“Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so. God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.”
Now after we read these verses in Genesis, there is no doubt that since God has intended for us to eat these green plants, He has filled them with the nutrition profile that will nourish our physical bodies he has given us here on earth. Today we want to review just ONE of these wonderful green plants and a few key reasons I make it part of my daily ritual. This increasingly popular plant turned tea, is known as Matcha.
What is Matcha?
Matcha is essentially processed green tea leaves that have been stone-ground into a delicate powder. This finely milled green tea powder is the staple ingredient upon which traditional Japanese tea ceremonies were built in the 12th century. Compared to our traditional green tea leaves, Matcha powder comes from leaves that have been shaded from sunlight during their last 20 (or so) weeks of harvest, which helps boost chlorophyll and l-theanine in the plant (both of which we will talk about below). Like I mentioned above, drinking Matcha has been part of my daily ritual for a while now and I wanted to share a few reasons why.
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Enhances Mood and Focus
Yes, yes, and YES PLEASE! Enhanced mood and focus is something I believe our world strives for every day, only most are searching for this through man-made drugs that ultimately kill our bodies. Matcha has the capability to enhance our mood and focus due to the caffeine and l-theanine combination. Caffeine is one of the most popular stimulants today and it has been proven to enhance cognition and focus. Most people get their daily caffeine fix from coffee (which also has proven benefits and I do like to have my cup of joe every now and then), but coffee and high levels of caffeine can leave us feeling jittery and “wired”. This is where the wonderful amino acid, l-theanine, comes in. Studies have shown that L-theanine “significantly increases activity in the alpha frequency band which indicates that it relaxes the mind without inducing drowsiness” , thus combating those unwanted side effects of coffee and higher caffeine levels. L-theanine is also great at balancing our neurotransmitters, in particular our serotonin and dopamine levels – both of which are responsible for our mood and motivation. The mental alertness, cognition enhancement, and mood enhancement that comes from the natural combination of caffeine and l-theanine in Matcha makes it a great option for a morning coffee replacement!
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Antioxidant Powerhouse and Metabolism Booster
Antioxidant is another increasingly popular word we are hearing in the realm of health and wellness. Antioxidants are naturally occurring chemical compounds that are known to prevent disease and aging effects and combat effects of every day toxins we might be running into. They are our bodies “defense agency” if you will, and Matcha has been found to have one of the highest antioxidant levels of any superfood. One of these antioxidants, which are only found in green tea, is a compound called EGCG. This compound is known for its cancer-fighting properties, as well as its metabolism boosting properties – making it an absolute MUST in our daily regimens. EGCG has been found to boost our metabolic rate, which in turn makes it a great partner to have if you are on a weight loss journey.
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Safe Detoxifier
We mentioned earlier that because of the way Matcha leaves are grown, they have higher levels of chlorophyll. Due to chlorophyll’s amazing cleansing properties it helps our liver and colon work better at removing toxins from our body. Matcha is also a great source of dietary fiber, which is also important in cleansing and removing toxins from our bodies. In today’s world we run into so many toxins that we aren’t even aware of, so it brings me peace knowing that my daily cup of Matcha is helping to combat those effects and remove those nasty things from the temple God has given me.
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Heart Healthy
Green tea is full of flavonoids (or antioxidants), as we have already mentioned. It is because of these that Matcha does a wonderful job at lowering inflammation in our bodies, specifically our arteries. By lowering our LDL (bad cholesterol) and inflammation in our arteries, Matcha can help prevent heart attacks and strokes. It can also improve our blood vessels’ response to physical and emotional stress, which is one of the top causes of heart attacks. Matcha and green tea also have only a quarter of the amount of caffeine that coffee and other energy drinks have, so it doesn’t put that extra strain on the heart. In our fast-paced, pressure-filled society, it is important to implement daily habits that reduce those stressors and a daily cup of Matcha can be one of the easiest (and tastiest) habits to implement for this!
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Quick, Easy, and Tastes Great
There are many places today to find good quality Matcha, my favorite being ceremonial grade (better quality in my opinion). Matcha is super easy to make and can be made as a traditional tea with the powder and water, or you can get creative and make your own smoothies or lattes! My favorite way to have my daily Matcha drink is to make my own latte with boiling water, Matcha powder, a splash (or two or three) of coconut or almond milk, and a teaspoon of honey. It takes no more than 2 minutes to put together, tastes great, and makes me feel so vibrant!
Conclusion
Remember that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit here on earth and we should be using them to glorify God. Over-indulging, butchering, and battering them with unhealthy food, drinks, and drugs is not the way to use them and brings no glory to Him who created us. Today, you now have the knowledge of one thing you can change and start doing to help cleanse and heal your physical body – drink your Matcha!!!
