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Are you looking for an all-natural, health-promoting dietary supplement? Look no further! Our Wellness Surge natural Premium Super Green Powder is exactly what you have been dreaming about. One of the ingredients in the Premium Super Green is Organic Matcha green tea leaf. Since ancient times green tea has been considered a health-promoting beverage. Matcha green tea leaf is antioxidant-rich and has many health benefits. 

Matcha’s Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Properties

Matcha green tea leaf is rich in antioxidants. Antioxidants are substances that work to prevent or slow damage to cells that are caused by free radicals. Free radicals are unstable molecules that the body produces as a reaction to certain factors in the environment, such as pesticides or pollution. However, free radicals can even be caused by something a little less physical, such as emotional stress¹. This type of free radical damage is often called oxidative stress.

Matcha contains high levels of a family of antioxidants called catechins². Matcha is particularly high in the catechin called EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate). Because of Matcha green tea’s high antioxidant properties, especially that of EGCG, this supplement has the ability to promote enhanced functioning of the immune system. EGCG works to produce T-Cells in the body. T-Cells play a critical role in mediating many aspects of general immunity, as well as in autoimmune diseases. In a study of mice with encephalomyelitis³, which is inflammation of the brain and spinal cord, EGCG was able to promote a reduction in the severity of disease symptoms. EGCG’s protective effect is associated with the suppressed proliferation of autoreactive T-Cells and reduced production of pro-inflammatory (inflammation promoting) markers called cytokines.

Matcha green tea has the potential to reduce oxidative stress through its antioxidant properties, boost immunity, and reduce inflammation. By reducing inflammation, Matcha green tea leaf powder can also be beneficial for those individuals with joint problems. The EGCG compound may even be able to promote decreased symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, which is largely driven by inflammation. This idea is also supported by scientific research done in rats.

Matcha Green Tea and Its Stress-Relieving Benefits

Matcha green tea also promotes healthy mood. In a clinical study done in Japan in 2018⁶, Matcha was scientifically shown to promote stress reduction in college students. These students drank 3 grams of Matcha green tea every day for one week. After drinking the tea, these students had decreased anxiety levels (anxiety is one of the most obvious side effects of stress). This same study also demonstrated that Matcha green tea leaf powder, when given to mice, reduces the effects of an extreme social stressor (called confrontational stress) on the weight of the stressed mice’s adrenal glands. The adrenal glands produce stress hormones such as cortisol, so measuring the weight of this organ is a good measure of how stressed out an animal has been. Matcha may have this stress-reducing effect, at least partially, by helping to lower noradrenaline (a brain signaling chemical) in the body and promoting a healthier stress-response.

In another study conducted in Japan in 2019⁷, powdered Matcha green tea leaf (when added to cookies) also promoted stress reductions in college students, as measured by alpha-amylase activity in the students’ saliva. Alpha amylase, a major enzyme, is considered to be a marker of a chronic stress response. In other words, when the stress system is repeatedly activated, alpha-amylase levels tend to build up. 

Staying Healthy with Matcha Green Tea

Matcha has also been shown through laboratory studies to have beneficial effects through the suppression of blood glucose accumulation, promotion of lipid metabolism and antioxidant activity. In one study⁸, mice were given a diet that was either high in fats alone or high in fats but with the addition of Matcha in their diet. Compared to the mice who consumed the high fat diet, the mice that also received Matcha had significantly lower serum total cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

Not only does Matcha green tea help with metabolic health, but the EGCG compound found in the tea leaf can also promote cardiovascular health⁹. In one study of rats¹⁰, EGCG was shown to inhibit cigarette smoke-induced heart dysfunction by stabilizing mitochondrial activity and preventing cell death, or apoptosis. Matcha, via EGCG, may even have the ability to promote the body’s ability to fight conditions that cause dangerous cell mutations¹¹.

How Does Organic Matcha Green Tea Leaf Work in the Brain?

Matcha green tea leaf has been scientifically shown to promote brain health. This is because Matcha green tea leaf has a natural chemical (or amino acid) in it called theanine. Matcha is a fine powder that is prepared from tea leaves that have been protected from sunlight. When tea leaves are protected from direct sunlight, their amino acid content, particularly theanine, stays high. Theanine increases levels of a critical antioxidant called glutathione¹².

Theanine is also thought to relieve stress by reducing the levels of a brain chemical (or neurotransmitter) called norepinephrine¹³ (also known as noradrenaline). One early study demonstrated that theanine can increase other neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine¹⁴. This also likely contributes to the stress-relieving effects of theanine.

Take Home Message

While Matcha may not be a magic bullet that cures everything, science does support its potential to promote overall wellbeing. Matcha green tea and its associated chemical compounds are high in antioxidants, and promote anti-inflammatory actions, a reduction in stress-induced anxiety, cardiovascular health, and more. Try Wellness Surge natural Premium Super Green today to experience the health-promoting effects of Organic Matcha green tea leaf!

Sources

  1. Srivastava, Kaushal K., and Ratan Kumar. “Stress, oxidative injury and disease.” Indian Journal of Clinical Biochemistry 30.1 (2015): 3-10.
  2. Weiss, David J., and Christopher R. Anderton. “Determination of catechins in matcha green tea by micellar electrokinetic chromatography.” Journal of Chromatography A 1011.1-2 (2003): 173-180.
  3. Wu, Dayong, et al. “Green tea EGCG, T cells, and T cell-mediated autoimmune diseases.” Molecular aspects of medicine 33.1 (2012): 107-118.
  4. Riegsecker, Sharayah, et al. “Potential benefits of green tea polyphenol EGCG in the prevention and treatment of vascular inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis.” Life sciences 93.8 (2013): 307-312.
  5. Leichsenring, Anna, et al. “Long-Term Effects of (–)-Epigallocatechin Gallate (EGCG) on Pristane-Induced Arthritis (PIA) in Female Dark Agouti Rats.” PloS one 11.3 (2016): e0152518.
  6. Unno, Keiko, et al. “Stress-reducing function of matcha green tea in animal experiments and clinical trials.” Nutrients 10.10 (2018): 1468.
  7. Unno, Keiko, et al. “Stress-reducing effect of cookies containing matcha green tea: essential ratio among theanine, arginine, caffeine and epigallocatechin gallate.” Heliyon 5.5 (2019): e01653.
  8. Xu, Ping, et al. “The effects of the aqueous extract and residue of Matcha on the antioxidant status and lipid and glucose levels in mice fed a high-fat diet.” Food & function 7.1 (2016): 294-300.
  9. Wolfram, Swen. “Effects of green tea and EGCG on cardiovascular and metabolic health.” Journal of the American College of Nutrition 26.4 (2007): 373S-388S.
  10. Adikesavan, Gokulakrishnan, et al. “(−)-Epigallocatechin-gallate (EGCG) stabilize the mitochondrial enzymes and inhibits the apoptosis in cigarette smoke-induced myocardial dysfunction in rats.” Molecular biology reports 40.12 (2013): 6533-6545.
  11. Chung, L. Y., et al. “Induction of apoptosis by green tea catechins in human prostate cancer DU145 cells.” Life sciences 68.10 (2001): 1207-1214.
  12. Sugiyama, Tomomi, and Yasuyuki Sadzuka. “Theanine, a specific glutamate derivative in green tea, reduces the adverse reactions of doxorubicin by changing the glutathione level.” Cancer letters 212.2 (2004): 177-184.
  13. Kimura, Ryohei, and Toshiro Murata. “Effect of theanine on norepinephrine and serotonin levels in rat brain.” Chemical and pharmaceutical bulletin 34.7 (1986): 3053-3057.
  14. Yokogoshi, Hidehiko, et al. “Effect of theanine, r-glutamylethylamide, on brain monoamines and striatal dopamine release in conscious rats.” Neurochemical research 23.5 (1998): 667-673.
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