As winter fades and summer approaches, how is everyone’s physique? Many friends are starting to look for ways to burn off the fat accumulated over the winter. For those too lazy to exercise, drinking tea for weight loss has become the go-to method. Today, let’s talk about the science behind tea and weight loss!

1. How does tea help with weight loss?

Chen Cangqi of the Tang Dynasty wrote in Ben Cao Shi Yi: "Long-term tea consumption makes one lean and reduces body fat." Modern scientific research, including animal experiments, has confirmed that prolonged tea intake can indeed aid weight loss.

Compounds in tea—such as catechins, caffeine, theanine, tea saponins, and fiber—contribute to reducing body fat and cholesterol in various ways. Caffeine boosts fat burning, raises body temperature, and promotes sweating. Theanine reduces abdominal fat and lowers fat and cholesterol concentrations in the blood and liver. Tea saponins inhibit fat enzyme activity, reducing intestinal fat absorption. Fiber enhances gastrointestinal motility, speeding up waste elimination and minimizing toxin absorption, thereby supporting weight loss and overall health.

2. Avoid excessive tea consumption for weight loss

While tea offers many benefits, moderation is crucial. Tea contains high levels of alkaloids, and excessive intake can overstimulate the central nervous system, increase heart rate, burden the heart and kidneys, and disrupt sleep. Additionally, high concentrations of caffeine and polyphenols can irritate the stomach, suppress gastric acid secretion, and impair digestion.

As Ming Dynasty scholar Xu Cishu noted in Cha Shu: "Tea should be consumed regularly, but not excessively."

3. Timing matters for tea and weight loss

Generally, avoid drinking tea immediately after meals; wait about an hour. It’s also best not to drink tea half an hour before meals, as polyphenols may interfere with nutrient absorption. However—and this is key—if weight loss is the goal, drinking tea within half an hour before meals can help reduce nutrient absorption.

Avoid tea at night.

4. Scientific tea drinking for weight loss

Many people seeking rapid weight loss drink overly strong tea, which is unhealthy. Concentrated tea can cause "tea drunkenness," leading to stomach discomfort, irritability, palpitations, or dizziness. Remember, it’s "long-term tea consumption" that aids weight loss, not "strong tea."

Maintain a proper tea-to-water ratio, ideally below 1:50, especially for green tea.