What is green tea?
Green tea is made from common tea leaves that undergone minimal oxidation, as the result it retains the greenish color. Green tea has been associated with many East Asia cultures, especially China. There are many varieties of green tea and unique varieties are often developed in places where tea plants are grown and green tea is produced. Varieties are affected by growing conditions, harvesting time and processing methods used.
Over the years, green tea has been subjected to numerous medical and scientific studies to gauge its purported health benefits. Some researches revealed that by drinking green tea regularly, people may have lower risk of developing cancer and cardiovascular diseases.
How green tea can help your hair?
Green tea and hair problems are two things that seem incongruous when used in one sentence, however researchers have found a connection between the usages of green tea with hair treatment. Even so, you should expect green tea to only complement contemporary natural hair remedies and it shouldn’t be treated as a miracle cure for hair loss or other hair-related problems.
The onset of hair loss is caused by the oxidation process, or overheating problems caused by hair dryers, and regular intake and application of green tea can slow it down. A research was performed to confirm a hypothesis that antioxidants in green tea can stop balding by combating androgens. Androgens are hormones that are responsible for many cases of hair thinning on men and women. The results are quite encouraging. After continuous exposure to green tea, or epigallocatechin-3-gallate, in particular, the rate of follicle death was reduced and hair growth increased. A substance called 5-alpha-reductase is a well-known contributor to baldness and catechins in green tea can inhibit its production.
Green tea maintains hair follicles and promotes hair growth through a two-step process, the reduction of hair follicles shrinkage (apoptosis) and acceleration of hair growth. During the test, researches didn’t simply brew a cup of green tea and drench the scalp with it. Instead, they extracted the catechins and mixed them with ethanol, which can act as a vehicle and increase absorption.
The solution was applied on the scalp several times a day. Of course, it is far easier to simply apply thick green tea infusion to the scalp, but researchers believe that this method won’t give a consistent result. Unless you have the tools and knowledge to extract catechins from green tea, purchasing natural hair care products that contain green tea should be your best bet.
Treatment methods
The easiest way to reap the benefits of green tea is simply by drinking it a few times each day. Some manufacturers offer capsules that contain concentrated green tea extract, which is practical if you have a busy lifestyle. It is also advisable to choose shampoo that contains green tea. Regular usage and intake of green tea can improves blood circulation under your scalp and relaxes the blood vessels. Green tea shampoo should also be used by people with healthy hair, as it can leave their hair lush and clean. When using green tea for hair treatment, you shouldn’t expect a speedy result.
Often, it takes more than six months or even after one year before hair loss slows down. Green tea can also reduce annoying symptoms of psoriasis and dandruff. Other than improving the health of hair and scalp, green tea will also stabilize blood pressure, reduce cholesterol level and improve metabolism. Also, besides preventing cancers and cardiovascular diseases, you’ll be less likely to suffer kidney stones, dental cavities, glaucoma, Alzheimer and Parkinson.
Possible problems of green tea
Green tea is perfectly safe, but it can still cause problems on certain people. For example, very few people are found to be allergic to green tea. These are other possible problems you should consider:
Excessive intake of green tea can impair sleep and increase anxiety due to the presence of caffeine. A combination of caffeine and alcohol can adversely affect accuracy and psychomotor speed. Breastfeeding mothers should monitor caffeine intake to prevent sleep disorders in infants.
The absorption efficiency for protein, iron, thiamin and niacin can be adversely affected by heavy use of green tea.
If you take warfarin, it may be necessary to avoid drinking green tea too much to prevent potential negative interactions.
