Alrighty then,
So, if you read my first post, you are aware that I'm a bit of a fitness freak. Everything I do revolves around health and sports and.. well... fitness. SO this is basically what I will be basing my blog around with a few twists and turns here and there.
This particular blog will be about, if you haven't guessed it based off of the title already, GREEN TEA (YAY) and the phenomenon around it.
I'm that type of girl who will sit in an obnoxiously fluffy pair of socks (Halloween themed is my FAVORITE), a HUGE sweater, a cup of tea and either read or study for hours on end. My go-to tea will always be green tea. Primarily because its just liquid gold but the health benefits behind it are amazing too!
The nutrition course I studied is Metabolic Precision created and written by Dr. Paul Cribb; PhD, CSCS, FTAs. Cribb being one of Australia's leading scientists in Sports Medicine, a board member of The International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN), as well as a presenter and key speaker at organizations such as The American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and The United States Dairy Export Council (USDEC). All this to say that he is the REAL deal and a VERY smart man. I've had the privilege to study his very recognized program and within this program, opened my eyes about the wonders of green tea.
SO, let's get into it then,
It's a crazy thing to think of BUT 2 of 3 people will die, prematurely by heart disease or some form of cancer. Next time you're in a large crowd, think of that. It's sounds surreal but its the sad truth. As close as doctors are to solving such mysteries, they are still so far. BUT what if I said that there may be this magical compound that has emerged that has the potential to prevent and treat various forms of cancer, a handful of other diseases and help with fat reduction? Would you jump all over that!? I know I would!
Well lovely people of the internet, this compound is Green Tea; specifically the active ingredients in it. This is actually called a POLYPHENOLIC compound. Most of the polyphenols are known as FLAVANOLS, or more commonly known as CATECHINS. SO many big words... there's more to come! There are 4 major catechins found within green tea; EPIGALLOCATECHIN (EGC), EPICATECHIN (EC), EPICATECHIN GALLATE (ECG) and EPIGALLOCATECHIN GALLATE. I cannot pronounce one of those words.. seriously, just call it EGCG. That will make everyone's life easier!
What does this magical compound found within green tea ACTUALLY do??
What CAN'T it do is actually the better question. Providing evidence that it SLOWS progression of HIV, REDUCES high cholesterol, REDUCES the risk of cardio vascular disease, SLOWS progression of various forms of cancer, gives fat loss a jumpstart, prevents body fat accumulation and even helps with the prevention of dental cavities.
The EGCG compound shows promise of BINDING strongly to biological molecules and affecting enzyme activity and signal transduction pathways associated to progression of cancers. Such cancers as; breast, pancreatic, prostate, colon, skin and lung. Another major contributor to cancer and cardiovascular disease is our DNA. Oxidative DNA damage is linked to various cancers as well as cardiovascular disease. This EGCG compound has been shown to reduce markers of this phenomenon as well as inhibit DNA methylation. This is a GOOD thing!
If your mind exploding yet?? I'm trying not to get too technical with all these huge names because they're intimidating! Trust me, I get it.
There's always place for a meme :)
Back to business,
Let's throw in a fun fact! Did you know that green tea is a staple among the Japanese diet? Mainly for women. Did you also know that Japanese women have been known to show the LOWEST incidence of heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and obesity IN THE WORLD?! Scientists are starting to believe that this may not be a coincidence after all... Cool eh?
What about Green Tea being an antioxidant?
Well, this does appear to be true BUT we have to remember that most green tea antioxidant effects have been witnessed in vitro (cell culture) which means this is concentrated 10-100 times GREATER than what people may achieve as a regular green tea consumer.
Research shows that in vivo (living body), tea catechins are rapidly metabolized and even with VERY high intake of green tea extracts, EGCG plasma concentrations are likely to be 100-1000 times LOWER than antioxidants such as Vitamin C. To understand better, I would read that again. It's sort of mind blowing but totally cool to know!
Though, for the sake of time, yes, green tea does act as an antioxidant BUT you could better reap the benefits elsewhere. Best example I could give is blueberries! But that's a whole other post... stay tuned!
Now, what about fat loss?
Green tea is associated to SO MANY trends and fads in todays diets. It is known to be a fat burner, its incorporated into "teatoxs", its not rare you'll see an ad on Facebook or a commercial on TV of a young women with a huge smile, whilst holding a cup of green tea claiming how she lost all her weight from this miracle-in-a-cup!
Had to do it...
The idea originated from in vitro research that demonstrated EGCG activated a process called THERMOGENESIS. Thermogenesis is the process of which your body burns calories to produce heat thus promoting weight loss! EGCG also appears to work synergistically with other thermogenic compounds such as caffeine; to enhance fat metabolism. EGCG supplementation also shows NO raise in either heart rate or blood pressure! AND a study done on mice who were fed a high-fat diet combined with green tea extract supplementation (75% EGECG) showed a REDUCTION in body fat despite the high fat intake.
I'm sure you're thinking "well sign me up! give me that cup of green tea and all those benefits!"
It HAS been shown safe for a healthy individual to consume high amounts of EGCG which is great! Because, an unfortunate side of EGCG is its low oral bioavailability. This is the most poorly absorbed and most extensively metabolized of all the tea catechins! Researchers suggest that you would need to drink at least 7-8 cups a day or a supplement with substantial doses of EGCG to reap some of the anti-cancer benefits. For fat loss, a total of 270 milligrams of this compound a day has been to shown to aid the process. BUT one thing to remember is that green tea does contain caffeine. It's perfectly safe to drink this much green tea as long as you don't have a sensitivity to caffeine.
All-in-all to say that Green Tea IS amazing for you. The benefits of the compound EGCG is being extensively researched everyday! New studies and new trials are being performed by researchers and scientists more often than not. More to come, more to learn :)
Best advice I could possibly give to anyone is to always be safe about decisions you make with your health. Don't fall for the label that sits on the shelf in the pharmacy that promotes fat loss just by taking a pill and drinking 3 cups of tea a day! There is NO easy way to your goals. You HAVE to work for it. And it's such an enjoyable experience! And you get to make it your own! How awesome is that!?
I truly hope that this post was interesting to read!
I loved writing it :)
AND some cool facts about green tea yet again (because its such a magical thing!)
Until next time beauty's!
Insta handle --> kyla.emma30