Green Tea Extract, Its Benefits in Anti Aging Natural Supplements

You can get the benefits of green tea without worrying about the caffeine or the other problems that drinking the beverage can cause. With a supplement that contains green tea extract, you get the antioxidants, known as catechins, but little or no caffeine. When it comes to improving your health, you have lots of choices. The information in this article should help you make the right ones.

Regular Tea Leaves and Bottled Beverages

The caffeine and catechin content varies from plant to plant. The steep time can increase the caffeine-content, although not by much. Most of the caffeine is extracted during the first thirty seconds. Manufacturers typically do not list the number of mg of catechins or stimulant substances contained in the brew. Caffeine is not the only stimulant present in the teas.

The bottled beverages don't really contain much green tea, at all, but they do contain sugar and artificial flavors that are not beneficial to your health. Natural health advocates recommend that we avoid artificial additives and most healthcare experts recommend that we avoid white sugar.

So, one of the benefits of green tea extract is that you know how many catechins you are getting and if you choose the right supplement, you know you are not getting artificial additives.

Decaffeinated Teas

The decaffeination process involves the use of solvents. Some of the solvents used are probable carcinogens. There are safer, more natural alternatives for decaffeination, but most manufacturers don't use them, since they are more costly.

One of the health benefits of green tea extract is in the area of cancer prevention. The catechins have been shown in laboratory studies to inhibit the growth of cancerous tumors. Helping to prevent breast and prostate cancers are considered "qualified" health claims by the US FDA. Drinking a decaffeinated beverage that contains residues from solvents that may cause cancer is, of course, counterproductive.

Single Ingredient Supplements

Many of the single ingredient supplements that are on the market are promoted as "fat-burners". These weight loss aids typically contain large amounts of caffeine, because the manufacturers add the stimulant. One of the popular supplements would provide over 500mg of caffeine per day, if taken as directed. Even if you did not consume any other caffeinated foods or beverages during the day, that would still be too much.

One of the benefits of green tea extract is to increase metabolism. Scientists have shown, in laboratory and clinical studies, that catechin supplements increase the number of calories burned at rest and during exercise.

Multi-Nutritional Supplements

Multi-nutritional supplements provide the most health benefits and may further increase your metabolism. Some of the more effective "fat-burning" ingredients are gingko biloba, chromium, ATP and resveratrol. Whether or not you need to lose weight, you want your body to run as efficiently as possible. In order to do that, it needs high quality fuel. If you combine the benefits of green tea extract with those of other nutrients, you are giving your body the fuel that it needs to function effectively and last a long time.