Wellness Wednesday: February 17
MATCHA
You may have indulged in a matcha latte recently as a part of the latest craze, but have you ever wondered where matcha comes from and what makes it a powerhouse plant? That’s why this Wellness Wednesday feature is matcha.
Matcha is very similar to green tea — it’s derived from Camellia sinensis plant, but it’s grown in a different manner. During a special growing process, the green tea plant is covered to increase chlorophyll production and amino acid content. After harvest, the plant is dried and ground up into a fine powder. This powder contains the entire tea leaf, which when prepared, offers a greater a mount of nutrients than simply brewing green tea leaves.
Matcha powder packs an impressive nutritional punch. It’s incredibly rich in antioxidants (even higher than pomegranates and blueberries!) and a diet high in antioxidants helps to fight against cell damage, aging, and free radicals, which are types of molecules that your body releases when breaking down food or after being exposed to harmful substances (like radiation or smoking). In simpler terms, the more antioxidants you consume, the better equipped your body is to fight against these harmful substances and cell aging. Reducing the amount of free radicals in the body plays a part in reducing the risk of various diseases, like heart disease and cancer.
Keeping with the theme of ridding the body of toxins, matcha powder is also believed to improve liver function, preventing damage to both the liver and kidneys.
Further, matcha is also considered to help promote healthy weight loss by enhancing metabolic function. One particular study found that consuming matcha, paired with moderate exercise, helped to increase fat burning by almost 20%.
Or maybe you’re a chronic coffee drinker in need of a change. Matcha can help to improve your energy levels without the afternoon caffeine crash a morning coffee can bring on. The caffeine in matcha chemically combines with its natural properties (like the amino acid L-theanine) to not only give you that extra kick, but it won’t give you the jitters and actually promote a state of relaxation, wellness, concentration, and improved brain activity.
Although matcha might have a strong taste, you can easily add it into your protein shake, smoothie, or açaí bowl to cover the bitterness of the tea. We offer matcha in our Strawberry Banana protein shake to give you that extra boost throughout your day, and it’s completely masked by the other delicious flavors. You can also opt to add in matcha to your favorite menu item for an additional charge, just be sure to ask your friendly Juicerista!
Pham-Huy, L. A., He, H., & Pham-Huy, C. (2008). Free radicals, antioxidants in disease and health. International journal of biomedical science : IJBS, 4(2), 89–96.
Venables MC, Hulston CJ, Cox HR, Jeukendrup AE. Green tea extract ingestion, fat oxidation, and glucose tolerance in healthy humans. Am J Clin Nutr. 2008 Mar;87(3):778-84. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/87.3.778. PMID: 18326618.
Yin, X., Yang, J., Li, T., Song, L., Han, T., Yang, M., Liao, H., He, J., & Zhong, X. (2015). The effect of green tea intake on risk of liver disease: a meta analysis. International journal of clinical and experimental medicine, 8(6), 8339–8346.