How Much Green Tea Should You Drink?

There are as many answers to this question as there are researchers investigating the natural properties of green tea. For example, Herbs for Health magazine cites a Japanese report stating that men who drank ten cups of green tea per day stayed cancer-free for three years longer than men who drank less than three cups a day (there are approximately 240 - 320 mg of polyphenols in three cups of green tea). Meanwhile, a study by Cleveland's Western Reserve University concluded that drinking four or more cups of green tea per day could help prevent rheumatoid arthritis, or reduce symptoms in individuals already suffering from the disease.  And Japanese scientists at the Saitama Cancer Research Institute discovered that there were fewer recurrances of breast cancer, and the disease spread less quickly, in women with a history of drinking five cups or more of green tea daily.

It gets more confusing. A University of California study on the cancer-preventative qualities of green tea concluded that you could probably attain the desired level of polyphenols by drinking merely two cups per day. On the other hand, a company selling a green tea capsule formula insists that ten cups per day are necessary to reap the maximum benefits.

How can you make sense of these conflicting claims? Given all the evidence, it is probably safe to plan on drinking four to five cups of green tea per daily. If you're a real devotee, by all means drink more; but whether or not you'll derive added health benefits remains to be determined by further research.

How to Brew a Cup of Green Tea

Producing the perfect cup of green tea is a tricky process. If not handled properly, those same polyphenols that provide health benefits can ruin the flavor, making the tea taste "grassy." It's particularly important not to overbrew green tea. While it's best to follow the manufacturer's instructions for each variety of green tea, here are some general instructions:

• Use one tea bag, or 2 - 4 grams of tea*, per cup.
• Fill a kettle with cold water and bring to a boil.
• After unplugging the kettle, allow it to stand for up to 3 minutes.
• Pour the heated water over the tea bag or tea, and allow it to steep for up to 3 minutes. If using a tea bag, remove the bag.
• Allow the tea to cool for three more minutes.

*One to two teaspoons, depending on the variety of green tea you are brewing.

Green Tea for Weight Loss

If weight loss is one of your top health goals, green tea may help. Some studies show that substances in green tea may offer several weight-loss-promoting effects, such as speeding up your metabolism and suppressing your appetite. Although the ntioxidant brew won't help you shed pounds on its own, there's some evidence that drinking green tea may support your weight loss efforts.

How Might Green Tea Promote Weight Loss?

Green tea contains caffeine, which is known to increase thermogenesis (a biological process involved in burning calories). In a 2007 report from the American Journal of Physiology: Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, scientists state that green tea may fight the decrease in metabolism that typically accompanies weight loss. According to the report's authors, green tea may also inhibit the effects of catechol-O-methyltransferase (an enzyme known to trigger the breakdown of brain chemicals involved in regulating appetite).

Is Green Tea Effective for Weight Loss?

Certain antioxidants found in green tea seem to have a "small positive effect" on weight loss and weight maintenance, according to a report published in the International Journal of Obesity in 2009. In their analysis of 11 studies on green tea and weight loss or weight maintenance, researchers found that green tea antioxidants known as catechins may help increase metabolism.
Still, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) caution that there isn't enough scientific evidence to determine whether green tea is effective for weight loss. However, epigallocatechin gallate (a catechin found in green tea) may help moderately overweight people lose weight, according to the NIH.

Is Green Tea Safe for Weight Loss?

While green tea is likely safe for most adults, drinking more than five cups a day may lead to caffeine-related side effects (such as headache, nervousness, sleep problems, and irregular heartbeat). The caffeine in green tea may also aggravate some health conditions, including anxiety,high blood pressure and diabetes.

Should You Use Green Tea for Weight Loss?

For most adults, moderately increasing green tea intake may yield some weight loss benefits without causing negative health effects. But in order to experience significant weight loss, it's important to combine a healthy diet with regular exercise (including at least two and a half hours of moderate-intensity aerobic activity and two strength-training sessions per week). If you're considering the use of green tea supplements or any other natural weight loss aid, make sure to consult your physician before beginning treatment.

Is Chocolate healthier than green tea?

        Chocolate contains up to four times the anti-oxidants found in tea." Sound too good to be true? In fact, that was the conclusion of a recent study by Holland's National Institute of Public Health and Environment. Researchers found that chocolate - specifically dark chocolate - contains 53.5 mg of catechins per 100 grams. (Catechins are the powerful anti-oxidants that fight against cancer-causing cells and help prevent heart disease). By contrast, 100 ml of black tea contains a mere 13.9 mg of catechins.

The Chocolate Paradox?

Eating chocolate to stay healthy? Well, why not? Scientists have established that there are important health benefits to be gained from drinking red wine, so why not chocolate as well? But I wouldn't trade my morning cup of tea for a box of truffles just yet. For one thing, as Karen Allen points out in a report for the BBC, the amount of actual cocoa powder contained in chocolates may be quite small. Chocolates often contain other ingredients, such as saturated fats, that more than outweigh the health benefits to be gained from cocoa's cancer-fighting chemicals.
More importantly, the Dutch researchers were not comparing chocolate to green tea, which is rich in catechins. Furthermore, evidence is mounting that scientists have only begun to discover the numerous health benefits associated with drinking green tea. Still, a cup of green tea with a chocolate biscuit or a piece of dark chocolate sounds like a great way to begin the day!
Update: Recent clinical studies examining the effectiveness of green tea supplements were based on the assumption that 14 cups of green tea contain 400 - 600 mg of catechins. At the low end, that would mean each cup contains just over 28 mg per cup, while at the high end, a cup of green tea would have approximately 42 mg of catechins. So, dark chocolate may actually contain more anti-oxidants than green tea.