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Loose weight and fight cancer at the same time

Summer is here and its time to shape up, look your best and grab your bikini and head for the beach! The question is: do you fit into your bikini? If not don’t fret, take a green tea tablet.

Green tea is becoming more than just a cool, health drink. In tablet form, it acts as a dietary supplement which contains thermogenic properties which, helps boost up the body's metabolism and its ability to burn calories and break down fat. It increases your energy levels and helps you lose weight. It’s the ephedra-free way to win the battle of the buldge.

Here’s the cool thing about green tea, aside from helping you lose weight it helps your body fight cancer. In fact, studies have shown the powerful antioxidant ingredient in green tea called epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) fights so many diseases at once that it should rightly be called "miracle food."

Reuters reported last month that scientists from the University of Murcia (Spain) and the John Innes Center (England) have discovered how green tea helps prevent certain types of cancer. The researchers have shown EGCG prevents cancer cells from growing by binding to a specific enzyme. Professor Roger Thronely of JIC was quoted, "We have shown for the first time that EGCG, which is present in green tea at relatively high concentrations, inhibits the enzyme dihydrofolate reductase, which is a recognized, established target for anti-cancer drugs."

Green tea has about five times as much EGCG as regular tea.

A report of researchers from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland that tested EGCG in green tea showed that it killed cancer cells in samples of skin, lymph system, and prostate tissue taken from both humans and mice while leaving healthy cells unharmed.

Other research have also suggested that EGCG in green tea can reduce
cell death after a heart attack or stroke. The team of researchers in the Institute of Child Health (United Kingdom) led by Dr Anastasis Stephanou, carried out laboratory tests on heart cells which found that EGCG appears to block The action of a protein called Stat 1, which becomes activated within cells after a stressful event such as a heart attack or stroke, and plays a role in inducing cell death. EGCG also appears to speed up the recovery of heart cells. This allows the tissues to recover, alleviating damage to the organs.

Thus is the power of green tea in proving to be an important ally in the prevention of obesity, cancer and heart disease and losing weight.