Our next green superfood is a bit unconventional: it’s green tea! So it may not actually be the color green, but it’s in the name and it’s definitely a superfood! Green tea has so many fantastic benefits for you, but let’s go over just a few:
~Tea is fat burning! Green tea’s massive amounts of antioxidants increase the body’s ability to burn fat as fuel, leading to increased fat burn. This can also boost exercise and muscle endurance!
~Tea can decrease the risk of heart attack, cardiovascular disease, and other degenerative diseases (like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, for example). It can also lower cholesterol and help regulate heart rate.
~ Tea helps fight free radicals-these free radicals can damage DNA that can potentially cause cancer and other serious diseases.
~Along that note, tea can help ward off cancer with its powerful antioxidative and free radical fighting properties.
~The caffeine in tea can provide an energy boost as well as a boost to your metabolism, and its hydrating effects make you feel full. All this could lead to a slimmer, trimmer waistline!
There are just a few of the reasons green tea is a superfood (in addition to the fact that it tastes delicious). But let’s add some variety: when it’s cold, I’m all about the hot tea, and when it gets warm (like it is these days), I go for the refreshing iced tea:
You can get the Steaz in a variety of flavors (though not all are calorie free) from Whole Foods! I will make one note though: drinking hot tea (40-90 degrees celsius) significantly increases release of antioxidants by 4-9.5 fold! That may be worth an extra couple minutes to wait for the water to get good and hot!
Also, green tea is not the only tea with these benefits-you can get similar benefits from black tea and oolong tea as well. For an extra health kick, add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. Yum!
-Allison
References:
Langely-Evans, S.C. 2000. Antioxidant potential of green and black tea determined using the ferric reducing power (FRAP) assay. International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition, 51(3) 181-188.
Newcomber, L. 2012. 13 reasons tea is good for you. Time Magazine. healthland.time.com/2012/9/04/13-reasons-to-love-tea.
