6 Ways Green Tea Can Make You Healthier

2) It has more benefits than your average diet soda. Drinking diet versions of fizzy drinks can increase the risk of type 2 diabetes in women by a huge 60 per cent, according to a new study by the National Institute of Health and Medical Research in France. It’s thought that aspartame, the artificial sweetener used in diet soda, has a similar negative effect on blood glucose to the sucrose used in ordinary soft drinks. Why not swap all of that risk for the benefits Green Tea offers?

3) It reduces your risk of stroke. Sipping on a cup of green tea every day could slash the risk of stroke by up to a third, according to the latest large-scale study.

4) It is a major fat-burner. This waist-trimming tea is filled with antioxidants called catechins and just enough caffeine to give you a buzz without leaving you wired. A study published in the journal Obesity found that EGCG, a powerful compound in the brew, helps slow down weight gain.

5) It can help you have better runs. Brew up a cup of green tea for faster, longer runs. Research from Colorado State University found that the tea’s main antioxidant, EGCG, can improve your V02 max – a measure of how efficiently your body uses oxygen.

6) It helps with Memory. Green tea doesn’t just help your heart and ward off wrinkles. A pot of the green stuff can also help sharpen your memory. A study by the Third Military Medical University in China found EGCG also helps to improve cognitive function by boosting the generation of neural progenitor cells.

With all of these great benefits, go ahead put the kettle on and get to making the green stuff. It can only help you and could even get you on the path to a healthier life. We may be reaching the latter end of the swimsuit season, but it’s never a bad time to start getting healthy.