“The health benefits: It may protect against breast cancer and Alzheimer's disease, and it can speed metabolism.
The science behind it: A recent study at Tufts University found that green tea may help prevent breast cancer.
The brew contains a polyphenol called epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), which "may block subtle molecular changes that lead to the disease as well as suppress its progression," says Amy Yee, PhD, study coauthor and professor of biochemistry at Tufts University School of Medicine. Green tea can also boost brainpower. In research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition last year, doctors found that the amount of EGCG in one cup may reduce by 37 percent your chance of the mental decline that can accompany aging; and two cups slash your risk by 50 percent.
Green tea may help you lose weight. Groundbreaking research published several years ago showed that people who had the equivalent of three cups of green tea a day burned 4 percent more calories than people who didn't. Since then, many other studies have backed this finding. The miracle ingredient is likely -- what else? -- EGCG, which speeds up the body's metabolism, experts suggest.”
“The benefits of green tea might include blocking fat and keeping extra pounds at bay, according to preliminary lab tests in mice.
Here's what those preliminary lab tests in mice show:
Less weight and fat gain. Among mice with an obesity gene, those that ate chow laced with green tea extract gained less weight and less fat.
Less fat in the liver. There was less sign of "fatty liver" disease in the mice with the obesity gene that ate chow laced with green tea extract.
Lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels in mice with the obesity gene that ate the chow laced with green tea extract, compared to other mice with the same obesity gene.
A healthy liver isn't fatty. But obesity -- in mice or in people -- can lead to fatty buildup in the liver and cause nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
As for that green tea extract, the study used it in doses equal to what a person would get from drinking at least seven cups of green tea a day.”