Everything you need to know about the new trending ingredient

Green coffee is emerging as the latest star in the health and wellness sphere, after reportedly being spoken of as a metabolism-boosting elixir by stars such as Demi Moore and Katy Perry. The ingredient shot to the limelight, controversially so, when Mehmet Öz, cardiothoracic surgeon and American television personality (popularly known as Dr Oz), claimed that a dietary addition of this extract could cause people to double their weight loss. While its antioxidant properties are well spoken for, can it really help you lose that weight to supplement your new year goals? We spoke to a chemist, nutritionist and a health food chef to find out.

Green coffee beans are essentially non-roasted seeds of the coffee arabica fruit. Simply put, green coffee is nothing but coffee beans in their natural form. The coffee beans we're most familiar with undergo roasting and processing for commercial use till they turn brown. On the other hand, when the beans are soaked to create a concentrated extract, it's referred to as green coffee.

Green coffee is now considered as the healthier version of its roasted cousin, and here's why. Coffee beans are a great source of two phytochemicals—caffeine and chlorogenic acid. During the roasting process, the coffee bean loses some traces of chlorogenic acid, which is a rich source of antioxidants. Antioxidants help to counteract the process of oxidisation in the body by neutralising and eliminating free radicals from the bloodstream, tissues and organs. “Raw coffee is a major source of chlorogenic acid compounds, and is observed to be beneficial in lowering the risk of cardiovascular diseases, Alzheimer's, Type 2 diabetes and other inflammatory diseases. The antioxidant benefits and the protection against lipid peroxidation are higher in green coffee when compared to the roasted coffee beans,” observes Dr Manoj Kutteri, wellness director at Atmantan Wellness Resort, and an expert on Ayurvedic and natural remedies. Research shows that chlorogenic acid helps to improve insulin sensitivity, prevent fat absorption and boost fat metabolism in the liver, thereby aiding weight loss. Along with retaining this acid, green coffee extract also has a lesser amount of caffeine as compared to roasted coffee.

“Green coffee bean extract (GCBE) has also shown to help increase weight loss by maintaining glucose homeostasis and playing a role in fat metabolism. Green coffee is also rich in antioxidants which slows the ageing process of your body. And because it contains zero calories, it takes more calories from our body to digest. You can call it a negative calorie food, which utilises more calories in the digestion process than it provides the body with,” states chef Prem Kumar Pogakula, executive chef, The Imperial, New Delhi. However, the calorie deficit is not substantial enough to cause a great amount of weight loss, he warns.

Once you have decided to give these green beans a chance, the next step is to select the form you want to consume them in. Coffee powder is soluble in water and is easy to prepare, but be warned that it has more caffeine content than the extract. If you choose non-roasted beans, note that they will take far longer to grind in a coffee grinder than regular beans. Letting a dash of turmeric steep for a couple of minutes in your cup of green coffee will also further elevate it to an immunity strengthening potion. If you are looking for a shot of mild caffeine to kickstart your workout, give green coffee a shot. But if you are looking for caffeine fix to kick out lethargy and get an instant boost of energy, you may be disappointed.

While there is no doubt that green coffee is more robust in bioactive phytochemicals, whether it is the ultimate weight loss miracle remains highly contested. Green coffee extracts have been used as weight loss supplements for many years, but in-depth studies are non-existent at the moment, points out Dr Kutteri. “There is literature that suggests that green coffee can lead to weight loss, but the studies conducted are not very conclusive. It also appears that a few of the studies used a particular kind of coffee extract (which was a branded product using an extract prepared with alcohol), and not just regular water-brewed green coffee; so it's not certain if it those claims are valid and reproducible with water-brewed green coffee,” says cosmetic chemist, Dr Aneesh Sheth. He agrees that it's possible that some supplements that can reproduce this extraction process can provide that effect.

Fitness chef and nutritionist Eefa Shrof says that it may be too early to have an opinion on the trend yet. “Caffeine in most forms is good to fire up the metabolic rate,” she says. So while green coffee may not be a substitute for your HIIT workout, it can possibly complement your regular diet and exercise routine well—as a good source of antioxidants and a comforting warm brew, in the very least.

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