A mild boost to your weight loss efforts may be brewing in your teapot.

In a small study, Japanese researchers recently noted that adding catechin-rich green tea to the daily diet mildly boosted weight loss efforts in a group of men. Catechins -- a type of antioxidant -- also are purported to provide heart-health benefits. Other sources of catechins include grapes, wine, chocolate, berries, and apples.

The best way to lose weight is to control your calorie intake and increase the number of calories you burn each week through extra physical activity. A nutritionally balanced diet that doesn't exclude food groups or discourage healthy eating patterns is your best bet. Boosting your metabolism with muscle-building exercises will make weight loss easier as well. If your weight loss efforts have stalled, consider revising your workout schedule to increase the aerobic portion of your workout. Or, focus on other goals in addition to weight, such as body fat measurements or body size measurements; sometimes improvements in these areas are not apparent on the bathroom scale.

Ingestion of a tea rich in catechins leads to a reduction in body fat and malondialdehyde-modified LDL in men. Nagao, T., Komine, Y., Soga, S., Meguro, S., Hase, T., Tanaka, Y., Tokimitsu, I., American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2005 Jan;81(1):122-129.