How To Make Green Tea

Have you ever wondered how to brew green tea that tastes amazing? I know I have.

Green tea, which can sometimes be bitter to taste, is one of the most powerful drinks for adding improvements to your health.

Powered by polyphenols, antioxidants, and catechins (especially EGCG), green tea is by far the healthiest drink around.

Green tea is the second most consumed beverage in the world (next to water), and is extremely popular in places like China and Japan.

It hasn’t been until recently that green tea has made its name in the United States.

Even though its popularity in the US has just started to increase, make no mistake, green tea is packed full of nutrition.

But:

In order to make the healthiest cup of green tea, one that is packed full of the antioxidants that could add enhancements to your health, there is a specific way on how to make it.

In a moment, I am going to give you the instructions on how to make this drink so it’s ready to improve your health, and reduce your risk for chronic diseases.

But first, I want to make sure that you’re aware of all the powerful benefits you may see by drinking green tea…

The Health Benefits From Drinking Green Tea

Green tea has a rich history in China and Japan. It was first discovered when some dead tea leaves fell into a boiling cup of water that was later consumed by an emperor.

After that fateful day, green tea has continued to be a staple in Eastern culture.

Not just for the sake of drinking green tea, but also for its use as a medicine.

Although it’s extremely popular in place overseas, it’s just now starting to grow in popularity here in the US.

In fact, it is the second most consumed beverage in the world, surpassing coffee as the go-to drink for health, alertness, and energy.

If you’re sensitive to caffeine or tannins, you may experience some side effects if you drink green tea. In this article, you’re going to learn how to drink green tea without the side effects so you can reap all the health benefits of this popular drink.

But the benefits of green tea go far beyond just a way to wake up in the morning.

There are many health benefits you may enjoy just by drinking one (to many) glasses of green tea. Adding a touch of lemon to your green tea may take your cup of green tea to the next level.

Those benefits may include:

1. Bioactive Compounds That Improve Your Health

Green tea is more than just your run-of-the-mill drink. It contains potent compounds that could lower inflammation, protect your brain, and improve your heart health.

It contains potent polyphenols and antioxidants that could prevent oxidative stress, which could protect healthy cells.

Green tea also contains EGCG, one of the most widely researched catechins, that has been shown to add numerous health benefits.

Once these powerful compounds get inside your body, they go to work protecting your cells.

2. Boosts Weight Loss

There are numerous studies that show green tea to be effective at boosting your weight loss.

That’s why many weight loss seekers include green tea into their nutrition plans, just so they can boost their metabolic rate and increase their overall weight loss.

Studies show that adding green tea itself, could increase metabolic rate by a whopping 4 percent, and could increase fat oxidation (or the rate of fat burning), by as much as 17 percent.

Although the polyphenols and bioactive compounds may be partly responsible, the caffeine may be the driving factor behind these benefits.

3. Lower The Risk For Diabetes

As the years go on, the number of people diagnosed with diabetes will continue to grow. There are over 100 million people currently living with diabetes, or pre-diabetes.

That’s why controlling risk factors, like high blood sugar, could go a long way to reducing your risk for diabetes—and any associated risk.

Studies show the compounds found in green tea may increase insulin sensitivity, which could lower blood sugar levels.

Other studies have shown that those who drink green tea, showed a 42 and 17 percent lower risk for developing diabetes respectively.

4. Reduces Heart Disease Risk

Just like diabetes, heart disease is another chronic disease that impacts the lives of millions of people. It could simply be high blood pressure, to those who have suffered a heart attack or a stroke.

Statistics show that one out of every four people will suffer a heart attack this year alone. That’s why reducing your risk factors for heart disease, specifically LDL cholesterol, could be one way to improve your risk.

One aspect of heart disease prevention is lowering the risk for LDL cholesterol to become oxidized. Once your LDL cholesterol is oxidized, it has an easier chance to invade the walls of your arteries, which leads to damage and the accumulation of platelets.

This accumulation could lead to blockages in your arteries, therefore increasing the risk for a stroke or heart attack.

Studies show the antioxidants found in green tea may increase your serum antioxidant levels. This could prevent oxidation of LDL cholesterol particles, therefore reducing your heart disease risk.

It should come as no surprise to you that green tea drinkers were 31 percent less likely to develop heart disease compared to non-tea drinkers.

How To For Optimal Health

Although you would think it would be simple to make a cup of green tea, you may be mistaken.

There are specific steps to making the best cup of green tea—regardless if you’re using a green tea bag, or loose green tea leaves.

In order to make the perfect cup of green tea, packed with the bioactive compounds you’ve grown to expect, you need to follow these simple steps:

1. Make Sure You have a high-quality tea brand. This makes all the difference and could give you more powerful compounds that improve your health.

2. Don’t Use Boiling Water. Boiling water could damage the antioxidant compounds in green tea, leaving you with fewer antioxidants available for you to use. Add water that is around 90 degrees (hot, but not boiling) to your tea leaves.

3. Steep tea for 2 minutes. This is the optimal time to steep your tea leaves to get the most antioxidants and health benefits. *Note: if using tea leaves, you will know, your tea will be done once the tea leaves sink to the bottom.

4. Use Natural Additive. Adding extras, like lemon, honey, or ginger, could add additional health benefits and, in the case of lemon, increase the absorbability of the catechins and antioxidants.

5. Add Hot Water To Existing Tea Leaves. If you want a second cup, simply add more hot (not boiling) water to your tea leaves and steep for 2 minutes (people say your second cup will taste better than the first).

As you can see, consuming green tea could be one of the smartest moves you can make to improving your health and enhancing your longevity.