START THE HOLIDAYS LOOKING & FEELING GREAT! MEET MY NEW BEST FRIEND!! GREEN TEA!

Join the TEA-volution!!

WHY? …

Health Benefits of Green Tea

Experts explain green tea's potential benefits for everything from fighting cancer to helping your heart.

It's difficult not to gush about green tea.

More than a decade's worth of research about green tea's health benefits -- particularly its potential to fight cancer and heart disease -- has been more than intriguing, as have limited studies about green tea's role in lowering cholesterol, burning fat, preventing diabetes and stroke, and staving off dementia.

"I believe in green tea based on everything written about it," says Katherine Tallmadge, RD, LD, a nutritionist and spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. "Green tea, white tea, black tea -- I like all of them."

By Julie Edgar, WebMD Feature, Reviewed by Jonathan L Gelfand, MD

READ ON!!!

Growing Younger? Nah…

Looking Younger? Feeling Younger? …YES!

Tea can’t make you younger, but it contains so many antioxidants that it has a youthful, anti-aging and the documented ability to aid in reversing damaging effects from the sun, pollutants, poor circulation and lack of proper skin care.

“According to the 2007 US Department of Agriculture Database, which compares nearly 400 foods for their flavonoid content, green tea contains the highest level of antioxidants amongst fruits and vegetables.”

ONE gram of green tea contains 127 milligrams of antioxidants, equivalent to the amount of antioxidants found in 500 grams of red wine and 1000 grams of apples!

Think about it. Tea is FULL of antioxidants and keeps free radicals to a minimum, as well as enabling healing at the deepest cellular level. Here is just a small selection of the amazing benefits green tea brings:

o Burns fat.

o Improves exercise stamina

o Sooth stress, both mind, body and SKIN!

o Boosts your brain power and improves concentration

o Boosts your immunity

o Has been shown/documented to prevent and is used in many instances to treat cancer

o Helps protect from heart attack and stroke

o Aids in the prevention of and is often used in the treatment diabetes

o Has been shown to aid in building/strengthening bones

It seems as though researchers are finding more and more benefits of green tea and the list of its benefits seems to grow longer each day...

I have read many articles and questioned many health professionals about the benefits of green tea lately. These professionals, according to the research I have done, encourage and even urge us to drink tea simply because it is safe, cost effective and it insures that you get your share of antioxidants.

Empowering Yourself

With so many benefits, tea will help you feel good! And knowing beauty is reflected from the inside out – this is the most important benefit of all!

Start your own Tea-volution! Try different teas, recipes and remedies, find what works best for you and enjoy its effects! The beauty of this is it starts and ends with you. I call it my miracle, it has helped me, personally to lose weight, feel better, stop many cravings (like Coke, which I’ve been addicted to for years) and the benefits I have seen in my own skin are proof enough for me.

Take time to steep your first cup of tea. Learn to appreciate it! From its external form, color, layers of fragrance and notice how you feel after sipping freshly brewed tea. The wonderful thing about incorporating tea into your life is it can be a real pleasurable process you can literally feel and see results immediately in many cases. By incorporating tea into your daily life and regimen, know that you are embarking on an ongoing journey.

SKIN CARE!!

Dr. Stephen Hsu, a cell biologist in the Medical College of Georgia Department of Oral Biology, has uncovered a wealth of information about green tea and skin cells in the last few years.

He recently began studying the most abundant green tea polyphenol, EGCG. Using pooled human keratinocytes (skin cells), he and his colleagues studied the normal growth of the skin cells and compared it to the growth of the cells when exposed to EGCG.

To their astonishment, they found that EGCG reactivated dying skin cells. The skin consists of three layers: the epidermis (outer layer), dermis (mid-layer) and hypodermis (inner layer).

Dr. Hsu learned that green tea polyphenols aren’t absorbed beyond the epidermis, so any benefits are limited to that outer layer of skin. But the benefits, he stressed, seem significant.

But EGCG seems to be a fountain of youth for skin cells.

“When exposed to EGCG, the old cells found in the upper layers of the epidermis appear to start dividing again,” Dr. Hsu said.

“They make DNA and produce more energy. They are reactivated. There are lots of unknowns—this is the first step into the door—but if we can energize dying skin cells, we can probably improve the skin condition.”

Well, let’s give it a try!!!

Here are several ideas for starting your own TEA-volution…

DRINK! DRINK!! DRINK!!!

“Every drop you sip will contribute to your well-being. As the tiny streams finally gather into a mighty river, you too will experience some transformations in your life.”

Green tea is a rich source of this particular antioxidant, that’s why it is considered as one of the best weight loss alternatives available in the market today.

Green tea originates from Asia, mainly from China and other neighboring countries like Japan and South Korea. Asians in general have slim bodies, good skin complexions and higher life expectancy rates, and this is because drinking tea has become part of their culture for several centuries. In the past, this herbal beverage was normally consumed for its healing qualities, but ever since more benefits have been discovered, it has become an all-around remedy. So if you include it in your diet, you’ll not only be reducing fat but you’ll also be cleansing and protecting your body from various diseases.

Exercising will help you burn calories, but if you exercise and take green tea every day, you’ll have more chances of getting your body in shape. Your friends will be surprised the next time they see you because you’ll look much younger and sexier. They’ll want to know what supplements you took to achieve those results, and when you say you only drank tea, they’ll be desperate to try it out themselves!

So you if you want to have a healthier, slimmer and more youthful body, go ahead and get some of this amazing tea today! For just a small amount of money, you’ll be able to enjoy all the benefits that this beverage brings. Compare that to all the expensive weight loss supplements that do not really deliver the results they strongly claim. With green tea, you’ll not only save a lot of money but also attain a great-looking body within a short period of time!

Julie Health loves to write on weight loss and green tea at her blog about the green tea benefits.

Green Tea is one of the most healthiest. No other food or drink is considered having as many health benefits as Green Tea does. This tea is solely made with the leaves of “Camellia sinensis”, a species of plant usually found inChina. The medicinal benefits of Green Tea have been known and been using it to treat everything from headaches to depression since ancient times. This healthy beverage is said to be originated in eastern countries such as Japan or China and associated with other cultures of Asia.

Some of the recent reports that dealt with the benefits of green tea specifies that, it is very much useful in increasing metabolism in a person’s body. Regular green tea drinkers are less prone to obesity problems. There are many other benefits of green tea which occurs basically because of the presence of a key ingredient in it.

Homemade Skin Care Recipe:

Nourishing green tea exfoliating cleanser

Tip/ description/ details:
Skin might experience slight peeling for first few days for some people as it starts to shed off the old layers of the skin and expose the new layers underneath.
Ingredients:
Green tea leaves, apple juice, honey, cucumber, Aloe Vera powder or gel.
Preparation:
Mix the freshly brewed green tea with apple juice, warm honey, finely chopped cucumber and Aloe Vera powder or gel evenly and wait till the mixture is warm.
How to use:
Wash your face with warm water, opening up the pores. Gently pat dry face and apply the mixture onto your face, gently massage in a circular motion for 1 minute. Rinse off with warm water, followed by a splash of cool water. Use this mixture daily in the morning to see visible results.
Results (observed by submitter):
Skin looked younger, fairer and freckles lightened. And skin felt softer and more moisturized with daily use.

Softening your skin

We’ve all read about it, been told about it, but sometimes, no matter how careful you are applying and reapplying sunscreen, it's still possible to get a burn. What to do? If it's mild, making a cool compress of tea-soaked gauze, apply that to the burned area, and rest for twenty minutes. The sting and the redness should miraculously ease. (If it's more serious, consider adding aloe vera). Because it is winter, don’t ever underestimate the powerful yet harmful rays of the sun while enjoying your outdoor winter activities!

A great way to soak away your stress is to pour one to two cups of brewed tea into a tepid bath. Relax about fifteen to twenty minutes, allowing the tea-infused bath water to do its magic in refreshing the skin, softening its texture, and helping you relax. But remember to rinse yourself off thoroughly; otherwise, you'll discover another sidebar of tea's beauty qualities. It can temporarily tan your skin!

Spoiling Your Feet

Walking the beach, hiking the mountains, or doing the urban stroll, can put stress on your tootsies. Tea to the rescue! Fill up a large pan of warm water, pour in a cup of concentrated, heavily brewed tea, and soak your feet for ten to twenty minutes. They'll be refreshed, and you'll be ready to dance the night away. Tea has anti-fungal qualities, so it really does make your feet fresher and healthier. For body or foot baths, or for sunburns, you can use infused black or green teas, however, ALWAYS choose ones without flavorings, essences, oils or other additives which can irritate the skin. Loose leaf or tea bag teas work equally well.

Soothing Your Eyes

Forget the cool cucumber slices, and choose spent tea bags for an eye soothing remedy. After you have used a tea bag for tea, cover it up and refrigerate it. When your eyes are tired from computer work, or too much exposure to the sun, or not enough sleep, these really rest and refresh your baby blues/greens/browns! Lie down on the sofa or a bed; place a cool tea bag on each eye (closed!) and rest for ten to fifteen minutes. Your eyes will look sparkling and fresh, and you'll feel better, too!

Freshen Your Face

Dried, uninfused teas are also a wonderful beauty and hygiene source. Creative soap makers have for years incorporated tea leaves in their bars of soaps because they can help slough off dried skin, deodorize, and leave you smelling yummy with skin that's as soft as a baby's. Crushing tea leaves in a heavy face cream is a mild but effective way to give you a mini facial. By making circling motions with the cream you can polish your skin and make it appear younger and fresher. Simply rinse off thoroughly with tepid water and pat dry very lightly or allow the water to evaporate naturally.

You can also use this method on your feet with or without a pumice stone to slough off calluses or other rough spots. Use a very thick cream for a "rougher" more effective product.

Curing Minor Irritations

Got a paper cut? Knife nipped you while peeling an apple? Have a little heat rash, bug bite, minor burn or similar mild skin irritation? Tea can come to the rescue! Saturate cotton pad with infused tea, black or green, and place it on the abrasion or rash. Do not rinse off. Repeat as necessary. Using a tea-infused liquid as a gently face freshener or aftershave is also a soothing idea any season of the year. Just splash on tea onto your face and allow to dry, or saturate with a cotton pad, blotting irritated or very dry areas as necessary.

(submitted in part by Mak Woon Chong, Johor Bahru, Malaysia)

Anti-Aging Toner

Ingredients: 1/2 cup pure spring water or distilled water 2 teaspoons green tea leaves (or 1 green teabag)

Bring water to a boil. Place the tea leaves or tea bag in a glass or bowl. Pour the boiling water over the leaves or bag and steep for 2 to 3 minutes. Strain the green tea into a bottle, and let it cool. Apply to skin with cotton balls. Do not rinse. Apply moisturizer. Green tea tightens and calms the skin. In addition it contains anti-oxidants that fights signs of aging.

ABOUT EYES!!

Not all skin is created equal. For example, the skin of the soles is thick and hard, the skin of the scalp has embedded hair follicles, and the skin of the nose and cheeks tends to have particularly active sebaceous glands. The skin around the eye has its own special traits:

It has virtually no sebacious glands, which makes it highly prone to dryness.
It is much thinner and more sensitive than other facial skin.
It overlies a particularly dense capillary network and has minimal fat padding, which makes the eye area prone to puffiness.
It is stressed by frequent eye movements and squinting.

All of the above often makes the eye area the first place where signs of aging appear on the face. The faces of twenty five and thirty five year old people usually differ mainly in the eye area. Thirty five year olds are a lot more likely to have fine lines and bags under the eyes; some will even have crow's feet. Not surprisingly, when we try to estimate someone's age, the appearance of the eye area is always one of the key factors. Therefore, if you want to keep looking young as long as possible, it is usually not enough to take care of your skin in general. You need to neutralize a natural tendency of the skin in the eye area to age faster than the rest of your face.

The Miracle of Tea bags For Eyes!

The antioxidants found in tea can be highly beneficial to the delicate skin around the eyes, helping to tighten the skin while the caffeine is highly effective in reducing the puffiness and dark circles that can leave the eyes looking tired.

Green tea soothing eye compress

Step one

Take two tea bags (black or green tea bags are best) and rest them in warm almost boiled water, leave too steep for 5-10 seconds

Step two

Wrap them in glad wrap (or placing them freezer bags) and leave in the fridge for half an hour or the freezer for 15 minutes or until cool

Step three

Relax and place the cool moist tea bags over your eyes for 15- 20 minutes and enjoy the benefits of this great homemade remedy for tired dark puffy eyes