A lot can be said for Chinese medicine and their use of natural remedies to maintain health and wellness. What is just now being discovered is that there are some other, but just as important, benefits of green tea that can be key to living a long and healthy life.

Some of these may surprise you.

According to Wikipedia “Over the last few decades green tea has been subjected to numerous scientific and medical studies to determine the extent of its long-purported health benefits, with some evidence suggesting that regular green tea drinkers may have a lower risk of developing heart disease and certain types of cancer.”

That is good news for anyone who is interested in maintaining their health.

Most people have read about all the antioxidants in green tea, but there is more good news. Here are 5 benefits of green tea that you may not have read before:

Benefit #1 – Keeps Teeth Healthy and Prevents Tooth Decay

Green tea has been linked to the prevention of tooth decay in two ways. It both inhibits bad bacteria in the mouth after drinking and also helps to prevent acid production that can erode teeth.

The catechins in the tea are thought to inhibit the bad bacteria and decrease acidity of saliva and plaque that causes tooth decay.

In one interesting study, subjects were asked to rinse their mouth at various intervals with a green tea extract. After 2 minutes bacteria were somewhat inhibited. But, after 30 minutes the benefit was even more pronounced.

The good news is that drinking green tea can be good for your teeth.

Benefit #2 – Improves Muscle Endurance

People today are smarter about physical fitness and the effect it can have on maintaining health.

But, did you know that this tea can improve your endurance when working out?

Researchers at the Biological Sciences Laboratories of Kao Corporation in Japan discovered that regularly taking green tea extract (GTE) boosted endurance exercise performance up to 24%.

The researchers whose study was reported in the American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, found that drinking one cup a day did little to boost endurance but drinking 4 cups a day had an amazing impact. The more, the better.

On top of that, drinking tea can help keep your weight down. Researchers have discovered that the catechins in the tea can increase the ability for humans to burn fat as fuel.

Benefit #3 – Helps You Have a Skinnier Waist

Today, even people who are not carrying excess weight on any other part of their body may be battling the bulge around their waist.

Weight around the middle is caused by sugar and it’s hard to fight when there is so much sugar found in processed foods.

Green tea helps to process sugar in the body so that it doesn’t go to your waist.

In recent studies, those who drank the tea regularly had a lower body mass index and smaller waist than those who didn’t. It can also help to lower the risk of having metabolic syndrome.

The Mayo Clinic defines Metabolic syndrome as “a cluster of conditions – increased blood pressure, a high blood sugar level, excess body fat around the waist and abnormal cholesterol levels – that occur together, increasing your risk of heart disease, stroke and diabetes.”

Don’t want that? Drink green tea instead!

Benefit #4 – Boosts Brain Health

Science Daily reports that scientists are finding evidence that “green tea extract enhances the cognitive functions, in particular the working memory. The findings suggest promising clinical implications for the treatment of cognitive impairments in psychiatric disorders such as dementia.”

In addition, it is thought that this tea helps to prevent other neurologic diseases including Alzheimer’s disease.

The polyphenols in green tea are believed to help improve learning and memory.

Benefit #5 – Protects Against Harmful UV Rays

Not only can tea help a body recover from the effects of radiation, it can protect it from UV rays too. There are many studies that have shown it to be effective in preventing skin damage caused by being out in the sun.

Again it’s the catechins that are doing the most good. The type of catechins found in green tea that provide sun protection are known as epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG).

While it’s not recommended that you completely do away with your sunscreen, this is important news for those who want to do their best to prevent skin cancer and other ailments caused by long term sun exposure.

The bottom line is that green tea helps you think better and feel better.

Is it a miracle cure and natural remedy for all health conditions?

The fact is there are many benefits of green tea, but it can’t cure everything.

Can drinking it several times a day, though, help you feel good and protect your health? Try it for a few weeks and then you be the judge.