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Can rooibos help you lose weight?

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Research has shown that rooibos is not only good for your immune system, it has weight loss benefits too.

By swapping just one cup of coffee for rooibos tea every day, you could see as much as a kilo drop from the scale every month

Why rooibos could be better than coffee

Most of us load our coffee with sugary syrups, honey, whipped cream or milk and sugar which can add anything from 35 to over 250 calories per cup. If one considers that the average South African knocks back about four cups of coffee a day, drinking rooibos instead could lead to a whopping 7 – 14kg shed in a year.

Ernest du Toit, spokesperson for the SA Rooibos Council , says the indigenous tea offers dieters a healthy, enjoyable and sustainable way to lose weight.

“Rooibos tea contains no fat or carbohydrates and its weight-loss properties further extends to inhibiting fat-storage hormones within the body. Rooibos’s unique Bioflavonoid, Aspalathin, helps to reduce stress hormones that trigger hunger and fat storage, typically associated with high blood pressure, heart disease, metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance and Type 2 diabetes. In a nutshell, rooibos tea can prevent the body from storing and even forming new fat cells.

“Rooibos tea is also caffeine-free and naturally sweet so there’s no need to add extra sugar. Plus it comes in a variety of flavours like berry, cinnamon, mint and citrus. It’s also 100% natural with no additives, no preservatives and no chemicals,” he says.

Celebrities sporting already svelte figures such as Angelina Jolie, Catherine Zeta Jones and supermodel Cindy Crawford all swear by rooibos for it's range of health benefits, which include:

- helping prevent cancer,

- protecting the liver against disease,

- boosting the immune system,

- relieving allergies, and

- treating digestive disorders. 

How much rooibos tea should you drink?

The experts say that drinking up to six cups a day – hot or cold – along with a healthy and balanced diet, should provide you with the maximum health and weight loss benefits that rooibos tea can offer.

Read more:

Stay cool with rooibos

Rooibos helps to keep you young

Rooibos fights skin cancer

Sources: SA Rooibos Council

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