We don’t usually go in for promisey weight loss scams, but this is green tea folks. It’s already a topical favorite of ours—nary a day goes by when one of us isn’t spot treating even the most minor breakout (or imagined breakout) with some of Evan Healy’s calming green tea clay.

Drinking the stuff has also been shown to have a staggering array of benefits, even making Dr. Oz’s ultimate anti-aging list for its powerful antioxidants.

Now Self is reporting on a study that shows green tea may help with weight loss, at least in obese people suffering from metabolic syndrome. From Self:

The study involved three dozen subjects who were obese and had metabolic syndrome.  For eight weeks, they drank 4 cups of green tea or took a green tea supplement that provided the equivalent amount of active ingredients every day. They were told to eat (and exercise) the way they usually did (or didn’t).  And, in fact, dietary records taken at the beginning and end showed that their nutrient intake didn’t change significantly over that time.

Despite that, the subjects lost fove pounds on average. But here’s what’s really interesting: The green tea used in the study was decaffeinated, which totally foiled my first theory: That the caffeine was probably responsible for the higher metabolism. Huh. Magical elixir after all?

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