Green tea and black tea are popular healthy beverages that people drink to lose weight or maintain a healthy lifestyle. Despite the fact that they both come from the same plant, there is a difference between them. In this post, I’ll compare green tea vs. black tea to see which is better and healthier for you.
What is green tea?
Green tea is a form of tea prepared from the leaves of the Camellia Sinensis plant. It is widely considered a valuable medicinal plant and is a rich source of antioxidants.
Also read: 9 Amazing Health Benefits of Drinking Green Tea
The other teas like oolong, white or black tea are also derived from the same plant, but the differences arise during the production process.
Green tea leaves are not oxidized during production. The leaves are harvested and heated to prevent oxidation.
You’re probably wondering what oxidation is.
Simply put, oxidation is the process of tea leaves drying and darkening in the air, which contributes to the flavor and strength of various teas.
Green tea hasn’t been oxidized in any way. That is why green tea leaves are much lighter in color.
Also read: Black Coffee vs Green Tea: Which is Better for you?
What is black tea?
Another well-known tea derived from the same plant, Camellia Sinensis, is black tea. It also has a high level of antioxidants.
Black tea leaves go through the complete oxidation process of all other tea leaves. That’s why the leaves of black tea are darker in color.
It is sometimes also called red tea because of the color of the liquor it produces when brewed with water.
Green tea Vs Black tea: Which one is better?
For finding the better one for you, I will compare both the tea with different scenarios.
Antioxidants
Antioxidants are substances produced in the human body and also found in food and plants. They can prevent the damage to cells caused by free radicals in your body that mainly comes through pollution or smoking cigarettes. Both green and black tea are rich sources of antioxidants.
Green tea contains a particular type of antioxidant known as Catechins. It’s one of the main components of green tea linked to a variety of health benefits.
It has anti-inflammatory, anticarcinogenic, antioxidants properties and contains polyphenols that are likely responsible for the cancer-preventive effects seen in studies.
A recent study claims that drinking black tea has the same benefits as drinking green tea regarding its antioxidant capacities. The antioxidant effectiveness of theaflavins in black tea is equal to that of catechins in green tea.
But green tea includes another major antioxidant called (-)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG ), which doesn’t exist in black tea as it gets lost during the oxidation process.
So in terms of antioxidants, green tea is a little ahead of black tea.
Caffeine
Caffeine is found in leaves of both green and black tea. It is widely considered a drug that increases or stimulates the activity of the human brain and nervous system.
Caffeine affects our bodies in both positive and negative ways. It improves our brainpower, mood, and focus. However, consuming it in excess amount may lead to heartburn, anxiety, and high blood pressure.
Most studies claim that black tea has more caffeine than green tea. However, Camellia Sinensis tea house study claims that there is no link between the type of tea and the level of caffeine.
So what’s the conclusion?
Black tea does have a high amount of caffeine than green tea but not necessarily. Both teas have some caffeine, which may or may not benefit you, depending on your consumption level.
People who are sensitive to caffeine may choose green tea over black tea.
It’s a good idea to listen to your body and figure out how much green or black tea consumption is healthy for you.
Weight loss
Weight loss is one of the most common reasons people choose green and black tea. Green tea with other benefits is also associated with weight loss due to caffeine and catechins in it.
Research shows that caffeine and catechins present in green tea help increase the body’s metabolism, leading to weight loss.
Another new finding suggests that black tea is also an effective drink for weight loss. It contains the highest level of caffeine that has been linked to boosting energy and increasing metabolic rate. It’s also packed with polyphenols that can help reduce body weight.
However, the impact of weight loss from both the tea is not so significant. Although, solely depending on drinks for weight loss is not a great idea.
Drinking green or black tea and regular exercise, and eating a healthy diet can increase the positive result for your weight loss.
Related reading: 10 Morning Drinks For Weight Loss That Actually Work
Healthy heart
Green tea leaves don’t go through the oxidation process, making them a rich source of a significant antioxidant called EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate), which fights cancer and cardiovascular conditions.
Black tea is also a rich source of antioxidants like theaflavins and thearubigens, beneficial to heart health. If consumed daily, it may help reduce heart disease, high blood pressure, and cholesterol.
A study also found that drinking three cups of black tea per day can reduce developing heart disease by 11%.
Drinking both green and black tea can have positive results on heart health. However, drinking too much black tea may make things worse for people with high heart rates or blood pressure as it contains a high amount of caffeine.
Blood sugar
A recently published research outline the benefits of drinking green tea over diabetes. It highlighted that people who drank about six or more cups of green tea a day were 33% less likely to developed type-2-diabetes. And the reason for this was the polyphenols present in green tea.
Green tea and black tea both have polyphenols present in them. They also have zero calories and little sugar, making them suitable for lower blood sugar levels.
However, the amount of polyphenols in green tea is likely to be more than in black tea, making green tea better for people with diabetes.
In a nutshell, drinking both the tea are good for diabetes till you drink them in a safe amount.
Brain
It’s found that Polyphenols present in both green and black tea can boost the vital brain chemical dopamine availability.
Black tea promotes blood flow to the brain and improves focus and concentration. Also, both tea contains a small amount of caffeine, which is a brain-boosting compound for your body.
Skin
Green and black tea are both fully packed with many antioxidants that are great for your skin.
The antioxidants in green tea, like EGCG and polyphenols, can fight free radicals and thus reduce skin damage, fight ultraviolet rays, prevent dark circles and wrinkle formation.
Black tea fights free radicals in the body and slows the signs of aging. It also helps reduce puffiness, while the polyphenols and tannins present in the beverage are said to repair the DNA.
So the next time you drink one of that tea, try to use them on your skin.
Conclusion
So we’ve arrived at the most important part of this article: which is better to drink.
Both green and black tea are high in antioxidants, making them both beneficial to your health.
However, green tea doesn’t go through the oxidation process, making it a little ahead of black tea as it loses some of its nutrients during the oxidation process.
It doesn’t mean that you should not drink black tea. Almost 80% population of America drinks black tea.
In short, both green tea and black tea are healthy to drink, but green tea has a slight advantage over black tea due to its low caffeine content and high levels of EGCG and polyphenols.
If you want to reap the benefits of tea, drink both green and black varieties. They are both “healthy” options. To lose weight, eliminate all added sugar, artificial flavoring, and other ingredients, including milk and cream. Also, in order to lose weight with green and black tea, being active is essential.
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FAQ
Yes, you can drink both the tea on an exact day. Take one cup of Black tea in the morning and another cup of Green tea in the evening. Make sure you consume both of them in a safe amount.
Yes, you can mix both the tea, but it may hide the flavor of green tea due to the bold flavour of black tea. Also, while drinking, you may not feel the taste of green tea.
The teas are processed differently so that you can enjoy the taste of both but not at the same time.
Studies showed that the caffeine content in tea leaves increased reasonably after treating leaves with fermentation for a period of time.
Black teas go through the process of complete fermentation that’s why it has more content of caffeine than green tea.
No, It’s not safe to drink any of the tea in the morning. Both teas contain tannin and if consumed on an empty stomach it may cause nausea.
Yes, It is safe to drink both green and black tea two hours before sleeping.
However, drinking the teas in excess amount may interfere with your sleep as they contain caffeine.
Caffeine makes the brain alert and makes it hard to sleep.
Some studies show black tea as a better choice for digestion. Black tea contains thearubigins and theaflavin, which may improve indigestion and protect against stomach ulcers.
