It seems that we're all fighting the battle of the bulge.
Especially as we get older, it seems to get harder to keep the
pounds at bay. We often think of women as being the dieters,
but in fact, men are just as subject to weight problems as
women.
As you're looking for ways to make weight loss easier, consider
the research that has been performed on the health benefits of
tea. Tea has long been used in Asian cultures to prevent
illness and protect health, and it seems that science is
proving what Asians have believed all along: tea is good for
you.
Lifelong tea drinkers have lower incidences of heart disease,
high cholesterol and some forms of cancer. They are also less
likely to suffer from diabetes or be overweight. Tea protects
your teeth and may even have potential to prevent diseases like
Parkinson's and Alzheimer's.
We are beginning to learn a lot about the benefits of tea, but
clearly there is much more to learn, so that we can pinpoint
exactly how we can best use tea to help with medical needs.
One of the most promising areas of tea research centers on tea
as a weight loss aid. Much research has shown that tea seems to
speed up the metabolism and promote fat oxidation. Other studies
have shown that lifelong tea drinkers are less likely to be
overweight, have a lower percentage of body fat and have a
lower waist to hip ratio.
In addition, studies have shown that when tea was part of a
sensible diet and exercise plan, subjects lose more weight than
those subjects who used a diet and exercise plan without tea as
a supplement.
One study that is particularly interesting was conducted by the
Beltsville Human Nutrition Center in Maryland in conjunction
with the University of Tokushima in Japan. In this study,
twelve men between the ages of 25 and 60 were evaluated. All
participants were in good health, and the study was conducted
over a period of one month. The target participants were those
who consumed the caffeine equivalent of 2-4 cups of coffee each
day.
Prior to the beginning of the study, each participant was
evaluated with regard to their calorie expenditure per day
without caffeine or tea. During the study, each participant was
placed into one of four study groups. One group received a
supplement of water, one group received water with caffeine,
one group received half strength oolong tea and one group
received full strength oolong tea.
For three days, the participants were fed the exact same diet.
The diet was low calorie and free of caffeine, other than the
caffeine in the beverage supplements. The beverage supplements
were given to the participants five times per day.
This study found that the participants who drank full strength
oolong tea and caffeinated water burned more calories in a day
than the subjects who drank water or half strength tea.
Drinking caffeinated water increased energy expenditure by 3.4%
over those participants who drank water alone.
Drinking full strength tea increased energy expenditure by 2.9%
over drinking water alone. Drinking half strength tea did not
significantly increase energy expenditure over drinking water
alone.
So, why not just drink water with caffeine?
You might ask why we wouldn't just drink water with caffeine to
help increase our metabolic rate. Well, according to this study,
you could do just that. However, when you consider the many
other studies that have touted the many other benefits of tea
consumption, it's clear that getting your metabolic boost from
tea is far healthier than adding caffeine to your water.
Tea is full of anti-oxidants, which is believed to be why it
prevents illnesses and protects health. Anti-oxidants are
powerful fighters of free radicals in the body. Free radicals
are oxygen containing molecules that are created as a
by-product of our digestion process.
These free radicals damage our cells and DNA if left unchecked.
However, consuming anti-oxidants combats these free radicals
before they can harm our bodies. Scientists have shown that
consuming a diet high in anti-oxidants helps us to avoid
serious illnesses and slows down the aging process.
In addition, there have been other studies that have suggested
that tea promotes more weight loss through fat oxidation than
other caffeinated beverages. It is believed that this too is
the result of anti-oxidants. It appears that the combination of
caffeine with the anti-oxidants in tea is a more powerful weight
loss supplement than caffeine in other beverages.
Finally, research has shown that the caffeine in tea seems to
be better tolerated than other forms of caffeine. Many people
who are caffeine sensitive find that they can drink tea without
the usual side effects of caffeine. The caffeine in tea often
does not produce the irregular heart rate and nervous jitters
that caffeine sensitive people experience from other
caffeinated beverages.
So, adding tea to your diet plan may be a great way to speed up
your weight loss. Tea is healthy, refreshing, inexpensive and
readily available. So, why not add tea to your diet routine?
About The Author: Marcus Stout is President of the Golden Moon
Tea Company. For more information about tea, green tea and
black tea go to http://www.goldenmoontea.com
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