You may have wondered what the deal is with green tea and weight loss – does it really help you lose weight? Many people are discovering that green tea does indeed seem to help with their weight loss, not to mention all of the other great health benefits it has.

The question that remains is, which form of green tea is best? Drinking it by the cup, or taking supplements? Are they equally effective?

Green tea comes in two basic forms: tablets and tea bags (can be loose tea also).

For centuries green tea has been consumed in tea form, but in recent years supplement manufacturers have made it available in pill form too. These pills contain concentrated amounts of green tea extract.

Green tea extract can be purchased from many different suppliers online, and can also be found in most health and vitamin stores. Most of the pills contain anywhere from 200mg to 500mg of green tea extract, and directions say to take 1 to 3 tablets daily.

There are obvious benefits in using green tea for weight loss in pill form. First, if you don’t care for the taste of the tea, the pills allow you to bypass that. Secondly, some people believe that green tea extract taken in pill form may intensify the health benefits and fat burning effect, simply because you get a more concentrated dosage of EGCG (that’s epigallocatechin gallate – the antioxidant found in green tea).

Still, some people do prefer drinking tea rather than popping pills, and green tea has a mild, pleasant flavor.

The final decision may come down to volume. Most experts agree that you need to consume a minimum of 3 cups of green tea a day to gain optimal health benefits, but some say that as many as 10 cups per day is better. When you consider that each cup of green tea has 50 – 150mg of antioxidants, it may make more sense to take a supplement or two, especially if you’re using green tea for weight loss and want the maximum dosage.

Or, you could even do both – take a supplement that contains the minimum amount of antioxidants you want to have each day, and then any green tea you drink that day will just be a bonus.

Keep in mind that green tea does contain caffeine, so you may have to limit your consumption if you are sensitive to it. Many of the green tea supplements do not contain caffeine, however, read the labels carefully to be sure.

Drinking green tea for weight loss and general health is beneficial no matter how you choose to consume it; it all comes down to personal preference.