Green up, slim down
Posted Friday, February 9, 2007 at 12:08PM
Thumbing through the February issue of Elle the other day, I came across a story about the latest weight-loss aids said to magically lift away those excess pounds. Turns out that while natural remedies like “miracle cactus” and seaweed pills probably won’t do the trick, green tea may actually prove both safe and effective in promoting weight loss. Known to rev up metabolism - mostly due to its caffeine content - green tea is now being marketed for its slimming power by companies like Snapple. But, as the Elle piece points out, the brand’s new EGCG Green Tea packs 30 grams of sugar per bottle - the same as what you’d find in a Snickers bar.
To get the metabolism boost without all that sugar, reach for a bottle of the Ito En Green Tea recommended by yumichen and vaguelyweird. “To me, most bottled teas are terribly sweet or of poor quality,” says the latter. “Being able to easily purchase unsweetened jasmine, oolong, good green tea, or lightly sweetened teas (that don’t turn my tongue into a sugar cube) makes me happy.”
For just a hint of sweetness, check out Honest Tea’s Moroccan Mint Green. Blended with organic peppermint and organic spearmint leaves, the China-derived green tea is brewed in purified water with just a touch of organic white clover honey (which gives the tea its five grams of sugar). “These are one of those drinks that have random quotes under the cap and funny side labels about how they make tasty drinks that are yummy and good for you and you’d be stupid not to drink them,” says Dujmo of the super-eco-responsible Honest Tea. “But the fact is that it is tasty and yummy and low in sugar, too. I’m a fan of the mint flavor.”
Next month, Luna Bar and Republic of Tea will team up to bring us lady tea lovers a new product called Nutritional Iced Tea for Women, the “first iced tea designed with women in mind,” according to Slashfood. With just 50 calories per 12-ounce serving, the 70-percent-organic teas include Kiwi Strawberry Green Tea. Until those teas hit the Whole Foods shelves, sip on Republic of Tea bottled drinks like Pomegranate Bottled Iced Green Tea. Dubbed the “Tea of Heart’s Content,” this pomegranate-juice-and-green-tea cocktail is brimming with antioxidants.
And while Guayaki’s Raspberry Revolution isn’t a green tea, its star ingredient (yerba mate) is loaded with antioxidants, amino acids, minerals, and a touch of that metabolism-stimulating caffeine. A recent yerba mate convert, just-heather.com has been seriously wooed by the so-called “drink of the gods.” “I admit to having fantasies about waking up at sunrise,” Heather confesses, “finishing my last sun salutation in a pair of hemp pants so I can sip my super-healthful tea out of a gourd made by a man in Uruguay (a craftsman, you will gladly note, who makes a fair day’s wage.)” Sounds just divine. And if no else gets the appeal of a beverage that, as Heather points out, smells “like the inside of a wood-burning stove,” then all the more for us.
liz
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