Benefits Of Green Tea
Green tea is the most populous tea grown on the planet and actually comes from the same plant as regular black tea, known as camellia sinensis. This is found in China, where it has been drunk since at least the 7th century, serving generations and remaining a staple of go-to drinks. More recently in the Western World, it has developed a reputation as one of the healthiest drinks available and it seems that every other product is infused with green tea to promote better overall health. So what is green tea all about? Well, let’s find out. Here is our list of 10 benefits of green tea for men.
1. It Slows the Growth of Prostate Cancer Cells
It has been reported that 1 in 9 men will contract prostate cancer during their lives and 80% of men over 80 will be diagnosed with it. While the disease is not as deadly as others, there is still the risk of it spreading to other parts of the body, which can be a cause for concern. As it happens, drinking green tea can help halt the growth of these cancer cells.
But it doesn’t just slow the rate of growth, green tea actually causes these cancer cells to apoptosis, which is the cancer cell equivalent of eliminating your own map, something that we think is pretty cool. In addition to this, it can help to repair damaged DNA which can contribute to cancer cell growth, as well as inhibiting the COX-2 enzyme, which collects in prostate cancer tissues, while also stimulating your immune system to further fight off these other types of cancer cells.
Really, when it comes to cancer cells, green tea is an unsung hero situated on the front line keeping those nasty cells at bay and ensuring your health for longer. Not bad for a cluster of leaves, hey?
2. It Is Packed Full of Antioxidants
Antioxidants are an excellent way of removing dangerous and hazardous toxins from the body and cleansing you in order to remain healthy. Unfortunately, very few people manage to get their daily dose of essential antioxidants. If you are one of these people, then drinking green tea is your golden ticket to happier and healthier living, all contained in a single, delicious mug.
The main antioxidants in green tea are polyphenols, which protects the body from free-radical damage (trust us, that’s not as anarchistic or cool as it sounds, but still important to know). These free radicals are unstable atoms that can cause damage to cells within the body and can contribute to both illness and aging.
This stress that accumulates within the body’s cells leads to a greater chance of contracting diseases, but with green tea, you can feel confident that you have at least some protection against them.
3. It Helps to Increase Weight Loss
While green tea is not a magic solution to shedding those extra pounds, it can still help to boost your metabolism by as much as 4% through the caffeine that is contained within, but this is not all. As something that contains a minimal amount of calories, you don’t have to feel guilty chugging down mug after mug while giving you a flavorful alternative to water.
Green tea will also help burn fat by increasing the speed of oxidation. If you are a regular green tea drinker, then you can expect to see weight loss results in no time. Like we said though, you cannot solely rely on green tea to make you lose weight, but combining with a healthy, responsible diet will make losing that weight ready to get in summer shape (yeah, we know but there’s always next year!) all that much easier.
4. It Can Improve Mental Clarity and Sharpness
Look, we are only human and there are sure to be times where you forget a deadline or appointment or, even worse, a fancy dinner with your girlfriend (although, you’ll swear she said the other Four Seasons across town, whether she believes you are a whole other matter). But what if there was a way to help boost your memory, boost your concentration, sharpness and mental clarity? What if we told you that the answer has been staring you in the face for the past 5 or so paragraphs?
That’s right! Green tea can help to improve mental clarity and sharpness, which you probably got that from the heading, the caffeine within the drink not only pumps you full of energy, it also helps to focus the mind.
This is similar to why people drink coffee, but green tea achieves similar results without plaguing you with those early-morning, post-coffee jitters that strike without warning. But it isn’t just caffeine that can make you smarter, green tea also contains L-theanine, which has been linked to improved brain function. If only you’d known about this at college.
5. It Helps Lower Cholesterol
Heart disease and high cholesterol is one of the leading causes of death in the US, so you should do everything you can to prevent it when possible. Green tea has shown to benefit those who suffer from high cholesterol and the antioxidants found within will aid in fighting off signs of heart disease.
Most men love their red meat, it is a great source of protein, but too much of a good (and let’s be honest, great) thing can cause issues, such as high cholesterol, such as heart disease. Green tea can help to lower your risk of suffering an early heart attack by as much as 11% thanks to its ability to reduce the LDL cholesterol, which can be hugely harmful if left unchecked and allowed to get out of hand.
So, next time you’re thinking of indulging in a nice fat slab of the juiciest steak on the menu, order a green tea to do what you can to offset the damage (but not the deliciousness) of the steak and gorge until you can gorge no more.
6. It Is a Healthy and Natural Hangover Cure
Finally! A cure for those heavy and depressing Saturday mornings where the sound of productive neighbors up and down the street make you question every decision you’ve ever made. Okay, that might be a little too far, but the antioxidants contained within green tea can help fight off the effects of a night’s worth of drinking, and try to get you back to fighting shape. Again, it is not a total hangover cure, but it will help flush out those nasty toxins that are plaguing your body.
We know that the thought of dragging yourself out of bed to even turn on that tea maker can feel like a trek up Everest during the dead of night and back, but after one or two mugs you’ll feel at least one hundred times better, and you can get cozy, wallowing in self-pity bingeing Netflix shows while waiting for your takeout to arrive.
It can also benefit you in the long run, too. The same antioxidants that flush the toxins from your body will help fight off liver disease so you can enjoy a drink with the team after work, or at the weekend with the guys without worrying about what damage you are doing to your body. But we should probably point out that anything you choose to do while under the influence cannot be solved by green tea.
7. It Can Reverse the Signs of Aging
It can be hard to face up to the fact that you are getting older every single day. Sorry dude, there’s little you can do to literally slow the passage of time, and as much as we’d all love to be able to turn back the years and hit the gym, eat healthier, and generally take better care of ourselves, that is just not possible.
But, green tea can act like a herbal fountain of youth in a bag. You won’t regain your thick head of hair, and those crow’s feet are unlikely to be completely eradicated, but the antioxidants within green tea can help protect you from UV radiation, meaning you can get yourself out into the sunshine and bask in its warmth, without the threat of wrinkles (for now). Just be sure to keep the face moisturizer and sunscreen close by, we don’t you getting burned, do we?
8. It Can Help You Perform Better
The caffeine in green tea acts as a stimulant that can help you perform both athletic and everyday tasks with much more vigor than normal. Research has discovered that it can help to prevent muscle cramping and stitches to provide a more comfortable workout.
Even if you are not doing exercise, but are simply going for a walk or lifting heavy items at work green tea helps to decrease inflammation and joint pain that can lead to arthritis. Knowing this, you can definitely think about investing in tea makers to boil up a brew for the next time you’re doing any kind of physical activity to make life easier and more comfortable for you both before, during, and after.
9. It Can Help Slow Hair Loss
Obviously, hair loss is more about genetics and naturalistic factors, and one cup of green tea will not suddenly make you immune to the effects of hair loss and stop the balding process, but if you have already started to recognize the signs of male pattern baldness, then drinking green tea could help to slow the process.
The polyphenolic substances within green tea can help to work against stress hormones, which could be linked to accelerated hair loss. Again, it is not a magical drink that will bring your youthful locks back, so don’t expect any miracles, but there is no harm in sipping a cup a day while avoiding habits that will make your hair fall out.
10. It Can Help Fight Off The Flu
Not just any kind of flu either, the worst flu know to man. The aptly named Man Flu. Any guy who has been struck with this flu has no doubt received disbelieving jibes from the closest woman, but us dudes know what’s really up.
The next time you’re suffering from the dreaded Man Flu, ask your carer very, very nicely to brew you a cup of green tea to help boost your immunity and get you back in tip-top shape in no time. Just because you’ll be healthy by then doesn’t mean you should stop, though. Continue drinking green tea to help yourself stay healthy all year-round.
It’s Actually Quite Easy Being Green
Green tea comes packed with a whole heap of benefits that we bet you never even realized. On top of being a delicious alternative to coffee, it is packed full of essential antioxidants that will help your body fight off illness as well as giving you that boost of energy needed to make it through the day. Next time you’re waiting in line at the coffee store, consider going green, it might become your go-to drink.
Sources
- Free Radicals: How Do They Affect the Body? – Medical News Today
- 6 Reasons to Go Green – Men’s Health
- Green Tea’s Benefits for Hair Loss and Growth – Belgravia Centre
