After going viral on social media in the early to mid 2020s, matcha – a traditional Japanese green tea drink – now has a ubiquitous presence in many cafes and even bakeries. Popular for its aesthetic green color and unique earthy taste, matcha’s global market has exploded over a short period of time and was estimated to be worth 5.07 billion USD in 2025 (Grand View Research, 2023). Along with its popularity, there has been growing interest in its potential health benefits.
In fact, recent research has suggested that matcha may actually have several health benefits – such as increasing cognitive performance, decreasing stress and anxiety, and even reducing inflammation.
What is matcha exactly?
Matcha is the powdered form of Japanese green tea and has been mostly consumed in traditional settings as well as incorporated into many food items. Originating from the Camellia sinensis plant, it has been traditionally cultivated by shielding the tea bushes from the sun using bamboo mats and steamed afterwards to prevent oxidation (Sokary et al., 2023). This process allows for higher production of amino acids and compounds like chlorophyll, which gives matcha its dark and vibrant green color as well as umami flavor (Sokary et al., 2023).
In addition, matcha’s chemical composition consists of polyphenols (aka very powerful antioxidants), catechins, caffeine, and phenolic acids. It also contains theanine, which is a non-protein amino acid that is known to have anti-stress effects (Baba et al., 2021). Notably, it is believed that the combination of theanine and caffeine in matcha, which is not found in coffee, helps improve attention (Baba et al., 2021).
Benefits of Matcha
A recent study researched the effects of matcha on executive functioning such as attention (Baba et al., 2021). The participants were randomly assigned to three groups, which were placebo, caffeine, and matcha (Baba et al., 2021). They consumed 9 pills – either placebo, caffeine, or matcha – for 12 weeks every morning and afterwards, were tested on several skills (i.e., memory, facial expression recognition, attention, etc.) using a set of cognitive tests (Baba et al., 2021). The results from this experiment found that the matcha group demonstrated significantly lower reaction times and increased perception of emotion (Baba et al., 2021). In addition, the same group conducted another experiment to observe the effects of matcha under mildly stressful conditions. They found that continuous consumption of matcha helped improve performance under stress (Baba et al., 2021).
Another study conducted an experiment that examined matcha’s effect in mice exposed to air pollution. All mice were exposed to particulate matter before the experiment. The experimental group of mice were given 20 or 40 mg/kg of matcha, which was based on body weight (Jong Min Kim et al., 2021). Afterwards, it was found that matcha helped to alleviate inflammation (Jong Min Kim et al., 2021). The researchers also found that the experimental (matcha) group was protected from antioxidant deficits in several tissues of the body (Jong Min Kim et al., 2021).
Conclusion
Beyond its trendiness and aesthetic, matcha can be described as a delicious concoction of various nutrients, ranging from antioxidants to amino acids that help prevent inflammation and even reduce stress. So the next time you find yourself stressed or need to sharpen your attention skills, head on to a nearby cafe and try a matcha!
References
Baba, Y., Inagaki, S., Nakagawa, S., Kobayashi, M., Kaneko, T., & Takihara, T. (2021). Effects of Daily Matcha and Caffeine Intake on Mild Acute Psychological Stress-Related Cognitive Function in Middle-Aged and Older Adults: A Randomized Placebo-Controlled Study. Nutrients, 13(5), 1700. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13051700
Grand View Research. (2023). Matcha Market Size, Share | Global Industry Trends Report, 2018 – 2025. Www.grandviewresearch.com. https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/matcha-market
Jong Min Kim, Jin Yong Kang, Seon Kyeong Park, Jong Hyun Moon, Min Ji Kim, Hyo Lim Lee, Hye Rin Jeong, Jong Cheol Kim, & Ho Jin Heo. (2021). Powdered Green Tea (Matcha) Attenuates the Cognitive Dysfunction via the Regulation of Systemic Inflammation in Chronic PM2.5-Exposed BALB/c Mice. Antioxidants, 10(12), 1932–1932. https://doi.org/10.3390/antiox10121932
Kochman, J., Jakubczyk, K., Antoniewicz, J., Mruk, H., & Janda, K. (2020). Health Benefits and Chemical Composition of Matcha Green Tea: A Review. Molecules, 26(1), 85. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules26010085
Sokary, S., Al-Asmakh, M., Zakaria, Z., & Bawadi, H. (2023). The therapeutic potential of matcha tea: A critical review on human and animal studies. Current Research in Food Science, 6, 100396. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crfs.2022.11.015
Uchida, K., Meno, K., Tatsumi Korenaga, Liu, S., Suzuki, H., Baba, Y., Tagata, C., Araki, Y., Shuto Tsunemi, Aso, K., Inagaki, S., Nakagawa, S., Kobayashi, M., Tatsuyuki Kakuma, Asada, T., Ota, M., Takanobu Takihara, & Arai, T. (2024). Effect of matcha green tea on cognitive functions and sleep quality in older adults with cognitive decline: A randomized controlled study over 12 months. PLoS ONE, 19(8), e0309287–e0309287. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0309287
