# 7 Reasons to Drink Green Tea



## Tina (Feb 28, 2008)

As someone who drinks several glasses of iced green tea every day, and at least one big mug of hot tea per day (though not usually green), I'm obviously a proponent. They're finding more and more good things about tea, though, and it makes me happy to know that at least I'm doing something good for my body that I enjoy at the same time. 
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7 Reasons to Drink Green Tea*
Posted Wed, Feb 20, 2008, 10:30 am PST

The steady stream of good news about green tea is getting so hard to ignore that even java junkies are beginning to sip mugs of the deceptively delicate brew. You'd think the daily dose of disease-fighting, inflammation-squelching antioxidants--long linked with heart protection--would be enough incentive, but wait, there's more! Lots more.

CUT YOUR CANCER RISK
Several polyphenols - the potent antioxidants green tea's famous for - seem to help keep cancer cells from gaining a foothold in the body, by discouraging their growth and then squelching the creation of new blood vessels that tumors need to thrive. Study after study has found that people who regularly drink green tea reduce their risk of breast, stomach, esophagus, colon, and/or prostate cancer.

SOOTHE YOUR SKIN
Got a cut, scrape, or bite, and a little leftover green tea? Soak a cotton pad in it. The tea is a natural antiseptic that relieves itching and swelling. Try it on inflamed breakouts and blemishes, sunburns, even puffy eyelids. And that's not all. In the lab, green tea helps block sun-triggered skin cancer, whether you drink it or apply it directly to the skin - which is why you're seeing green tea in more and more sunscreens and moisturizers.

STEADY YOUR BLOOD PRESSURE
Having healthy blood pressure - meaning below 120/80 - is one thing. Keeping it that way is quite another. But people who sip just half a cup a day are almost 50 percent less likely to wind up with hypertension than non-drinkers. Credit goes to the polyphenols again (especially one known as ECGC). They help keep blood vessels from contracting and raising blood pressure. More...


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## goldilocks829 (Feb 28, 2008)

I drink several cups a day, especially if I have a cold or the flu. It's so good, and it's good to know it's good for you, too! Thanks!


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## LoveBHMS (Feb 29, 2008)

Great link Tina! I remember when you and i were talking about this.


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## inari (Mar 8, 2008)

Im a green tea lover also Tina. When I have the flu or a cold the first thing I grab is hot green tea with a spoon of honey in it.
Inari and green tea just goes togather..lol
BTW.. Inari (my nickname) is a type of sushi which is my favorite.

Inari


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## Neen (Mar 17, 2008)

Mmm green tea and honey! Delish! I try to drink 4-5 cups a day..decaf of course, or i'd be up all night!


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## Falling Boy (Mar 18, 2008)

Does it really taste good or are you guys just trying to pull a fast one on me?? Can I buy the snapple stuff or does it have to be the stuff they sell in the box


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## Tina (Mar 18, 2008)

I don't know about that, because I don't buy the stuff in the bottle, and have only ever tried the stuff in the box. When trying it, I hated it until a friend turned me on to Good Earth brand. I make mine up in one of those large glass beverage containers that has a spigot on the bottom. It brews in front of the fireplace, or in the summer, outside, for about 4 hours or so, and then it goes in the fridge. Because the brand I drink is so mild and flowery tasting, it needs no sweetening, so I just grab my glass, put some ice in it and open the spigot.


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## Falling Boy (Mar 18, 2008)

Tina said:


> I don't know about that, because I don't buy the stuff in the bottle, and have only ever tried the stuff in the box. When trying it, I hated it until a friend turned me on to Good Earth brand. I make mine up in one of those large glass beverage containers that has a spigot on the bottom. It brews in front of the fireplace, or in the summer, outside, for about 4 hours or so, and then it goes in the fridge. Because the brand I drink is so mild and flowery tasting, it needs no sweetening, so I just grab my glass, put some ice in it and open the spigot.




Thanks for the advice Tina I will have to give it a try.


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## GrowingBoy (Mar 23, 2008)

Here is one reason *not* to drink Green Tea: blood clots. 

Green Tea contains Vitamin K, which enhances clotting, lowering INR. 

Those of us who are susceptible to clotting need to be careful about consuming Green Tea products.


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## Miss Vickie (Mar 24, 2008)

That's odd, Fallinbgoy. I've heard just the opposite, that green tea actually inhibits clotting. They tell us in nursing to watch for the "g's" -- ginseng, ginko biloba, high doses of garlic, ginger and green tea -- because in surgeries if people have been consuming lots of them, they can hemorrhage. When I was in nursing school a sweet old Japanese lady almost bled out from a D&C. When asked what drugs she was taking she said "none" but later, after discussion with her family, it turns out that she drank a LOT of green tea. OOPS!

Anyhow, I found this article about the subject. It seems to inhibit certain clotting factors, so I wonder how that, and the high levels of Vitamin K, work together. Hmmm.



> The formation of abnormal blood clots (thrombosis) is the leading cause of heart attack and stroke, and green tea has been shown to inhibit abnormal blood clot formation as effectively as aspirin. When looking at coagulation risk factors in the blood, green tea specifically inhibits platelet aggregation and adhesion via effects that differ from those of aspirin.
> 
> Green tea reduces the risk of arterial blood clotting by two known mechanisms. First, green tea inhibits thromboxane A2 formation, as does aspirin. Second, green tea inhibits another clotting agent called platelet activating factor (PAF). Reducing thromboxane A2 levels is highly desirable. Thromboxane not only causes arterial blood clots, but also causes arterial constriction. The inhibition of thromboxane can prevent a heart attack or a thrombotic stroke.



Okay, found this article regarding Vitamin K. 

It says this:



> The process leading to blood clotting is complex with multiple steps involved. One concern comes from the high vitamin K content of green tea leaves, which in excess amounts could potentially interfere with the clotting mechanism, causing bleeding or bruising. This is not usually a concern when people drink a moderate amount of green tea because vitamin K is a fat soluble vitamin and is not extracted into the tea in an appreciable amount by the brewing process with water.



Seems like as long as you don't go nuts, it shouldn't be a problem because K is a fat soluble vitamin.


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## Miss Vickie (Mar 24, 2008)

Oh and hey, Tina, not sure if you noticed but there's a green tea at Starbucks that has "a hint of pear". I naturally thought of you since I know you like pears. Have you tried it yet?


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## ripley (Mar 24, 2008)

I read somewhere that white tea is even more beneficial than green tea (being even less processed)....anybody know anything about that?


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## Falling Boy (Mar 24, 2008)

Miss Vickie said:


> That's odd, Fallinbgoy.





Not a big deal Miss Vicky but it was growing boy not me who said it


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## Miss Vickie (Mar 24, 2008)

Falling Boy said:


> Not a big deal Miss Vicky but it was growing boy not me who said it



D'oh! I must have had Falling Boy on the brain. Sorry 'bout that!


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## Tina (Mar 25, 2008)

GrowingBoy said:


> Here is one reason *not* to drink Green Tea: blood clots.
> 
> Green Tea contains Vitamin K, which enhances clotting, lowering INR.
> 
> Those of us who are susceptible to clotting need to be careful about consuming Green Tea products.


Vickie is right. Try doing a Google search on it, GrowingBoy. You'll find that one of the reasons green tea is suggested for those with high blood pressure is because it thins the blood. You do still have a point that it's not recommended for someone who cannot have Vitamin K or who may have interactions with Coumadin or Warfarin. It's always a good thing to see if one's supplements will interact negatively with one's meds, but do some reading and I believe you'll find that green tea is actually a natural anti-coagulant, which is why I was told to avoid it before having my previous surgeries.

Ripley, I've read that green tea is better, but who nows? In any case, I found the brand I like, which is one I can drink without honey or sugar (and that's a first for ANY kind of tea), so I'm sticking with it.


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## Tina (Mar 25, 2008)

BTW, Vick, that tea with the pear in it sounds marvelous. I do love pear, and still have that wonderful Hot Flash pear lip stuff you sent me a while back. It'll be running out in the near future and I've found a place online that sells it, as I won't be without it now it's so fragrant. :eat2:


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