Green tea
These 6 things happen when you drink green tea every day
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Green tea gives us a (healthy!) Caffeine kick and can even protect against various diseases. A daily cup of green tea has these six health benefits.
While most people prefer to use coffee or black tea as the hot beverage of their choice, green tea has an incredible number of positive effects on health. Many of them are due to the fact that the tea leaves for the green superfood are not fermented – as is the case with black tea. Green tea can do all of this:
6 health benefits of green tea
1. It protects against diseases
Green tea contains many antioxidants that protect our organism from so-called free radicals. Regular drinking of the tea can help prevent diseases – such as cancers such as colon cancer, breast cancer or prostate cancer. The antioxidants also have a positive effect on cholesterol levels, making green tea an effective helper for a healthy heart.
The polyphenols contained in green tea can also protect against diabetes because they lower blood sugar levels and have a positive effect on insulin sensitivity. Different Studies confirm this preventive effect against type 2 diabetes.
2. It makes you happy
But green tea is not only good for physical health – our mental health can also benefit from regular consumption. The tea owes this effect to the mood-enhancing neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine, the concentration of which it can increase, as well as the amino acid L-theanine it contains. The latter has an anxiolytic and relaxing effect.
Studies show that green tea has another benefit for our psyche: it is rich in certain plant nutrients that inhibit the enzyme monoamine oxidase (MAO). MAO can promote the development of depression, and one Meta-analysis Chinese scientists: inside could link a reduced risk of depression to the consumption of green tea.
3. It wakes you up – but not jittery
Like coffee or black tea, green tea contains caffeine. In our nervous system, it acts as an antagonist to the body’s own messenger substance adenosine, which signals tiredness to our body. Caffeinated drinks therefore wake us up and promote our concentration. However, since green tea contains a significantly lower amount of caffeine than coffee, the nervous and shaky effect is usually absent.
4. It can lower blood pressure
The superfood green tea can inhibit the production of angiotensin. This hormone constricts blood vessels and increases blood pressure. If you regularly drink a cup of green tea, you can even lower your blood pressure and counteract high blood pressure.
5. It supports a healthy weight
The antioxidants already mentioned above have even more benefits for our health. They lower the concentration of the “bad” LDL cholesterol and increase that of the “good” HDL cholesterol – green tea can stimulate fat burning and reduce the feeling of hunger. The catechins in particular help reduce health-damaging abdominal fat and stimulate the metabolism. The tea can thus help us maintain or achieve a healthy weight.
6. It works like anti-aging for our skin
Because the antioxidants in green tea shield our cells from free radicals, they also protect them from premature aging. If you drink a lot of green tea, you can prevent the formation of wrinkles – and even repair DNA damage caused by sunburn.
Sources used: eatsmarter.de, vital.de