One of the top health benefits of matcha green tea powder is its ability to aid in weight loss and in weight management in a safer way than other weight-loss supplements or detox teas.

• Matcha boosts fat burning by up to 45%
• Matcha reduces the fat absorbed by your diet
• Matcha reduces hunger cravings
• Matcha reduces stress, as a result helping you lose stubborn midsection fat
• Matcha is safer and more efficient than detox teas
• Matcha contains no sugar
• A gram of matcha tea has only 3 calories

Both matcha and regular green tea are made from Camellia sinensis plant. The biggest difference lies in the processing of the leaves. Ceremonial grade matcha contains only pure leaf material, de-veined and de-stalked, and powdered using stone mills right before packaging.

All regular green tea needs to be steeped in hot water to release flavor and nutrients. Green tea can be made from hundreds of different tea cultivars, but not all of them can be used for making matcha. Matcha tea plants require shading to develop specific flavor and color, a step not commonly used in production of other green teas.

Although all green teas contain caffeine and EGCg, in some tea types those levels can be very low, especially in teas that are roasted, more processed, made from mature leaves and harvested in autumn. Ceremonial grade matcha is harvested in spring, using fresh spring leaves and buds, and unroasted.

Some green teas might have more EGCg than matcha, but it is impossible to extract the whole content with regular brewing. That’s what makes matcha the healthiest tea in the world – powdered form allows you to ingest the whole leaf. Leaves can, however, contain not only good compounds, but different chemicals, fertilizers and toxic substances as well. They all will also be ingested by drinking matcha, so choosing organic is important, especially with tea powders.

The EGCg concentration in matcha tea is three to four times higher than in regular green tea. Although trends in weight-loss products and supplements change every year, matcha has been around for centuries. Not only may matcha provide more powerful results than other supplements or herbs, but has other benefits and cultural and social importance higher than any other tea or herb in the world.

Matcha may aid weight loss because it works as a fat blocker. EGCg, a catechin in green tea, has been shown to boost metabolism and stop the growth of fat cells. Studies showed that consuming green tea may increase thermogenesis, the body’s rate of burning calories, from 8 to 10% to 35-43% of daily energy expenditure.

To fully enjoy the benefits of matcha tea, it’s important to include regular exercise and healthy diet into your lifestyle. The EGCg in matcha may boost your metabolism during moderate-intensity exercise, thus enhancing weight loss. In one weight loss research, green tea extract increased study participants’ fat-burning capabilities by 17 percent when they engaged in cycling exercise for 30 minutes. Another research showed that matcha can improve fat oxidation during short 30 min brisk walking, even in the amounts as low as 3 grams[1].

Matcha might be able to help with gaining lean muscle as well. Japanese researches showed that drinking matcha and exercising daily might result in gaining more lean muscle than with exercise alone.

[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29345213

To understand what detox teas are it’s important to look at ingredients. Most detox teas contain a part of green tea, a part of oolong tea, and a few additional herbs that act either as diuretics or laxatives. Some of those herbs might even pose a danger to health. A regular detox tea contains only a very small amount of green tea per tea bag, and even if that tea had the highest possible levels of EGCg, is still won’t be completely extracted with brewing. This makes matcha more potent as a weight-loss aid than other teas. Taking diuretics and laxatives will only provide a short-term benefit because your body loses water and nutrients much faster than it’s supposed to, making you feel less bloated, but drained as well.