| To be honest, I've become kind of burned out by all | | | | growth. |
| the hype about the health benefits of green tea. | | | | And if that is not enough, there is evidence that for |
| Recently, however, I came across a study of green | | | | people who eat a high-fat diet, green tea acts as a |
| for cholesterol in kids, however, that's really worth | | | | cholesterol-blocker. Green tea attacks the very |
| passing on. | | | | causes of high cholesterol, keeping cholesterol from |
| Nowadays there is pretty general acceptance of the | | | | ever entering circulation. The catechins in green tea |
| idea that green tea has remarkable health benefits, | | | | mix with the cholesterol so that it clumps and is |
| and there is growing evidence that it is an essential | | | | excreted rather than absorbed. They do not interact |
| element in the best diets for high cholesterol, notably | | | | with essential n-3 fatty acids and fat-soluble vitamins. |
| for children with high cholesterol. | | | | Good fats in, bad fats out. |
| A team of medical researchers at the Nippon Medical | | | | The easiest way to get your catechins is to take a |
| School in Chiba (Japan) gave 40 volunteers either 500 | | | | supplement, but many people prefer to brew their |
| milligrams of green tea catechins (that's the | | | | own green tea. Here's what you need to know to |
| equivalent of drinking 6 or 7 cups of green tea a | | | | brew a heart-healthy green tea: |
| day) or a placebo for four months . The scientists | | | | Green tea develops a full flavor and releases the |
| found that in the green tea group at the end of the | | | | most catechins if it is brewed at about 140 degrees |
| twenty-four week trial: | | | | F (80 degrees C). Black tea, in contrast, is usually |
| - Total cholesterol was essentially unchanged, | | | | brewed in water that is almost boiling. You make the |
| - Triglycerides also were unchanged, | | | | catechins unavailable if you add milk to hot green tea |
| - LDL cholesterol stayed the same, but | | | | (although green tea ice cream typically has a high |
| The fraction of LDL particles that had been attacked | | | | catechin content). Loose green tea has a higher |
| by free radicals and oxidized into a form that cause | | | | catechin content than bagged green tea. |
| plaques in the lining of arteries fell nearly 18 per cent. | | | | Most of the complaints about green tea center on its |
| Since it is oxidized LDL cholesterol that actually clogs | | | | taste, or lack thereof, but you can be creative. In |
| arteries, green tea is more effective in heart health | | | | addition to the well-known green tea ice cream |
| than beta-carotene, vitamin A, vitamin C, or vitamin E. | | | | (which is not really on any list of heart-healthy |
| Green tea may also help children with high cholesterol. | | | | foods), it is possible to add anywhere from a pinch |
| The journal Obesity reports that Japanese children | | | | to a teaspoon of loose green tea to burgers, |
| who were given a drink containing 576 milligrams of | | | | omelets, salads, smoothies, soups, sauces, oatmeal, |
| green tea catechins once a day for six months | | | | and even burritos. The benefits of green tea start at |
| lowered LDL and blood pressure and enjoyed slimmer | | | | about four cups a day, so start there! |
| waistlines while continuing normal bone and muscle | | | | |