Shutterstock
Green tea is associated with a ton of great health benefits, like potentially fighting cancer and heart disease, and some people have recently made a connection between green tea and weight loss. Maybe you’ve seen one of the Kardashians promoting FitTea on Instagram or those foodie blogs preaching the fat-burning powers of matcha tea.
Green tea is good for you. It has a lot of antioxidants, and since it doesn’t contain any sugar or calories, it’s a great healthy drink option. But promoting it as a weight loss tool on its own isn’t really realistic. When green tea is consumed by someone who has an active lifestyle and healthy diet, it can boost weight loss. But if you don’t exercise and eat unhealthy food, green tea is not going to magically make those extra pounds fall off.
Since green tea has a high caffeine content compared to black teas, drink a cup before working out. It will give you a natural energy boost, and exercise not only burns calories but speeds up your metabolism as well.
There have been quite a few trials to see how green tea affects weight loss. The results have been “modest at best,” and you would have to drink seven cups of green tea a day to match the level of antioxidant compounds used in the trials.
Green tea alone isn’t a magical weight loss secret. But if you’re looking for a healthy swap for coffee or want to see if it boosts your weight loss efforts (that is, if you’re regularly exercising and eating right), try brewing a cup at home. Don’t go for store-bottled teas since they’re typically full of preservatives and sugar. Make your own cup and drink it plain or add a little honey for natural sweetness.
