How to Sip Your Way to a Slimmer Midsection This Summer

Some people can’t think of starting their day without drinking coffee. Others are such diehard green tea drinkers that they always have a tea bag on hand. Proponents of each often swear that their beverage is healthier. Who’s right?

The best way to answer this question is to see what research says about the health benefits of green tea vs coffee. Before we get into that, let’s talk about the different types of tea so you understand how green tea is different from the rest.

Different Types of Tea

Check out any store that sells tea and you’ll quickly see that many types exist. Here are some of the most common and what makes them each unique:

• Black tea: Black tea is known for being more heavily oxidized than other tea types. Oxidation occurs by exposing the leaves to air. This makes them dark. It also changes the way the tea smells and tastes, which is why black tea often has a stronger, more robust flavor profile. 

• Green tea: Green tea leaves are subjected to short bursts of high heat directly after they’re picked from the tea plant. This is referred to as being “fired” and stops the oxidation process before it can begin. As a result, green tea has a lighter taste than black tea. Some call it slightly grassy.

• Oolong tea: Oolong lies between black tea and green tea in that it is developed using a process that leaves the tea partially oxidized. Some describe the taste of oolong tea as fruity or floral.

• Matcha tea: Matcha is a powder created by milling tea leaf material between two stones. This material comes from the same plant as green tea, which is sometimes why it’s called matcha green tea. What sets this one apart is how you make it. To make matcha tea, you whisk powdered matcha into a cup of hot water and drink it. This is unlike other teas made with a tea bag or by steeping loose leaves into hot water, then straining them out. Matcha has a grassy flavor like green tea, but this flavor is more intense.

• White tea: This tea is different from the others in that it is less processed. The leaves are slowly dried until the desired level of oxidation is achieved. Lower levels of oxidation can make white tea taste fruity or have an herb-type flavor. Higher levels of oxidation give it a woodsy or nutty flavor.

• Herbal tea: Herbal tea is a tea that is made by steeping parts of herb plants versus coming from a tea plant. Examples of herbal teas include lavender, ginger, chamomile, and peppermint.

Now that you understand what makes green tea unique, let’s look at what research says about its health benefits compared to the benefits offered by drinking coffee.

Health Benefits of Green Tea vs Coffee

Harvard Health Publishing reports that green tea and coffee share several health benefits. Among them are improved heart health, reduced inflammation, a lower risk of chronic disease, and a reduced risk of premature death for people with diabetes. (1)

Other research supports this. A 2017 review connects coffee with a lower risk of various types of cancer, cardiovascular disease, Parkinson’s, and type 2 diabetes (2). A different 2017 review links green tea consumption with a reduced risk of death from cardiovascular disease and a lower risk of all-cause mortality (3).

Both green tea and coffee can also increase energy expenditure. This makes weight loss easier, thereby reducing the health risks associated with obesity, some of which include a greater risk of high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, and type 2 diabetes. Yet, each works differently.

A review of coffee credits caffeine for this increase (4). It also adds that consuming caffeine can increase a person’s enjoyment of physical exercise along with making it easier to engage in more strenuous sessions. A review of green tea research shares that the caffeine in this drink is only one reason for higher energy expenditure (5). The other is due to its catechins.

Catechins are antioxidants found in certain plants, of which the tea plant is one. They help prevent free radical damage to the cells. The more the cells are damaged, the greater one’s risk of certain types of disease. 

Catechins are being researched for their ability to potentially prevent or treat cancer according to the National Cancer Institute (6). Other studies connect catechins with benefits for people with certain health conditions, such as one article outlining benefits related to inflammatory bowel disease (7).

Additional studies have looked at the effects of green tea and coffee on mental health. A 2019 review states that, while more research is necessary, green tea supplements are connected with lower stress and anxiety levels (8). A 2022 review adds that green tea consumption is associated with lower levels of cognitive decline with age and a reduced risk of Alzheimer's, though it’s unclear as to why (9).

Does coffee provide mental health benefits too? According to a 2017 review, the answer is yes (10). Coffee consumption is linked with a reduced risk of depression, a lower risk of suicide, and can even help brighten one’s mood. 

So, Who is Healthier: A Green Tea Drinker or a Coffee Drinker?

Based on the research, it doesn’t appear that one beverage is better than the other. Both provide benefits for mental and physical health. So, each can be included in a healthy diet plan.

Instead, it may be more about flavor preferences as to which one you should drink. Each has a distinct taste, causing some people to desire one over the other. Or you might consume both green tea and coffee to get the benefits of each.

What About Green Coffee?

Although green coffee sounds like a mixture of green tea and coffee, it isn’t. This drink is made from green coffee beans. A green coffee bean is actually a raw coffee bean that has not yet been roasted. Does green coffee have any health benefits?

Green coffee extract contains a higher amount of chlorogenic acid than other types of coffee. A 2019 review explains that this acid has both antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties (11). It can also change the way fats and sugars are metabolized and absorbed. Together, this can assist with weight and fat loss, decreasing body mass index.  

What You Should Know About the Caffeine Content of Green Tea and Coffee

Several studies suggest that while caffeine does offer some health benefits, it’s more about dosage than how it is consumed. There is no difference between coffee caffeine and tea caffeine. Both are the same. What is different is their caffeine content. Knowing the caffeine level of each is important if you are caffeine sensitive or watching your caffeine intake.

According to USDA data, one cup of brewed green tea has roughly 29.4 mg of caffeine (12). The same amount of brewed coffee contains 94.8 mg of caffeine (13). This means that you can drink three cups of green tea and still consume less caffeine than in one cup of coffee.

What about decaffeinated coffee? It contains no caffeine, right? Despite its name, decaf coffee does contain a small amount of caffeine at somewhere between 2 and 15 mg per cup (14).

So, if you want a drink with health benefits and a low caffeine content, decaf coffee is your best choice. This is followed by green tea, with coffee having the most caffeine per cup. 

What’s interesting is that there is more caffeine in tea leaves than in coffee beans. However, a cup of tea contains less caffeine because it takes fewer leaves to make than the number of beans needed to make coffee. 

Also, beware of caffeine in other foods and drinks. Most people know that they’re going to get some caffeine when having an energy drink. But what they may not realize is that chocolate contains caffeine as well.

Tips for Keeping Green Tea and Coffee on the Healthier Side

To keep your green tea consumption and/or coffee consumption healthy, watch your total caffeine intake. The Mayo Clinic reports that up to 400 mg of caffeine daily is safe for most adults (15). 

Also, watch what you add to these drinks. Black coffee is lower in fat and calories than coffee made with sugar and heavy cream. If you drink your tea with honey, you’re also consuming 17 grams of sugar per tablespoon. So, keep this in mind.

Providing specific nutrition advice is outside a personal trainer’s scope of practice. But it is within the scope of a certified nutritionist. If you’d like to provide clients with personalized dietary advice, ISSA offers Nutritionist certification. This online course teaches you dietary guidelines and applications, along with how to help clients make healthy food choices that last a lifetime.

References

1. Another benefit of drinking green tea or coffee. Harvard Health. (2021, January 1). Retrieved April 4, 2023, from https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/another-benefit-of-drinking-green-tea-or-coffee 

2. Grosso, G., Godos, J., Galvano, F., & Giovannucci, E. L. (2017). Coffee, caffeine, and Health Outcomes: An Umbrella Review. Annual Review of Nutrition, 37(1), 131–156. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-nutr-071816-064941 

3. Zhao, L.-G., Li, H.-L., Sun, J.-W., Yang, Y., Ma, X., Shu, X.-O., Zheng, W., & Xiang, Y.-B. (2017). Green tea consumption and cause-specific mortality: Results from two prospective cohort studies in China. Journal of Epidemiology, 27(1), 36–41. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.je.2016.08.004 

4. Lewis, S. F., & Hennekens, C. H. (2018). Energy expenditure may explain why coffee drinkers have Lower Mortality. Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology and Therapeutics, 23(3), 270–272. https://doi.org/10.1177/1074248418762316 

5. Türközü, D., & Tek, N. A. (2015). A minireview of effects of green tea on energy expenditure. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition, 57(2), 254–258. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2014.986672 

6. NCI Dictionary of Cancer terms: catechin. National Cancer Institute. (n.d.). Retrieved April 4, 2023, from https://www.cancer.gov/publications/dictionaries/cancer-terms/def/catechin 

7. Fan, F.-Y., Sang, L.-X., & Jiang, M. (2017). Catechins and their therapeutic benefits to inflammatory bowel disease. Molecules, 22(3), 484. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules22030484 

8. Williams, J. L., Everett, J. M., D’Cunha, N. M., Sergi, D., Georgousopoulou, E. N., Keegan, R. J., McKune, A. J., Mellor, D. D., Anstice, N., & Naumovski, N. (2019). The effects of green tea amino acid L-theanine consumption on the ability to manage stress and anxiety levels: A systematic review. Plant Foods for Human Nutrition, 75(1), 12–23. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11130-019-00771-5 

9. Lange, K. W., Lange, K. M., & Nakamura, Y. (2022). Green tea, Epigallocatechin Gallate and the prevention of alzheimer’s disease: Clinical evidence. Food Science and Human Wellness, 11(4), 765–770. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fshw.2022.03.002 

10. Lire Wachamo, H. (2017). Review on health benefit and risk of coffee consumption. Medicinal & Aromatic Plants, 06(04). https://doi.org/10.4172/2167-0412.1000301 

11. Moradi F, Lotfi K, Nouri M, Askari G. Effect of Green Coffee Supplementation on Weight Loss and Weight-Related Parameters: A Systematic Review of Clinical Trials. HSR 2019; 15 (1) :1-7. http://hsr.mui.ac.ir/article-1-1073-en.html

12. Beverages, tea, green, brewed, regular. FoodData Central. (2019, April 1). Retrieved April 4, 2023, from https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/171917/nutrients 

13. Beverages, coffee, brewed, prepared with tap water. FoodData Central. (2019, April 1). Retrieved April 4, 2023, from https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/171890/nutrients 

14. FDA. (n.d.). Spilling the beans: How much caffeine is too much? U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Retrieved April 4, 2023, from https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/spilling-beans-how-much-caffeine-too-much 

15. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research. (2022, March 19). Caffeine: How much is too much? Mayo Clinic. Retrieved April 4, 2023, from https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/caffeine/art-20045678