a little bit. Sometimes it's the edge I need to not break down and eat.

It's also a snack that takes some involvement (boil water, steep tea, etc.) and so it keeps me busy when I want to snack.

You know, you're right. I had a cup yesterday (mixed with a teabag of Tazo chai), and it really did curb my appetite. Also, as you state, the entire process of making it is an "event" of sorts.

Originally Posted by rachelinala:
I just talked about my love for green tea in another thread. Particularly cold green tea.

You've given me an idea! I think I will try it cold during the summer. Sometimes I just want something refreshing to drink. I don't think I could go with unsweetened, though. I generally do not like any tea unsweetened because it seems tasteless. However, I do use Z-sweet (an all-natural sugar alternative), and a bit of that is all I need to sweetened it.

Since people are mentioning their favorites: I love Stash's Green Chai tea. It's very delicious.

i love green tea. i probably like it better than black tea, and drink it on a daily basis. i like to drink it hot, and preferably the kind flavored with some type of berry.

i have no idea if this impacts my weight loss or not.

I remember years ago when Dr. Perricone was on Oprah. He claimed that if you drank anywhere between 4-6 cups of green tea daily and didn't change your diet, you'd lose 10 pounds in a month. I remember the audience, as well as Oprah, gasping in delight, making a mental note to buy stock in green tea once they got home. Does anyone else remember seeing this episode? I remember yelling at the tv, "BULL!" I am a big green tea drinker and drink at least 4 cups a day if not more. I, too, love it and the little pick me up it gives me, but have not experienced any weightloss from drinking it.

I do have a question though...I usually find green tea to be a tad on the bitter side. I add a very tiny amount of Stevia to it. But I'm curious now about the flavored green teas you all are talking about. Do you feel they provide just as much of the nutritional benefits as the regular green teas do? I'm always nervous to try them and I think it's for this reason. Like if they add something to it, it takes away some of the health benefits. Am I being paranoid? :D