Green tea is hot in the diet world right now and can be found in many products that preach they can help you drop some lbs. in a "healthy" and "natural" way.
It does contain caffeine, an ingredient found in many weight loss drugs, which could be why it is popping up in so many products lately. You can get a dose of green tea in so many ways, from gum to powder you put in your drinks, to energy-style bars, to the tea itself.
But with all the ways you can eat it, can it really help you lose weight?
According to this article in the L.A. Times, since green tea does speed up your metabolism due to the caffeine, it is possible that it could aid in weight loss. However, the amount of weight lost as a result of drinking green tea is small, and that it is fairly unhealthy to boost yourself with caffeine supplements just to lose weight.
Perhaps it can be used to jumpstart your diet, but should not be used for continued weight loss.
What do YOU think? Have you had success losing weight with one of the many green tea products?
Click here to check out the L.A. Times article: http://www.latimes.com/health/la-he-healthy-skeptic-green-tea-20100816,0,5900577.story
We all know water does a body good. It is good for your skin, good for your digestive system-just good all around.
And while we are dieting, we are often told that we should drink extra water. But if we drink the extra water, does it fill us up too fast if we are drinking it with meals?
According to Dr. Martica Heaner in this MSN article, there is little evidence that suggests that drinking a great amount of water during a meal will have a negative effect on your weight. However, drinking a great deal of water can make you feel full.
Some people ascertain this can be a great thing for weight loss as water has no calories. But filling up on water will prevent you from eating some of the nutritious things you should be consuming to get you through your dieting and exercising.
While the evidence can sometimes be conflicting, Dr. Heaner says all signs point to drinking more water as a positive factor in weight loss. In fact, there is even evidence that drinking more water helps you burn more calories according to the article.
I know I've heard before that drinking hot or warm water with a meal aids with digestion, but that drinking ice cold water can have a negative effect on it. But personally, I can only drink water if it's ice cold.
What do YOU think? Does drinking to much water help or hurt your weight loss efforts?
Click here to check out the article with Dr. Heaner's advice: http://health.msn.com/fitness/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100261349