Green tea contains almost zero calories, which can help in boosting your metabolism and improve your body's overall ability to burn fats. On the other hand, coffee can make you feel full and increase the speed of your metabolism but, not that much that it helps in weight loss. So, tea wins here again!
Determining which is better ultimately comes down to your specific needs. Green tea and coffee are both healthy and safe. Green tea may be a better choice for people with anxiety or insomnia. In contrast, coffee may suit you better if you're looking for increased alertness or improved physical performance.
You'll encourage fat loss.
The fat-burning qualities in green tea come from the combination of caffeine and antioxidants called catechins. The most important of these antioxidants is epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), a substance that can boost metabolism.
Does Green Tea Reduce Belly Fat? Green tea has been shown to reduce belly fat (yay!) because green tea helps you lose visceral fat around your abdomen. This is excellent because this is the fat shown to be linked to increased risk for cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and breast cancer.
That's because EGCG and caffeine in green tea can help shrink fat cells and makes muscle cells more active. Your choice: Tea. While tea might be better for burning fat, coffee is the winner when you want more muscle.
And drinking green tea may even help you lose weight. The caffeine and catechins it contains have been shown to boost your metabolism and increase fat burning (9, 10 ). Overall, studies indicate that consuming green tea can help you burn an additional 75–100 calories per day ( 11 ).
Green tea is another healthy alternative to coffee in the morning. A cup of green tea also has roughly half the amount of caffeine in a cup of coffee, according to the FDA.
The Bottom Line. Green tea is packed full of health-promoting compounds. Regularly drinking green tea can help you lose weight and reduce your risk of several diseases, including diabetes, heart disease and cancer. Drinking three to five cups of green tea per day seems to be optimal to reap the most health benefits.
Drinking between 2 and 3 cups of hot green tea throughout the day should be sufficient for supplementing weight loss. The exact amount will vary from person to person, depending on how much caffeine they consume and their natural metabolism.
"We've shown that green tea is able to increase your energy expenditure — so the amount of calories you burn — and also to increase the amount of fat you are burning," Hursel told NPR's Allison Aubrey in 2012.
So you can look at losing around at least a few kilos per month by consuming 2-3 cups of green tea regularly. Some expert say that one can lose up to 3 lbs or 1.3 kg every 12 weeks by drinking green tea. Several studies suggest that green tea can boost metabolism and help people burn 3–4% more calories each day.
Excessive drinking of green tea can cause stomach problems, diarrhoea and can even cause iron deficiency. You may also experience insomnia. Hence, drink it in limit as excess of green tea can prove detrimental to your health.
The best drink for weight loss is water since it has zero calories and can keep you hydrated. Other weight loss drinks include coffee, green tea, vegetable juice, and smoothies. If you're trying to lose weight, avoid high-calorie, sugary drinks like soda and fruit juice.
There's some concern that it might cause liver damage. Anemia: Drinking green tea may make anemia worse. Anxiety disorders: The caffeine in green tea might make anxiety worse. Bleeding disorders: The caffeine in green tea might increase the risk of bleeding.
Therefore, if you are sensitive to caffeine, consider avoiding drinking green tea for up to 6 hours before bed to prevent sleep problems. Certain compounds in green tea may inhibit the absorption of iron and other minerals, so it's best to drink it between meals.
For those who are caffeine-sensitive, green tea may be a better option since it typically has less caffeine. Green tea also contains L-theanine, which slows the absorption of caffeine by the brain, allowing you to still enjoy the benefits of caffeine without the jitters.
Green tea can help you lose weight.
One study showed that those who consumed green tea and caffeine lost an average of 2.9 pounds during a 12-week period, while sticking to their regular diet.
Green tea has proved to aid in weight loss, only when a balanced diet and exercise is maintained regularly. The flavonoids present in green tea helps elevate the metabolic rate, increase fat oxidation and improve insulin activity.
Early morning can be a good time to drink green tea because your metabolism is the highest, which can be boosted with a nice hot cup of green tea. It is good to drink green tea in the evening too because that's when your metabolism tends to dip, so this could be your last shot to prolong your dipping metabolism."
For weight loss, you can have green tea right after your meals. But you should do it if you do not have a sensitive stomach because green tea is alkaline in nature and stimulates the secretion of extra-gastric juices. Experts also suggest to have green tea right in the morning and later in the evening.
Drinking green tea on an empty stomach can cause stomach upset. Green tea has polyphenols known as tannins that increase stomach acid, leading to stomach pain, nausea, burning sensation, or even constipation. You have to drink green tea between meals or after a meal.
Many people in Japan where matcha has traditionally been consumed the most have upwards of three, four, even five cups of matcha per day.
Tea is a source of caffeine, however unlike coffee, tea leaves are also a source of L-Theanine. This amino acid is what helps just a little caffeine boost your day so much better. All caffeinated teas (excluding herbal tea) are the perfect alternative to coffee as they contain both caffeine and L-Theanine.
Green tea may provide an array of health benefits, including better sleep. However, drinking it at night, especially in the two hours preceding bedtime, may make it harder to fall asleep. It may also lead to more nighttime peeing, which can further reduce your sleep quality.