The health benefits of matcha green tea

As many people already know, green tea has widely been known as a healthy drink. But green tea can also come in forms other than a tea bag. Matcha green tea comes in powdered form by grinding up young tea leaves into a very fine powder, and it is loaded with health benefits.

This bright green powder comes from the Camellia Sinensis plant and is mostly produced in China and Japan where they are kept in the shade in order to increase the amount of chlorophyll the plant produces. Chlorophyll has many benefits within the body, including helping to carry oxygen to our tissues and organs, which then helps our body’s natural detoxification by removing toxins from the body.

Matcha is loaded with antioxidants and polyphenols. Matcha is especially high in catechins, specifically EGCG, a special antioxidant believed to have cancer-fighting properties. ECGC is a potent antioxidant with anti-inflammatory qualities that has even been known to inhibit the growth of tumors, prevent heart disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer and also encourage weight loss.

A 2014 study on the link between green tea and blood pressure, found that the subjects who drank green tea had lowered blood pressure. Studies have also shown a link between green tea and lower levels of LDL cholesterol, increased immunity and lower blood sugar.

Not only does matcha have benefits for the body, it also has some cognitive benefits as well. Matcha contains L-theanine, an amino acid that has been shown to lower stress and anxiety levels along with promoting relaxation. This amino acid also helps aid the production of dopamine and serotonin (those feel-good brain chemicals) which can help improve memory along with concentration.

So is normal green tea the same at matcha green tea? The answer is no, because with normal green tea which is brewed in a tea bag a lot of vital nutrients are lost when you throw away the tea bag. Matcha green tea on the other hand, is brewed with the entire leaves so you are actually ingesting the whole leaves giving you 100% of the benefits within the tea. Green tea still has many benefits, but when you have the option to try matcha green tea over green tea in a tea bag, go for the matcha.