How to Fight Against Anti-Aging by Consuming Japanese Green Tea Daily

Tea has been around and consumed by people for thousands of years. It's been a mainstay not just for its flavor but also for the health benefits that are right there sitting in your cup. While there's been an increased focus on tea drinking in the west in general, there's been an especially strong focus on the health benefits of consuming green tea.

One of the reason for this is that there are anti-aging benefits inherent in the leaves. To start with, let's get a little of the physical attributes of green tea especially in comparison with other types of tea.

What makes a tea?

In order to qualify as being a tea, it has to be derived from the plant Camellia sinensis. Most popular teas are green, black, and oolong and they all depend on how long the tea is processed. Green tea is the least processed of the teas, and that makes it so that the antioxidant polyphenols are inherent in the tea. In particular, there's a catechin called epigallocatechin-3-gallate (also known as EGCG) that has a bevvy of health benefits.  (Read more about EGCG in green tea in my other article.)

Longevity

According to a study by Campbell University, Japanese practitioners of a certain green tea ceremony have a slightly longer lifespan when compared with other Japanese citizens.

Another study showed that EGCG extended the lives of a type of roundworm when administered. This green tea even increased the longevity of these roundworms exposed to a heated environment by up to 13 percent.

When they were exposed to what's known as oxidative stress, these green tea roundworms lived 173 percent longer. The fact that EGCG can increase production of stress-reducing proteins is what largely helps the anti-aging process.

 

Anti-Aging

The anti-aging and anti-inflammatory effects that are inherent to green tea can delay the signs of skin aging, such as expression lines, sun damage, and wrinkles. Certain catechins in the tea can help to prevent skin cancer that's due to sun exposure.

The important thing to note about green tea is that it's great for hydrating your body. With your body hydrated, your skin will be hydrated as well. This will keep your skin flexible and smooth. (Read more about Japanese Green Tea and Skin Health in my other article)

The biggest benefit of green tea is how it can detoxify your body. The liquid works to pull the toxins out of your body, which improves the overall health of your skin. Once these toxins are removed from your body, your skin will be free of acne as well as blemishes. Removing the toxins will also help your complexion. (Watch my video about How to Detox your Body with Japanese Green Tea)

These antioxidants also help to improve your immune system's capabilities. Bacterial and skin infections will then be healed as a result. These antioxidants also help with reduction of inflammation. Your skin won't be nearly as red and various ailments will improve at a faster rate. Acne is then improved as well as reduced, and scars will even heal faster.

Another great part of this is that there are also compounds that help to rejuvenate the skin. These compounds work by reactivating the skin cells, and they help to promote healing and softness. You'll have beautiful skin but can also relish the fact that you're helping to reverse the effects of sun damage and even that you're working to reduce your chance of skin cancer.  (Read more about this topic on my another article - Cancer and Japanese Green Tea - Why It is Good for Treatment and Prevention) 

Menopause

Aging is one thing, and although related, menopause is another. It's something that arrives in women's lives no matter the state of their health. It's a natural progression that simply cannot be avoided. While women through the ages have varying accounts of what kind of experience they had with menopause, much like with monthly periods and pregnancies, the general consensus is that it's a difficult time, physically and mentally.

Time and studies have proven that there are factors that contribute to the relatively easier time some women have with this time of their lives. Green tea happens to be one of the natural remedies proven to benefit women during perimenopause (the transitioning stage before periods completely stop) and menopause.

How does green tea benefit women going through menopause?

Menopause has many unpleasant physical symptoms. Hormones play a large role in dictating the state of our health. When they go awry, the impact is very much palpable. What are some of the symptoms that green tea can help minimize or manage? 

 

●      Reduced bone strength and risk of osteoporosis

Since estrogen levels drop in menopause, many women experience lower bone density, causing conditions like osteoporosis or osteopenia. Weakened bones also lead to joint and muscle pains, which can be debilitating and may make menopausal women more prone to fractures.

Green tea can address this concern with its polyphenols, which can help increase bone formation and suppress bone resorption (the breaking down of bone tissue), thereby reducing the usual bone loss experienced during menopause.

These polyphenols may also improve bone strength and overall quality by increasing the trabecular (bony network of plates and rods providing strength and structural support) number, thickness, and volume. To ensure consumption of higher levels of these polyphenols, Japanese Diet Pu-erh Tea, a post-fermented tea, is recommended.

Besides polyphenols, green tea also has flavonoids and fluoride, which also help lower osteoclastic activity and ease osteoporotic progression. A 2010 study published by Pharmacological Research (a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal on pharmacology) clearly underlines the beneficial effects of ingesting green tea and its bioactive compounds in mitigating bone loss and decreasing osteoporotic fracture risk.

 

●      Weight gain and slower metabolism

Menopause is a time of lower estrogen and progesterone levels, which can slow down metabolism. The significant hormonal changes can also raise the risk of different metabolic disorders, including fat redistribution (weight gain concentrated around the abdomen) and visceral fat accumulation (toxic fat around vital organs in the abdominal cavity), which may lead to serious conditions like heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, and some cancers.

Fortunately, green tea's caffeine and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) help prevent the expected weight gain. Caffeine is a known stimulant that helps burn fat and suppress appetite, while EGCG may boost metabolism as well as reduce fat. A 2011 study published by Cambridge University Press  confirms all these by stating that evidence indicates green tea enables and aids the global reduction of fat. Tappuri Catechin Green Tea is recommended for dieters as it has higher catechins, about four times more than the content of traditional Japanese green tea. “Tappuri”たっぷりdenotes plenty or abundance in Japanese.

Bloating, which menopausal women tend to experience when they have a leaky gut, is also somewhat related to weight gain. This is brought on by an imbalance in the microbiome triggered by hormonal changes. Green tea addresses leaky gut syndrome from various angles. First, it has anti-inflammatory properties that can help ease gut inflammation. It also encourages the growth of good bacteria in the gut. And it can help lower blood sugar, depriving bad bacteria of what they like to feed on.

 

●      Stress and inflammation

The decline of estrogen levels may lead to increased inflammation, which can cause a lot of damage and lead to chronic diseases. The inflammation is only exacerbated by stress, which, unfortunately, is also a major menopause symptom. Not only do all the physical changes take their toll, but the mental impact is a considerable concern as well.

Menopause causes the brain to recalibrate. Again, thanks to hormones, the brain's structure also adjusts. Unfortunately, this leads to many mental struggles. Brain fog is undoubtedly real. Memory difficulties are expected. Cognitive abilities may dip. These all can be very stressful.

What are some very known menopause symptoms that are actually caused by stress and inflammation? These include hot flashes, sleep issues, mood swings, anxiety, depression, etc.

Those who haven't undergone menopause tend to brush hot flashes aside, thinking that whoever's complaining about them is just being dramatic. Still, they're uncomfortable even when they're mild and brief. There are those, however, who suffer from severe cases that can really disrupt their lives, especially if they also involve night sweats and hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating).

Green tea is an effective remedy for hot flashes because it addresses the root of it, which is inflammation. Matcha, in particular, is really beneficial because it is rich in the vitamins and minerals that promote hormonal balance. Another recommended variety is Benifuki. It contains large amounts of O-methylated EGCG, which strongly inhibits inflammation.

Did you know that, in Chinese medicine, green tea, even when consumed hot, is considered a "cooling food" that works to get rid of excess heat in the body? There might not be a lot of scientific evidence backing traditional Eastern medicine. Still, centuries upon centuries of practice attest to its efficacy.

Green tea can help relieve inflammation and stress, two primary triggers for various menopause symptoms. A 2023 study published by Nutrients  (a peer-reviewed scientific journal on all aspects of nutrition) found that a slew of them are mitigated by long-term green tea consumption, which effectively reduces inflammation, thanks to its polyphenols.

●      Mental health struggles

Green tea can address the cause, which is a hormonal shift resulting in inflammation, and it can also directly address the symptom, in this case, depression and other mental struggles. It has the amino acid L-theanine that promotes relaxation and a sense of calm. This helps with the restless feeling frequently experienced by menopausal women as well as with the expected anxiety and mood swings.

A 2021 study published in Food Science and Human Wellness (an international peer-reviewed journal dedicated to research on food science, immunology, and nutriology) underlines green tea's positive effects on mood and its potential to aid in preventing depression or treating it alongside established therapies.

 

●      Fatigue and Malaise

Yes, extreme exhaustion is also common during menopause. Hormones cause it, and other symptoms aggravate it. When you're experiencing pains and feeling blue to boot, you'll definitely feel tired. Then again, having fatigue is depressing and debilitating, so it doesn't help your other symptoms either.

A persistent state of fatigue would contribute to the general sense of malaise already elicited by hormonal changes. At this point, it's a chicken-and-egg situation. Practically, all the symptoms discussed are both a cause and an effect of each other. However, it really all ultimately boils down to the hormonal shift happening at this time.

Green tea's slow-releasing kind of caffeine is definitely helpful in combating fatigue and maintaining a somewhat stable level of energy all day. For increased caffeine levels, Nozomi, which is covered Kabusecha, is an good choice. Shade-grown kinds of tea have higher caffeine content because the shading process triggers a stress response from the plant, causing it to raise its caffeine, chlorophyll, and L-theanine levels. (See this article I wrote about covering to learn more about this)

According to a 2017 study published in Pharmacognosy Magazine (a peer-reviewed medical journal on pharmacognosy, phytochemistry, phytopharmacology, and natural products), green tea's EGCG content also has anti-fatigue effects.

Menopause as well as the periods preceding and succeeding it are a critical time. Just because all women who are lucky enough to reach that age go through them doesn't mean that all these changes don't pose a serious threat to a woman's well-being. It's essential to understand what's going on in the body so that all issues can be faced with an appropriate remedy.

Menopause is a challenging time, but the difficulties experienced by individual women vary largely based on how proactive they have been in preparing for the expected physical, emotional, and mental impact . Women should take into account that, in any of these related stages, they can count on green tea to address multiple symptoms.

Make no mistake; some men also go through a similar phase of hormonal changes (decline of testosterone levels), even if less evident since they don't have the marker of monthly bleeding to observe. Andropause, the term for male menopause, is rife with comparable symptoms, and not many men are aware of it. Again, the severity of the experience depends on the effort to manage it. Incidentally, green tea is also a massive help during andropause.

Here is a list of recommended tea products for each andropause symptom:

•  Bone loss

Japanese Diet Pu-erh Tea is a good choice for addressing this symptom for its higher polyphenol content, which can help improve bone strength and quality.

• Slower metabolism

Tappuri Catechin Green Tea, as the name states, is replete with catechins that help boost metabolism as well as reduce fat.

• Oxidative stress and inflammation

Matcha and Benifuki are good options for building immunity against stress and inflammation, which lead to symptoms like pain, hot flashes, and mental difficulties. Since Matcha is the powder form of the tea leaves themselves and not the mere extract, the concentration of nutrients is much higher. Benifuki, on the other hand, is packed with O-methylated EGCG, which helps prevent inflammation as well as allergic reaction.

• Fatigue

Nozomi (covered Kabusecha), for its higher caffeine content, is recommended for maintaining energy levels throughout the day and keeping exhaustion at bay.

These are just some of the basic symptoms of andropause. The hormonal shift may definitely lead to many other issues like a lower libido, erectile dysfunction, unhealthy skin, etc. Green tea generally helps address all these because it contributes to promoting hormonal balance.

 

You Don't Just Have to Drink It!

Green tea works so well for some people that one woman insists that green tea was able to cure her cancer. By switching her diet and dramatically increasing the amount of green tea she drank, her cancerous tumor shrunk until it disappeared altogether. This incredible testimonial brings us to the next point: You don't have to drink green tea in order to reap the benefits of it.

 

Wearables

While we've heard and seen plenty about wearables in the technology industry with things like smart watches and smart glasses not to mention virtual reality, green tea can also be considered to be a wearable. What we mean by this is that you can also wear your green tea as a face mask.

What you'll want to do to make the face mask is to mix a tablespoon of the leaves with three tablespoons of yogurt. Full-fat yogurt is the best kind for this job. You place the mask on your face for 20 minutes in order to let the nutrients work with the layers of the face.

The nutrients get right into the actual cells as well as the middle and lower layers in order to repair cell damage and improve collagen production. Another thing that you can do is to make a facial rub in order to cleanse your face. For this, you'll use about a tablespoon of ground leaves and mix it in with some honey.

You make a paste of this and apply it to the face for 15 minutes. The honey will consequently add vitamin C to your skin and give you some extra healing. When you finally do remove the honey, it's best to rub it in a circular motion, working with the tea leaves to bring them into your skin and remove the dead layers.

The great thing about green tea is that there seems to be no limit to the health benefits that this simple drink has to offer. Scientific studies corroborate over and over again just how many health benefits you stand to gain by drinking more of this.

It has capabilities of reducing the risk of cancer, and some would even claim that it has the power to cure cancer itself. It has a great deal of anti-aging properties that will have you looking younger and ensuring that you have bright, vibrant, beautiful skin.

Not only can you drink the green tea, but you can also use it as a face mask that will revitalize your skin while getting rid of acne and blemishes. There is a variety of ways that you can take care of yourself with green tea. Try your own way and see what happens!