Benefits of Green Tea

People who drink 5 or more cups of green tea per day have a reduced rate of death from all causes, especially cardiovascular disease.

The antioxidants in green tea remove free radicals from your body. Free radicals are thought to play a major role in aging as well as degenerative diseases such as diabetes, arthritis, rheumatism, Alzheimer's and cancer.

Green tea has also been shown to help lower cholesterol levels and increase the amount of "good" cholesterol (HDL) and reduce the amount of "bad" cholesterol (LDL). It also slows down the enzymes that convert calories into fat and therefore contributes to weight loss.

The key antioxidant in green tea is called epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). One serving (2 capsules) of Guardian Green Tea contains about 100 mg of EGCG. In contrast, a typical cup of brewed green tea contains only 50 to 70 mg EGCG and black tea contains essentially no EGCG.

Black tea and oolong tea are highly oxidized and therefore do not contain nearly as much antioxidant as green tea.

Guardian Green Tea is a whole food, not a supplement. Do not confuse this with the green tea extract capsules you commonly see in health food and drug stores. Green tea extract is chemically-extracted from cheap green tea that often contains lead and other toxins. It is true that some of the antioxidants are highly concentrated but so is the caffeine and possibly some harmful impurities. Green tea extract capsules can lead to side effects such as bloating, upset stomach, insomnia, and nausea. Our whole green tea capsules have not been processed using any chemicals and are made from high quality edible green tea that can be consumed on a daily basis without side effects.

We have chosen not to decaffeinate Guardian in order to preserve the flavor and antioxidants that would be removed. The total caffeine in one serving (2 capsules) of Guardian is about the same as ½ cup of coffee. This caffeine is less bioavailable than the caffeine in brewed coffee, tea or soft drinks. People who are sensitive to the caffeine in coffee and even black and oolong teas have consumed our green tea without any problems. However, we do recommend that caffeine-sensitive people exercise care in consuming this product just as they would any other caffeinated product.