Obesity is one of the biggest problems that we face in the modern world. A sedentary lifestyle, combined with increased drinking and a junk food culture means that people are getting fatter and fatter which makes them more prone to various obesity-related conditions like heart disease, hypertension, diabetes and sleep apnoea. But there’s one drink which actually works and actively helps you keep your weight down – green tea!

What is green tea?

Drank in China from ancient times, green tea is made from the leaves of Camelia sinesis. Most of its health benefits arise from the fact that it undergoes minimal oxidation while it’s made and that makes it very rich in antioxidants.

How are antioxidants good for our body?

Our body has many free radicals (molecules produced when the body breaks down food or due to smoking, drinking, etc) and antioxidants are substances which prevent our cells from the damage caused by the action of these free radicals. (Read: What are antioxidants?)

6 benefits of Green tea

1 Green tea has many ingredients in it such as caffeine, theobromine, saponins, theophylline,vitamins and epigallocatechin which are all great boosts your metabolic rate and reduces your appetite.

2 All these compounds lead to thermo-genesis which increases heat in the body in turn increasing your metabolic rate and keeping your weight down!

3 Green tea has 10 times the amount of antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables.

4 Cholesterol is another disease that green tea combats.

5 It helps keep your arteries healthy and unblocked, which helps prevent heart attacks.

6 In addition to all this, it can also help you in kicking the butt!

How is it better as compared to normal tea?

Even though, normal tea is beneficial for your health green tea is more beneficial since it has a lot more antioxidants.Furthermore, green tea has comparatively less caffeine which affects your central nervous system and gives you a ‘kick’ if you consume it in large quantities. Also, caffeine may increase your blood pressure which makes it harmful for people with high blood pressure.