Green Tea for Weight Loss

Recently, there has been a great deal of discussion about the many health benefits of green tea. A good deal of the recent discussion has centered around using green tea pills to lose weight. There are many claims that this supplement is very effective in helping with weight loss, due to its naturally occurring phytochemicals.

Green tea, (scientific name Camellia Sinensis), is a plant that was originally indigenous to parts of Eastern Asia. Today, however, green tea is cultivated in several different areas of the world, and is consumed by individuals for various purposes. People in China and India have long used green tea as way to normalize blood sugar, as a diuretic, and to help heal wounds. Green tea has also been used to aid digestion, and to normalize the temperature of the body.

The main reason people consume green tea for weight loss is due to the naturally occurring components in the tea: EGCG and caffeine. EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate) is an antioxidant that works to promote fat burning in the body. Thermogenesis is a process that converts calories into body heat, which enables the body to use calories from the food you eat. Green tea is thought to make this process happen faster, so calories are utilized faster, resulting in less fat storage in the body.

The second useful component of green tea is caffeine. Caffeine is also known to promote the process of thermogenesis. These two compounds then combine to help the body increase the metabolism to burn a greater amount of calories.

There has also been a bit of research that suggests green tea may help the body in blocking the absorption of fat calories contained in certain kinds of food. It may also work to regulate hunger by regulating blood sugar levels as well. All of these benefits are said to work synergistically to aid fat loss.

It is said that you derive the greatest benefits from green tea leaves by taking green tea in pill form. These pills contain a concentrated form of the important compounds found in green tea, and can contain between 200 to 600 milligrams of EGCG. There are many products available in stores, so read the packages carefully to ensure the pills actually contain a certified source of EGCG. While green tea itself is considered to be quite safe, you should always adhere to the recommended dosages.