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| Health & Medical Village: 健康醫藥村: 064 7 Reasons to Drink Green Tea received from Gail Hsing via Peyyen Hong and Bobby Chen |
| 7 Reasons to Drink Green Tea |
Posted Wed, Feb 20, 2008, 10:30 am PST
The steady stream of good news about green tea is getting so hard to ignore that
even java junkies are beginning to sip mugs of the deceptively delicate brew.
You'd think the daily dose of disease-fighting, inflammation-squelching
antioxidants--long linked with heart protection--would be enough incentive, but
wait, there's more! Lots more.
CUT YOUR CANCER RISK
Several polyphenols - the potent antioxidants green tea's famous for - seem to
help keep cancer cells from gaining a foothold in the body, by discouraging their
growth and then squelching the creation of new blood vessels that tumors need
to thrive. Study after study has found that people who regularly drink green tea
reduce their risk of breast, stomach, esophagus, colon, and/or prostate cancer.
SOOTHE YOUR SKIN
Got a cut, scrape, or bite, and a little leftover green tea? Soak a cotton pad in it.
The tea is a natural antiseptic that relieves itching and swelling. Try it on inflamed
breakouts and blemishes, sunburns, even puffy eyelids. And that's not all. In the
lab, green tea helps block sun-triggered skin cancer, whether you drink it or
apply it directly to the skin - which is why you're seeing green tea in more and
more sunscreens and moisturizers.
STEADY YOUR BLOOD PRESSURE
Having healthy blood pressure - meaning below 120/80 - is one thing. Keeping it
that way is quite another. But people who sip just half a cup a day are almost 50
percent less likely to wind up with hypertension than non-drinkers. Credit goes to
the polyphenols again (especially one known as ECGC). They help keep blood
vessels from contracting and raising blood pressure.
PROTECT YOUR MEMORY, OR YOUR MOM'S
Green tea may also keep the brain from turning fuzzy. Getting-up-there adults
who drink at least two cups a day are half as likely to develop cognitive problems
as those who drink less. Why? It appears that the tea's big dose of antioxidants
fights the free-radical damage to brain nerves seen in Alzheimer's and
Parkinson's.
STAY YOUNG
The younger and healthier your arteries are, the younger and healthier you are.
So fight plaque build-up in your blood vessels, which ups the risk of heart
disease and stroke, adds years to your biological age (or RealAge), and saps
your energy too. How much green tea does this vital job take? About 10 ounces a
day, which also deters your body from absorbing artery-clogging fat and
cholesterol.
LOSE WEIGHT
Oh yeah, one more thing. Turns out that green tea speeds up your body's
calorie-burning process. In the every-little-bit-counts department, this is good
news!
The steady stream of good news about green tea is getting so hard to ignore that
even java junkies are beginning to sip mugs of the deceptively delicate brew.
You'd think the daily dose of disease-fighting, inflammation-squelching
antioxidants--long linked with heart protection--would be enough incentive, but
wait, there's more! Lots more.
CUT YOUR CANCER RISK
Several polyphenols - the potent antioxidants green tea's famous for - seem to
help keep cancer cells from gaining a foothold in the body, by discouraging their
growth and then squelching the creation of new blood vessels that tumors need
to thrive. Study after study has found that people who regularly drink green tea
reduce their risk of breast, stomach, esophagus, colon, and/or prostate cancer.
SOOTHE YOUR SKIN
Got a cut, scrape, or bite, and a little leftover green tea? Soak a cotton pad in it.
The tea is a natural antiseptic that relieves itching and swelling. Try it on inflamed
breakouts and blemishes, sunburns, even puffy eyelids. And that's not all. In the
lab, green tea helps block sun-triggered skin cancer, whether you drink it or
apply it directly to the skin - which is why you're seeing green tea in more and
more sunscreens and moisturizers.
STEADY YOUR BLOOD PRESSURE
Having healthy blood pressure - meaning below 120/80 - is one thing. Keeping it
that way is quite another. But people who sip just half a cup a day are almost 50
percent less likely to wind up with hypertension than non-drinkers. Credit goes to
the polyphenols again (especially one known as ECGC). They help keep blood
vessels from contracting and raising blood pressure.
PROTECT YOUR MEMORY, OR YOUR MOM'S
Green tea may also keep the brain from turning fuzzy. Getting-up-there adults
who drink at least two cups a day are half as likely to develop cognitive problems
as those who drink less. Why? It appears that the tea's big dose of antioxidants
fights the free-radical damage to brain nerves seen in Alzheimer's and
Parkinson's.
STAY YOUNG
The younger and healthier your arteries are, the younger and healthier you are.
So fight plaque build-up in your blood vessels, which ups the risk of heart
disease and stroke, adds years to your biological age (or RealAge), and saps
your energy too. How much green tea does this vital job take? About 10 ounces a
day, which also deters your body from absorbing artery-clogging fat and
cholesterol.
LOSE WEIGHT
Oh yeah, one more thing. Turns out that green tea speeds up your body's
calorie-burning process. In the every-little-bit-counts department, this is good
news!