Matcha Madness
It’s everywhere - weaved into our conversations, flashing across phone screens, filling our coffee cups and sneaking into smoothies… Matcha Madness is in full effect. And although worldwide domination typically seems intimidating, we welcome this green tea’s takeover with open arms and empty mugs.

The craze didn’t start with the Instagram-era - it’s been traced all the way back to 7th-century China and reported to have gained popularity in 10th-century Japan when it’s calming benefits were discovered and used for Zen Buddhist rituals. At that point, the Buddhists began to develop different methods of cultivating the plant and began to grow it in shaded conditions, which we know now maximizes it’s health benefits. 

Speaking of health benefits (didn’t take us long to get here, did it?), matcha’s list is incomparable! It flashes all the same health benefits as standard green tea, but provides it in its most concentrated and antioxidant-rich form. When drunk regularly, the health benefits are phenomenal and the tea proves to be near magical. Read on and be amazed:

  • Helps Prevent Cancer. Matcha is filled with antioxidants, specifically catechin, an antioxidant typically not found in other foods. Catechin is powerful and potent enough to help counteract the effects of free radicals we inevitably collect from pollution, poor diets, UV rays and chemicals. Drinking matcha (catechin) in turn helps to preserve your body’s overall health and well-being. 
  • Promotes Weight Loss. With it’s ability to boost your metabolism AND burn fat, matcha is able to more quickly help burn the calories and shed off pounds.
  • Detoxifies the Body. Matcha’s green color is largely due to its immense amounts of chlorophyll, a powerful detoxifier that helps eliminate heavy metals and chemicals from your body.
  • Boosts Energy. The natural combination of properties within matcha energize you without the unwanted jitters. In turn, this can also help to improve physical endurance.
  • Promotes Calm Alertness. No secret as to why the Zen Buddhists began to incorporate matcha into their meditation rituals - it’s rich in L-theanine, an amino acid that promotes a state of relaxation by creating alpha waves (versus over-excited beta waves) in the brain.

Do you feel it earthlings? Is the madness creeping into you? Are you already creating mental concoctions of matcha recipes? We’ve been there, and we know what you need. Thankfully, matcha is a great-tasting tea, one of the many reasons why we choose to not sacrifice its sanctity and source it straight from our its homeland, Japan. We use this Japan-native ingredient for our Matcha Green T-Smoothies found at all Earthbar locations, made with banana, matcha green tea, hemp milk and spirulina - perfect for calm, collected energy. Find similar benefits with our Green Tea Extract, a sublingual that can be applied directly under the tongue and sneaked into snacks and smoothies.

So earthlings, when you notice yourself accidentally saying “matcha” to your barista and waking up with mid-week cravings, remember that you’re only doing yourself a favor by joining the madness.

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