9 Reasons You Should Drink Green Tea

People have been drinking tea for centuries and this has become a cultural fixture in many parts of the world. If you look at the health of certain populations and compared it with Western populations, some interesting relationships can be understood.

People who drink more tea, especially green tea, seem to suffer less chronic disease like heart disease, diabetes, and stroke. Of course, there are many reasons why this is so, but one of the reasons definitely stems from the benefits of green tea.

The reason is the high concentration of polyphenols contained within the green tea itself. Polyphenols are a family of chemicals found in various plants that have some beneficial effects on our health. The most studied of these chemicals is the catechin known as epigallocatechin-3 gallate. This chemical has many different physiological effects within the human body with target sites on many different cells.

Let me review a few of the benefits of green tea:

1. High Blood Pressure: One of the benefits of green tea applies to lowering blood pressure. Green tea can lower blood pressure by increasing the internal diameter of an artery via enzymic activation.

2. High Cholesterol: Green tea can prevent damage to arteries from harmful LDL cholesterol by preventing oxidation. Keeping “bad” LDL cholesterol levels is another one of the many benefits of green tea.

3. High Triglycerides: Green tea can lower the production of triglycerides from the liver by influencing inflammation.

4. Inflammation: Green tea can reduce inflammation by decreasing the secretion of pro-inflammatory chemicals—another one of the many benefits of green tea.

5. Weight Loss: Green tea can help liberate stored body fat by influencing enzymes which help release stored triglyceride from fat cells. This can help with your weight loss goals!

6. Blood Sugar: Green tea can keep blood sugar stable by helping to prevent insulin resistance.

7. Insulin Secretion: Green tea can keep insulin secretion lower by improving the degree of insulin sensitivity of your cells.

8. Antioxidant: Green tea has a powerful antioxidant effect upon our cells and can help protect them from free radicals. Including more antioxidant-rich foods in your diet is essential to preventing cancer, making this another one of the great benefits of green tea.

9. Anti-Carcinogen: Green tea can help prevent cancer growth by preventing new blood vessel growth, destroying free radicals and normalizing cell differentiation.

The use of this amazing nutritional “super drink” has so many great health benefits and I have only touched on a few of them. The science behind the use of green tea is quite impressive with hundreds and hundreds of studies indicating the many benefits of green tea. I recommend drinking at least two to three cups of green tea daily.

Dr. K.J.McLaughlin is a chiropractor with 27 years of clinical experience. In addition, he has degrees in physical education, nutrition and is a certified strength and conditioning specialist with an interest in anti-aging medicine. He has also spent time studying health promotion and the effect that health education has upon health outcomes. Dr. McLaughlin has a diverse professional background which has involved clinical management, teaching, health promotion and health coaching and brings a unique passion to his work.