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| Green Tea (Photo credit: bkajino) |
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The New York Times International Weekly
Science & Technology
FINDINGS
Tea and Fat Burning
Green tea extract is one of the most popular workout supplements on the market, used widely by athletes looking to increase fat-burning effects of exercise.
One of the key compounds in green tea is Epigallocatechin gallate, or EGCG, a potent antioxidant.
Supporters say it reduces fat gain and enhances fat-burning. But the amount found in a cup of green tea is not enough to have much effect.
Green tea extracts, more richly concentrated with EGCG, may not be much better. In a study published in December in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, scientists looked at its effects on a group of 31 healthy men. Over a weeklong period, one group consumed a supplement twice daily – the equivalent of eight cups of green tea a day – while another group was given a placebo. A third group was given a placebo for six days and then the extract on the seventh day. At the start and end of the week, the men rode stationary bikes at “an exercise intensity known to elicit maximal fat oxidation.”
The researchers did extensive testing, all of which indicated that the green tea extract did not have a meaningful effect on the body’s ability to burn fat.
ANAHAD O’CONNOR
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Article taken from TODAY Paper, Saturday Edition, 05-Jan-2013
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