7 Health Benefits of Green Tea & How to Drink it | Doctor Mike
(upbeat music) – This week's video is gonna be all about the health benefits of green tea. I've seen some over blown claims. So we're gonna parse through
and figure out what's what. Also stay tuned to the end of the video to get tips on how to make the healthiest cup of tea possible. Tea is one of those rare beverages that's pretty much universally
accepted by science as a healthy one. But just remember, as
with everything is life you can have too much of a good thing. So don't over do it with the green tea. (upbeat music) The number one thing that
makes green tea so good for you is that it's loaded
with healthy nutrients. All of these bioactive Polyphenols are awesome for your health. You may have heard of
some of them known as Flavonoids, or Catechins. And what those are are antioxidant. What antioxidants do
is prevent free radical damage to your body.
And free radical damage
to your body over time causes cancer, but let
me break that down a bit. I know all of you have faucets at home whether its in your
bathroom or in your kitchen. Some of those faucets have rust on them. The rust is a direct result
of that free radical damage we always talk about. Now antioxidants prevent
that rust from forming so think of antioxidants
as the rust prevention within our own bodies. – Yes, that's awesome. – Within media it's been mentioned before that those who drink green tea have lower rates of cancer. And its been theorized that
it has something to do with the huge amount of antioxidants
found within green tea. We have to not get too
excited by this fact because this is only a
corelation and not a causation.
Yes, it's good to drink green tea, but no it's not gonna cure and
prevent all types of cancer. Second great point about green tea. You got stinky breath? Maybe you should try some green tea, but it's none of my business. The nutrients within green
tea that we just mentioned on this last point known as Catechins, do a great job of inhibiting and killing certain types of bacteria. In fact studies were done and proved that bacteria known to cause bad
breath within your mouth was killed by drinking green tea. Also when you have less
of that specific bacteria you have less plaque.
So green tea also decreases the risk of developing a cavity. Point tre about green tea. It does a great job of
giving you stable energy without all the jitters. It has about 30-50 milligrams of caffeine. Which is roughly half a cup of coffee. You're still focused,
you're still stimulated, but you don't have that jittery feeling that you get with a big cup of coffee. Another nutrient within green tea that works together with caffeine to boost your brain function is called L-Theanine. It's benefit is that it gives
your brain the relaxation without the added sedation or drowsiness that come along with
other relaxing agents. While we've seen in animal and lab models that it increases your good cholesterol and lowers your bad cholesterol. What we've found in animal,
lab and human trials is that green tea lowers
your blood pressure. And if you've watched
my hypertension video you know how important it is to keep your blood pressure under control. Point number five. Green tea can help you burn fat. Well, maybe.
This is more of an individual
case by case basis thing, because not all studies agree on this. But there is a promise
of increased metabolism, and fat oxidation,
essentially fat burning. Some of the lab models
have shown a decrease in new blood vessel formation
within your fat storage. Meaning that it literally
takes away the vital nutrition for your fat, and makes it die. Kicking that fats butt. (metal clinking) Point number six. Animal and lab models
both show that Catechins, the nutrient we keep
mentioning over and over again, decreased the risk of you developing Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. Science isn't clear on why this occurs but it's theorized that it
has something to do with the decrease in the development
of plaque within the brain. If that doesn't encourage
you to take a sip I don't know what will. Point seven. Now this is the game changer, this is the one that
everyone gets excited about. Green tea may increase your lifespan.
There's been a ton of
research done on this. Some studies even have 40,000 participants that show those who drink
3-5 cups of tea a day have an increase life span, have a decrease all cause mortality, that means dying from anything. Have decreases in heart disease, decreases in strokes, but,
before we get too excited we need to remember
corelation verses causation. Just because those who
drink green tea live longer, it doesn't mean green
tea is the sole thing that's responsible for that effect. So yes, enjoy your green tea, but don't think your gonna live forever. Here's how you create the healthiest cup of tea possible. Don't add green tea
directly to boiling water as it destroys those healthy Catechins we've been talking about.
Don't go decaf, because
the decaffeination process hurts more of the nutrients
found within green tea. Add lemon into your tea as
it aids in the absorption of some of these nutrients. Finally, don't cheap out. Go for the good premium stuff, as it contains more of
the healthy nutrients we've been talking about all along. I need you to know this. Don't buy into the BS supplements, that take green tea extract and claim that it has
miracle health benefits. They do not. The real thing is always healthier
than the supplement form. As always, thanks for watching. Audio check one, two. On the MC Mike, with the
emerald green scrubs.
Catechins, and what basically (shoes squeak) Which is just an EKG but for the brain. Do people know what an EKG is? Catechins, that nutrient
we've mentioned many times. (clicking tongue) animal models, and lab models do you even tea bro? Can I interest you in a cuppa
tea from a squirrel cup? (shark music) what each and every one
of the politicians needs, is a nice cup, of honest tea. All right, I got a better,
I got a better one.
What do you call a dentist
who doesn't like tea? Dentist? Was that good? Kids don't try this at home. Do you get it? (upbeat music).
