Green Tea: Fat Buster?

Heavyweight and obese persons might be getting a new best friend. Another diet perhaps? A new weight loss regimen? Well, it's a little bit more basic and uncomplicated that these. The fat person's new best friend could be none other than the lowly but potent green tea.

Yes, that ancient brew seems to have manifested a new health property...that of fighting fat. Now that's another healthy reason to drink green tea.

A recent study showed that people who drank a bottle of tea fortified with green tea extract every day for three months lost more body fat than those who drank a bottle of regular oolong tea.

Researchers say the results indicate that substances found in green tea known as catechins may trigger weight loss by stimulating the body to burn calories and decreasing body fat.

Catechins are substances that have been shown to possess anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties, but recent research in animals show that catechins may also affect body fat accumulation and cholesterol levels.

In the study, researchers looked at the effects of catechins on body fat reduction and weight loss in a group of 35 Japanese men. The men had similar weights based on their body mass index, an indicator of body fat, and waist sizes.

The men were divided into two groups. For three months, the first group drank a bottle of oolong tea fortified with green tea extract containing 690 milligrams of catechins, and the other group drank a bottle of oolong tea with 22 milligrams of catechins.

During this time, the men ate identical breakfasts and dinners. They were likewise instructed to control their calorie and fat intake at all times so that overall total diets were similar.

After three months, the study showed that the men who drank the green tea extract lost more weight (5.3 pounds vs. 2.9 pounds) and experienced a significantly greater decrease in BMI, waist size, and total body fat.

In addition, LDL or the so-called "bad" cholesterol decreased in the men who drank the green tea extract.

Researchers say the results indicate that catechins in green tea not only help burn calories and lower LDL cholesterol but may also be able to mildly reduce body fat.

"These results suggest that catechins contribute to the prevention of and improvement in various lifestyle-related diseases, particularly obesity," writes researcher Tomonori Nagao of Health Care Products Research Laboratories in Tokyo.

You can read the findings in the January 2005 issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Tea Cola created by Indian scientists!

A new concoction, referred to as the "tea cola", has recently been developed by Indian scientists.  The tea cola combines tea extracts from traditional Assamese tea with cola.

Two varieties of the tea cola have been developed - one made from the extracts of black tea and the other from green tea.

The tea cola is likely to be available in retail outlets in six months and will cost half the price of popular soft drinks.

Proponents of the tea cola say that the drink boasts the wide-ranging health benefits of traditional tea.

"This tea cola has got high anti-oxidant properties so it will act against stress. People suffering from stress...they (develop) certain toxic molecules. And it acts against the toxic molecules, specially the toxic oxidants they have developed.", asserts Dr. Pradeep Tamuli, in charge of biochemistry at the Tocklai Tea Experimentation Station.

The Tocklai Tea Experimentation Station in India's northeastern Assam state is the world's biggest facility for tea research.

It took scientists there three years to concoct the tea cola, and although a patent is still pending, the research facility is already marketing the drink to the health conscious.

China and Japan have introduced similar drinks - but the Indian researchers claim to have the edge.

Dr Tamuli said, "We have the advantage over them...that the taste of our tea soft drinks is comparatively better to Japanese and Chinese because of the special chemical constituents of Assam tea."

Local traders project that the tea cola will add some fizz to the tea industry in Assam - once among the biggest in the world.

Upen Dutta, Tea Trader, said, "In the future, the tea cola will not only prove immensely beneficial to the consumer, it will also help rescue the recession in Assam's once vibrant tea industry. The sagging industry here (will get) a new life."

There are several other interesting tea-products in the pipeline, including the world's first chewable tea pill and the tea cake for the serious tea enthusiast.

The marketing department at the Tocklai Tea Experimentation Centre says people are tired of boring old tea in a cup. Variety and a little innovation is what they want.

Flavored iced tea comes of age as trendy and healthy alternative to coffee!

There's a new craze sweeping America. These are flavored iced tea which are typically basic black tea that's jazzed with fruit or herbal infusions, and drank cold from tall glasses.

The ready-to-drink iced tea segment in the past 15 years has grown from $200 million to over $2 billion in annual sales, said Joe Simrany, president of the New York-based Tea Association of the U.S.A. It's the single largest segment of the tea industry, and it explains why iced tea makes up more than 85% of all tea sales, according to Simrany.

Health benefits attributed to tea are luring many people to cold tea drinks. Tea is considered an excellent source of immune system-building antioxidants.

As awareness grows, more consumers are insisting on better quality teas and are seeking out organic and Fair Trade blends.

The iced tea market is growing exponentially, analysts say, and is expected to continue its upward ascent in the years to come.

According to Simrany of the tea association, many consumers are re-evaluating their diets, and some who previously drank sugar- and calorie-laden juices or soft drinks are coming over to tea.

Green tea gets the most attention when it comes to touting health benefits, Simrany said. But that's because Asian scientists are the ones doing most of the research, and green tea is popular in Asia. Black tea has almost identical components, he said.

You get the sense there's a whole world of teas, just waiting to be iced.