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Have you gotten in on the matcha craze lately? You might have seen lattes bearing this name at your favorite shop. Could matcha tea benefits be real?
It can. This beverage doesn’t just taste delicious — it also nourishes your body. Here are five advantages to matcha tea that boost overall health.
When your body is under stress — and when isn’t it — your cells become susceptible to damage from oxidative stress. This condition disrupts your genetic material, damaging and killing cells, leading to disease.
Antioxidants help fight oxidative stress by pairing electrons with the free radicals responsible for the damage. Free radicals are molecules with unpaired electrons that scavenge the mate they lack from your body’s cells. However, when you have sufficient antioxidants — which you get from plant-based foods like matcha — your cells remain unharmed, and your body’s filtration system whisks away these toxins.
Regular green tea is likewise high in antioxidants, but matcha goes further. Because it contains the entire leaf, dried and powdered, you get a supercharge you don’t receive when you toss the usual teabag.
Green tea and matcha contain antioxidants called catechins, which science suggests prevents cancer. The most potent of these is EGCG, inhibiting prostate and bladder cancer in animal studies.
If you notice a matcha latte keeps you full until lunch, please don’t be surprised. There’s magic in how farmers harvest and process this crop, making it chock-full of filling fiber. They keep it under shade cover for three weeks to give the leaves a deep umami flavor, increasing the level of theanine, an amino acid with stress-reducing properties.
Producers then hand-select the leaves for harvest, steam, dry, destem and devein them. They grind the remaining leaf into a powder. Because you get the actual plant material in your cup, each drink contains 4% of your recommended daily allowance of fiber.
Fiber benefits you in multiple ways. It helps stabilize your blood sugar, preventing swings that leave you craving everything in the office vending machine. It creates a satisfying sense of fullness and may help lower your blood pressure.
Green tea has some nutritional value, like vitamins A and C. However, you don’t get the full benefits because you dispose of the leaves after brewing your cup. Matcha keeps the nutrient-rich leaves in your mix, providing an extra dose of vitamins and minerals.
Each cup of matcha contains only five tiny calories. However, you also get 2% of your recommended daily allowance of iron and vitamin C and 4% of your vitamin A requirement. You even get a gram of plant-based protein, adding 2% of that to your intake.
Your intestines possess colonies of beneficial bacteria that play significant roles in your overall health. These organisms send various messages to your brain via your central nervous system, telling it to produce varying levels of hormones and neurotransmitters that affect your mood and behavior.
While humans can’t digest fiber, the colonies sharing your intestines can. They thrive on this substance in green tea. Supporting these beneficial bacteria could improve overall mood and keep your body in better overall balance.
Your body weight doesn’t define who you are. However, it does influence your risk of various diseases, such as Type 2 diabetes. Therefore, it’s smart to do everything you can to keep it within a healthy range.
Matcha might become one of your best friends in this endeavor. Unlike coffee or even other teas, the filling fiber and nutrients it contains have the power to keep you full all morning long. It’s even more effective when paired with protein. Why not start your day with a glass of matcha and a parfait containing yogurt, nuts, oats and seeds for plant-based muscle-building power? Stir in a handful of berries for sweetness and anthocyanins, another group of antioxidants.
You might have seen this beverage at your local coffee shop. Ordering one of these drinks can have considerable health perks. Reap these matcha tea benefits, elevate your breakfast and feel better all day long.
