The benefits of green tea with lemon are, in addition to its great taste, numerous and extensive. This stimulating and refreshing drink can help with weight loss and improve mental alertness and brain function. It can help prevent cancer and kidney stones and lower the risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease. Green tea and lemon is also high in vitamin C and other antioxidants. Making it a tasty and healthy choice for anyone looking to improve their overall well-being.
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Table of Contents
Green Tea
Green tea originated in China and is made from the leaves and buds of the Camellia sinensis plant but has not undergone the same harsh processing which is used to make black and oolong teas. For green tea, the Camellia sinensis leaves and buds are picked, rolled, and then quickly dried to preserve their natural flavors and antioxidants. The main health promoting compounds unique to green tea include antioxidant catechins and the amino acid l-theanine.
Lemons
Lemons are native to North-Eastern India and the scientific name is, predictably, Citrus limon. The lemon’s unique, sour flavor makes it a popular ingredient in drinks, desserts, and meals. Due to the astringent and acidic nature of lemons, almost all parts of a lemon can be used for either cooking or cleaning.
Benefits of Catechins in Green Tea
In clinical studies, catechins have shown antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects both in vivo and in vitro experiments. In vivo is in an organism, like a human body and in vitro is in the lab, like in a test tube or petri dish. These compounds help protect the body against damage from free radicals. Free radicals, as you may know, are unstable molecules that can contribute to the development of chronic diseases such as cancer and heart disease.
Weight Loss Benefits of Green Tea with Lemon
Green tea has been shown to increase metabolism and fat oxidation, while lemon can help reduce appetite and cravings. By drinking green tea with lemon, you may be able to more effectively shed excess pounds and maintain a healthy weight.
One study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that participants who consumed a green tea extract experienced significantly greater weight loss and fat loss compared to those who did not. The study found that average fat oxidation rates were 17% higher after ingestion of green tea extract than after ingestion of placebo.
Green Tea Increases Metabolism
A study in the International Journal of Obesity observed that the synergistic interaction between green tea catechin-polyphenols and caffeine increased metabolism and could be of value in assisting the management of obesity. Green tea increases metabolism by stimulating brown adipose tissue thermogenesis to an extent which is much greater than can be attributed to its caffeine content alone.
Another study published in the European Society for Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism found that 12 weeks of treatment with high-dose green tea extract resulted in significant weight loss, reduced waist circumference, and a consistent decrease in total cholesterol and LDL (bad) cholesterol plasma levels without any side effects or adverse effects in women with obesity.
A randomized control trial found that green tea extract ingestion led to a reduction in body fat, systolic blood pressure, and LDL (bad) cholesterol, suggesting that the ingestion of green tea and green tea extract contributes to a decrease in obesity and cardiovascular disease risks.
Lemon Water May Reduce Appetite
Some research suggests that drinking lemon water may help with weight loss by promoting feelings of fullness and reducing appetite. Lemon polyphenols have also been shown to suppress body weight gain and body fat accumulation in mice.
Green tea with lemon can also help improve your digestion. Studies show that lemon juice can reduce the glycemic response to starchy foods while increasing digestive enzymes. The combination of green tea and lemon can help stimulate the production of bile, which is important for breaking down your food and aiding in digestion.
Heart Health Benefits of Green Tea with Lemon
Green tea has been shown to have a number of potential benefits for heart health. It has been shown to lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels, both of which are risk factors for heart disease. A 2011 meta-analysis of 14 randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials found that green tea significantly lowered LDL (bad) cholesterol and triglyceride levels but had no effect on HDL (good) cholesterol.
Green tea may also improve the function of the lining of the blood vessels. The catechins in green tea exert vascular protective effects which can help to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke. Catechins have been shown to inhibit oxidation, vascular inflammation, atherogenesis, and thrombogenesis, and favorably modulate plasma lipid profile and vascular reactivity, suggesting a wide spectrum of beneficial effects of catechins on vascular function.
Diabetes Management
Green tea has been shown to have potential benefits for individuals with diabetes. It has been shown to help increase weight loss and metabolism. This makes it a potentially useful tool for managing diabetes and preventing complications associated with the disease.
In a large study with 17,413 participants, consumption of green tea and coffee was associated with a 33% reduced risk for type 2 diabetes.
Mental Alertness and Mood
Green tea contains moderate amounts of caffeine, which can help to improve mental alertness and focus. On average, green tea has about 1/3 of the amount of caffeine as coffee. It also contains the amino acid l-theanine.
Benefits of the Amino Acid L-theanine in Green Tea
L-theanine has been shown to affect brain functions by relieving stress disorders, improving mood, and maintaining normal sleep. This amino acid may also contribute to improving your attention and enhancing working memory and executive functions. Studies suggest that l-theanine by itself improves working memory. However, both caffeine and l-theanine are contained in green tea.
The Synergistic Effects of Caffeine and L-theanine
Several studies have reported synergistic effects of caffeine and l-theanine on cognition and mood as well as on tasks related to attentional function. One study reported that the combination of caffeine and l-theanine in the same beverage will improve Rapid Visual Information Processing (RVIP) accuracy and ‘mental fatigue’ ratings. The combination also led to faster simple reaction time, faster numeric working memory reaction time and improved sentence verification accuracy. The caffeine and l-theanine combination also reduced ‘Headache’ and ‘tired’ ratings and increased ‘alert’ ratings.
Cancer prevention
Some studies have suggested that green tea may help to reduce the risk of certain types of cancer, including breast and colorectal cancer.
A 2018 meta-analysis showed a potential protective effect of green tea consumption on breast cancer, especially for breast cancer recurrence.
In a 2011 study which included 60 567 Chinese men found that risk of colorectal cancer decreased as the amount of green tea consumption increased.
A 2017 study showed that the ingestion of green tea extract can prevent colon polyps.
Other Benefits of the Lemon in Green Tea with Lemon
While green tea is the heavy hitter for health benefits in this mixed drink, lemon is no slouch either.
Lemons and lemon water are a great source of vitamin C, support skin and heart health, can help you loose weight, boost immunity, aid in digestion and help prevent kidney stones.
As an added benefit, when lemon is added to tea leaves while steeping, the acidity of the lemon extracts more phenols and increases the antioxidative capacity of the tea. This gives you a bigger bang for your buck increasing the health benefits as well as the flavor of your tasty tea.
Lemon Water May Reduce but Can Also Cause Cavities
The positive and negative aspects might just cancel one another out here. The acidity of lemon water may help kill bacteria in the mouth and reduce the risk of developing cavities. However, lemon juice is highly acidic and can cause erosion in tooth enamel over time. If you sweeten that lemon water with sugar, you increase the risk of tooth decay as well.
My Expensive (and Painful) Morning Drink
Years ago my morning drink consisted of warm lemon and honey. I drank this while doing my morning workout and routine until an expensive trip to the dentist caused me to re-think my morning bevy. I would sip the drink over a course of hours without drinking or eating anything else. This lead to a number of cavities and my dentist reprimanding me for basically drinking sugar and acid then letting that sit in my mouth for hours at a time. Don’t forget to either eat something or rinse your mouth out after drinking acidic or sweet drinks.
Lemons are High in Vitamin C Boosting Immunity and Helping Your Heart and Skin
One lemon contains about 50 mg of Vitamin C, which is over half of your daily recommended amount of Vitamin C. Along with boosting immunity, this burst of Vitamin C has been shown to reduce your risk of stroke and heart disease and is required for healthy collagen production and glowing skin.
Lemon Juice May Prevent Kidney Stones
Lemons get their sour taste from their abundance of citric acid. Some studies show that citric acid may help prevent the formation of kidney stones by binding with urinary calcium and calcium oxalate crystals. This helps prevent calcium crystal formation and consequently kidney stone formation.
How Much Green Tea and Lemon Should You Drink?
Green tea consumption at the levels of 3–4 cups (600–900 mg tea catechins) or more a day has been shown to reduce body weight, alleviate metabolic syndrome, and prevent diabetes and cardiovascular diseases in animal models and in humans.
However, as mentioned earlier, lemon juice is highly acidic and can cause erosion in tooth enamel over time. Be carful not to add too much lemon to your green tea and drink some plain water after and between cups of green tea and lemon to reduce the chance of cavities.
The Best Ways to Brew Green Tea with Lemon
You can brew green tea with either hot or cold water. Always use the purist water possible for the best taste and maximum health benefits.
The Hot Steeping Method
Green tea flavor compounds are sensitive to high temperatures and should be brewed using water at lower than boiling temperatures. Unlike black tea, if you steep your green tea in water that is too hot, you’ll get an astringency that results in a bitter, unpleasant flavor. Aim to steep your green tea in water that is 175 to 185 F (80-85 C). For the most accurate results, you can use a tea kettle with a built in thermometer or temperature gauge. Alternatively, you can simply boil your water, remove from the heat and allow to sit for about 45 to 60 seconds to reach the desired temperature range.
For the best flavors, cover your tea kettle or tea cup while steeping. Allow the green tea to steep for 3 to 5 minutes depending on your flavor preferences. Green tea can develop bitter flavors if it steeps too long so be sure to pay attention to your steeping time.
The Cold Steeping Method
The cold steeping method has been found to reduce the caffeine and catechins content of green tea. However, it is also said to reduce bitterness and improve aroma. Antioxidant activity showed no significant differences among hot or cold steeped teas, except in the case of white tea, where significantly higher values were obtained after cold water steeping.
Place green tea leaves into a pitcher or jar and pour your room temperature or cold water over top. Place in the fridge and leave for 6 to 8 hours.
Dr. Michael Greger, in his informative and entertaining book How Not to Die, steeps his green tea cold, puts dried whole green tea leaves into his smoothies and adds matcha powder (powdered green tea leaves) to his water bottle, stating “for essentially zero calories, you can drink dark-green leafies all day”.
Green tea with lemon is a delicious, time honored and healthy beverage that offers a wide range of benefits for your overall well-being. From boosting your immune system and helping you lose weight to preventing chronic diseases and improving digestion and brain function, this simple combination is worth incorporating into your daily routine.
Enjoy!
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