Is Starbucks matcha healthy?

When we think of matcha, we definitely think healthy.

However, the bright green drink has become so popular lots of brands have jumped on the matcha train. That's got people asking 'is Starbucks matcha healthy?'.

Before we can answer is Starbuck's matcha healthy , we should look into what makes matcha overall so good to drink.

The process of growing matcha is where most of the benefits come from. The leaves are covered for 28 days before harvesting, to increase chlorophyll production.

When you drink matcha you are consuming the whole leaf ground up, and not just the leaves boiled. This means it has a much higher percentage of catechins than normal green tea.

In fact, it is estimated that for a certain catechin, matcha as up to a 13 7 times great er volume than regular green tea.

This means that including matcha in your diet, which could increase your antioxidant intake, which can help to prevent cell damage and l ower your risk of several chronic diseases.

However, this doesn't mean Starbucks matcha is healthy.

To answer the question 'is Starbucks matcha healthy?', we should first look at...

What matcha does Starbucks use?

Let's be clear. Matcha is expensive. It's approximately 10 times the price as coffee. Starbucks wouldn't be able to sell matcha at £30 a cup.

So which matcha powder does Starbucks use to combat this problem? Rather than high quality Japanese matcha, Starbucks use cheap Chinese matcha powder. With poor quality matcha, the colour of the matcha is less vibrant and the taste can be very bitter.

To mask the cheap, bitter taste, Starbucks Matcha contains added sugar. This sweetened matcha is much more palatable than if the matcha was consumed in it's normal state.

This means the powder they use actually has two ingredients: sugar and Chinese green tea powder - and the sugar makes up over 50% of the powder!

If you were to order a Starbucks iced matcha latte, you would be drinking a huge 12.4g of sugar! That's the equivalent of drinking a can of soda, completely undermining any of the associated health benefits of drinking matcha

Adding sugar to matcha powder is a way of counteracting any bitter taste and overall making matcha more palatable for a wider range of people.

fresh matcha in a espresso cup

Does Starbucks matcha have benefits?

Unfortunately, the high sugar content counteracts all the great health benefits of matcha and adding it to your diet.

A bitter taste often comes from cheap quality matcha.

This is why our matcha Nespresso pods are naturally sweeter in taste, as we only use a high quality premium matcha with the only additives in our pods being energising B Vitamins and prebiotic plant fibre (good for your gut!).

So using our matcha Nespresso pods won't just save you money, but are better for your overall health and well being.

Plus you won't be drinking any sugar, meaning they also a perfect treat for anyone following the keto diet.

By Alex Warmisham ANutr - Nutritionist at Rejuvenation Water