Weight Loss And Thermogenesis
Green Tea appears to increase the body's energy expenditure and therefore
assist in weight loss by introducing a higher calorific burn rate. When
subjected to severe cold the body's natural resources that regulate
core temperature are triggered. The most obvious thermoregulation
technique -- and the only one obvious to the eye -- is shivering,
but the body also has another technique it can implement called
nonshivering. This secondary defence mechanism takes place in unique
pockets of tissue distributed around the body. This tissue is often
referred to as B.A.T -- Brown Adipose Tissue -- and unlike white
tissue, which is primarily an energy store, B.A.T only has
one purpose which is to create warmth by means of thermogenesis.
All newborns, whether human or animal, are born with ample
amounts of Brown Adipose Tissue. This is normally distributed around
the body to protect vital organs but can also commonly be found
at the back of the neck. It appears to exist only to provide an
efficient method of heat production, and assist the body's survival
by protecting the major organs. B.A.T found on small animals
can be observed playing an important role during the first awakening
moments after hibernation. During winter, instead of expending energy
keeping warm many small animals induce a deep sleep in order to
survive the cold weather. During this hibernating period the body
temperature drops, the metabolic rate decreases, respiration and
heart rate are drastically reduced and the whole system appears
to switch to stand-by mode in order to conserve energy throughout
the winter. But on awakening, it's vitally important for the animal
to raise its core temperature as fast as possible, and this is done
by thermogenesis. During those waking moments there is intense metabolic
activity that occurs in the pockets of Brown Adipose Tissue. This
activity is fueled by energy stored in white tissue previous to
the animal entering hibernation. The B.A.T quickly converts fuel,
by means of thermogenesis, into heat energy in order to regain
the animals optimal survival temperature. It has been found
that rodents and small animals are known to retain Brown Adipose
Tissue into adulthood, but studies show that in humans this brown
tissue appears to reduce with age. Therefore, the ability to create
heat by nonshivering thermogenesis also declines with human maturity.
Though, for outdoor workers and inhabitants of cold climates, this
may not be the case as it has been noted that they often keep Brown
Tissue into adulthood, and depending on environment, may even develop
BAT where it wasn't present before. Tests carried out on
adult volunteers, who all had Brown Adipose Tissue, proved that
eating thousands of excess calories over a long period often didn't
alter participants weight, and some even managed to lose weight.
This supported the theory that Brown Adipose Tissue could burn large
amounts of calories by the process of nonshivering thermogenesis. In
recently published research in the American Journal of Clinical
Nutrition it was pointed out that drinking Green Tea could in fact
stimulate thermogenesis and energy expenditure in humans. One study
in Switzerland even came up with the calculations. It concluded
that drinking 2-3 cups of Green Tea a day amounted to the
expenditure of 80 calories, all without the need of exercise or
increased heart rate. From other research, it has become
apparent that thermogenesis is also stimulated by Green Tea Extract
just as efficiently as Green Tea. This is now evident in the number
of Green Tea derived weight loss products on the market. Obviously
studies are still ongoing on the weight loss benefits of Green Tea,
but all evidence so far point to it being a reliable ally in the
control of body fat.
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