Today we’re going to talk about two very popular anti aging drinks. We’re gonna talk about matcha tea and about kombucha.
You may have heard of these, you may be drinking them and if you’ve ever wondered are they really good for you, do they do they really help make you healthier, help you age more slowly, today I am going to give you the straight scoop.
Are matcha and kombucha the anti aging super drinks that they’re made out to be?
The first one we’re going to talk about is matcha.
Matcha tea basically means powdered tea and unlike regular tea, these are actual green tea leaves that are dried and they are finely powdered. You mix these tea leaves with water. Typically it’s one teaspoon of the matcha powder with about a third cup of hot water and you drink that combination.
After mixing it, typically the traditional way is to use a bamboo whisk to help whisk it into a nice frothy drink. That’s basically what matcha tea is.
Is matcha tea better than green tea? That’s a big question.
Many studies have found the beneficial effects of green tea on your diet, on your health and on your aging. What’s good about green tea?
The green tea leaves are left behind. That’s really how we drink tea is we don’t actually eat the leaves. We just leave the leaves behind and have the tea leaves substance absorbed into water.
Green tea, as you probably know, is rich in antioxidants. That’s why green tea is so good for you and that’s why it’s so great for your skin and it’s great for your aging.
Green tea contains a very small amount of caffeine, not a big deal. For some people it actually helps them feel a little bit more alert in the morning. The amount of caffeine and green tea is about one-half to one-third, sometimes even less than what you get from a cup of coffee. So it’s not a huge amount of caffeine you get from green tea.
Green tea has a mild flavor. Even with this mild flavor some people don’t like it, but in general, it’s a mild flavor, it’s something that a lot of people can drink and really enjoy.
What’s the difference then between green tea and matcha tea?
With matcha, like I mentioned earlier, the green tea leaves are actually consumed with the water. It does contain according to two different studies anywhere from two to ten times the antioxidants in green tea and that’s why a lot of people are so fond of matcha tea.
You can get two to ten times the antioxidant content in one cup of matcha tea compared to green tea. That’s a big deal.
However, because you’re consuming the actual leaves, you do get much more caffeine and the studies show that the amount of caffeine in one cup of matcha tea is approximately equal to the amount of caffeine in a cup of coffee. If you’ve got caffeine sensitivity this is something you want to to know about.
Matcha tea has a stronger flavor. Some people almost call it an earthy flavor. If you don’t like the taste of green tea, if you feel that’s too strong, then most likely you’re not gonna like matcha tea either.
Finally there are some concerns about lead in the teas and there’s concerns about lead in tea made from China.
The idea is that there’s more lead in the environment, possibly from the old leaded gas. If you’re gonna drink tea ideally you want to avoid the tea that’s made in China. The tea made in Japan and the United States is most likely much safer.
When you’re dealing with matcha tea, you’re actually consuming those tea leaves and so the amount of lead could be significantly higher if you consume it. If you’re gonna consume matcha tea, make sure you get it either from the United States, make sure it’s organic, or from Japan, which appears to be very safe as well.
What’s my take on matcha tea?
Matcha tea is great for people who love green tea. The flavor is even stronger if you like the flavor of green tea you will probably love the flavor of matcha.
It has a lot of antioxidants and these antioxidants are very anti-aging, which does make it a great super drink for your skin, for your health and for aging.
It is a good substitute for coffee. If you drink green tea and there’s not enough caffeine, it doesn’t give you the boost that your coffee does, you may want to try matcha because you’re gonna get a lot of great antioxidants and you’ll get that nice boost of caffeine too.
But if you’re gonna drink matcha, I do recommend you limit it to one glass a day because of the potential lead concerns.
So matcha is a great anti-aging drink. Just be careful of where you source it from. It does get a double thumbs-up overall.
What about kombucha?
It comes in all different flavors. There’s an original flavor and sometimes they’ll add ginger, flavor, lemonade, lots of different varieties.
Kombucha is a fermented beverage that’s composed of black tea and sugar. Kombucha technically means mushroom tea and this what happens when it ferments.
SCOBY is a symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast and this symbiotic colony is combined with black tea and sugar to ferment it. This black tea and sugar fermented combo then creates the kombucha.
You can get this kind of mushroom of the SCOBY on top of it quite often. If you look closely at the kombucha, you’ll even see little bits of bacteria that are actually floating in it. Those are actually really good bacteria for your system.
What are of the good things about kombucha?
It does contain powerful antioxidants because it’s made from black tea, and some of it are actually made from green tea, you get a lot of powerful antioxidants that you can get with green tea.
The probiotics are the big thing about kombucha that a lot of people like and that’s one reason why it’s so popular.
Probiotics are good bacteria for your gut, these are not bacteria that you have to worry about, that are gonna get you sick or anything. Kombucha is a great way to get those probiotics to help heal your gut.
It is also a great source of iron. It’s also filled with glucosamine, which is great for joint health. If you’re a little bit older, if you’ve got arthritis, the glucosamine could be very good for your joints.
It does have a sweet and a sour taste to it, so for those of you who are trying to wean yourself off of soda. off a pop and you like a good strong taste. kombucha might be a pretty good option for you because you’re gonna get a good strong taste to it.
What about the bad things about kombucha?
Like anything, kombucha is not a perfect drink. This is something you definitely need to be aware of.
Kombucha typically contains sugar and some bottles contain seven grams of sugar. A lot of kombucha contains even more, so be careful and take a look at the labels.
If you’ve got kind of a fancy flavor to it, then make sure that it doesn’t have a lot of sugar. I’ve seen some bottles of kombucha with nine grams and more of sugar.
It also has a high amount of acidity and so if you’ve got heartburn, if you’ve got issues with ulcers or gastritis, you may want to be careful with drinking kombucha because the acidity is quite high in the drink.
It also does contain some alcohol. It is a small amount, 0.5 percent or less. Be careful with homemade kombucha because sometimes that can have a lot more alcohol in it.
It does contain caffeine. The amounts of caffeine are typically not great but like any type of the tea, there is caffeine in kombucha.
What’s my take of kombucha?
This is a great source of adding probiotics to your diet, especially if you are lactose intolerant. When you are lactose intolerant you can’t have yogurt or any dairy type drinks. If that’s the case then then kombucha may be a good option for you.
But you want to limit your kombucha intake to about a half a glass a day or know a glass every other day. You don’t want to drink too much kombucha because it can be bad for you.
You definitely want to avoid kombucha if you’re sensitive to caffeine, if you’re sensitive to the acidity, if you’re sensitive to alcohol and sugar.
I would not allow children to drink kombucha. You also want to avoid it if you’re pregnant, if you’re nursing and if you have a poor immune system.
If you’re gonna try kombucha, try the pre-made stuff. They taste really good.
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Rebecca is a licensed aesthetician and certified laser technician with almost 15 years experience in the dermatology. Her life-long passion is making people look good and happy.