This is an archived article and the information in the story may be outdated. Please check the time stamp on the story to see when it was updated last.
That delicious and soothing cup of tea you love isn’t just the perfect remedy when you feel a cold coming on. Depending on the tea strain, you can actually get weight loss benefits from certain varieties of tea.
This is the one anti-inflammatory tea that basically shrinks your waistline, according to nutritionists.
There are no easy and fast solutions when it comes to weight loss — the only method that truly works is taking in fewer calories and making healthy food choices while sticking to a consistent exercise program. With that said, metabolism-boosting aids can’t hurt, as long as they are natural.
With so many supplements on the market that claim they can help with weight loss and fat burning, it can become confusing and costly (not to mention potentially dangerous to your health) to navigate all of your options. But teas, like this one tea that is excellent for helping to give your metabolism a kickstart, are effective and safe.
Green Tea
A celebrity among teas, green tea is one of the most popular drinks on the planet. Green tea contains a wealth of catechins called EGCG that are natural antioxidants that prevent cell damage and can protect against illness and disease. It also has amazing weight loss benefits.
According to Healthline: “EGCG (Epigallocatechin Gallate) is one of the most powerful compounds in green tea. It has been studied to treat various diseases and may be one of the main reasons green tea has such powerful medicinal properties.”
Benefitting from a compound that can lower your risk of getting sick of pretty amazing as it is, but green tea has also been shown to help kickstart weight loss.
There’s a reason why green tea extracts are found in most weight loss supplements. According to one study, people who consumed four cups of green tea each day showed a “significant decrease in body weight, body mass index, weight circumference, and systolic blood pressure.”
The small amount of caffeine found in green tea can also help suppress your appetite and boost your metabolism. It’s important to keep green tea’s caffeine content in mind and either substitute your morning coffee for green tea or space out the beverages to ensure they don’t make you feel anxious.
Looking to green tea for a metabolism boost is one thing. Depending on it to help you achieve your weight loss goals instead of taking other necessary steps like changing your diet and exercising is another.
Even if you consume four cups of green tea each day, as was done successfully by many in the research previously mentioned, the weight loss results are not going to be drastic.
“People think if you drink a few cups of green tea, you’ll see the fat melt away,” David Nieman, Dr.PH., director of the human performance laboratory at Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C. Nieman, told Consumer Reports. “That’s just not going to happen.”
By all means, enjoy a cup of green tea each day — it can only help you. But, if you’re trying to lose weight, remember that the best method includes a combination of changes like eating more protein and healthy fats, consuming less sugar, and working out with both cardio and strength training movements.