Sunday, February 3, 2013

Green Tea Antioxidants - How Are They Beneficial?

By Jonathan Judd


A lot of health specialists are advising veggies and fruits to be included in a daily diet regime. There are plenty of good reasons to the advice, but one of the reasons is antioxidants that most fruits and veggies supply. Just what are antioxidants? Why are they so important?

Oxidation process exists in all places from piece of pear turning brownish color to rust on a piece of metal. It is a common activity that also happens inside a body. Our body handles oxidation well, but occasionally it leads to cell damage. The damaged cells are referred to as free radicals. Free radicals are molecules with unpaired electron. Due to the fact it is unpaired, it will try to take an electron from other molecules. Once this action becomes intense, it can cause various health problems such as cancer, heart disease and arthritis. Pollution, radiation and cigarette smoke lead to the growth of free radicals as well. Antioxidants are compounds that neutralize free radicals.

By offering the missing electron to free radicals, antioxidants prevent cell damage. It is very important to consume nutrients that give antioxidants daily to live in a healthy condition. Lots of vegetables and fruits make the perfect source of antioxidants because of vitamins E and C. The vitamins are known to be among the best antioxidants. Vegetables and fruit like strawberry, kiwi, papaya, spinach, bell pepper, and broccoli are a good source of vitamin C and E. But these vitamins are not the only source of antioxidants and in reality they are not the best source.

Increasingly more health experts agree with the fact that Epigallocatechin or also known as EGCG may be a more powerful supply of antioxidants than vitamins E and C. A large number of research workers agree that EGCG is 100 times more beneficial than vitamin C and 25 times more efficient than vitamin E in reducing free radicals. EGCG is an element found in green tea. Most of the recognized green tea positive effects include preventions against cancer, gaining weight, LDL cholesterol, depression and heart problems.

There were a lot of clinical studies about the effects of green tea on cancer cells. The end results indicate the serving of 300mg of EGCG daily to be the most ideal amount. A cup provides about 100mg of EGCG. Far more case studies are in the process, but for now 3 cups per day is an ideal amount.

Currently there are a variety of ways to take green tea. Common way is to make and to drink the hot tea. This really is good in particular when consumed with food. One other common way is to combine tea powder with water. Mixing citrus juice with EGCG has been known to improve the health benefits. More convenient way is to take tea pills. This is perfect for people disliking the flavor.




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