With an earthy smell and a bitter aftertaste strong enough to make you want to pour it down the sink, you’d be forgiven for assuming mate is your average herbal tea.
But this powerful drink, highly prized in Argentina, where it is more popular than coffee, cannot be compared to the common green teas sold in British supermarkets.
Its proponents argue that it has miraculous effects on weight loss, and marketers boast that it has the dual effects of making you feel full faster and speeding up your metabolism to burn fat.
And there could be some truth to those claims, experts say.
Perhaps what fuels its superpower claims is that, seemingly out of nowhere, mate (pronounced ma-teh) has become a “footballer’s best friend,” in the words of Argentina’s own tourism board.
Lionel Messi is well known for his love of mate tea and is often seen drinking it during matches.
The traditional South American hot drink, made from the yerba mate plant, is loaded with antioxidants and has as much caffeine as coffee.
Lionel Messi, arguably the sport’s greatest player, has become something of an ambassador for the drink, often posting photos of himself with a freshly made jug, sometimes even complete with the bulb (a special metal straw that ” filters” the drink). from the ground leaves of the yerba mate plant itself).
Its undeniable power of attraction is such that even football icon David Beckham, 36-year-old co-owner of Messi’s current club, Inter Miami, allowed himself to be convinced to try it…
Weeks after securing the Argentine World Cup winner’s signature, Beckham posted a photo of himself drinking mate through a light bulb on Instagram with the caption: “If it’s good enough for Leo.”
But it’s not just Messi. His compatriots Ángel Di María and Sergio Agüero are also said to be mate lovers, as are Uruguayan stars Luis Suárez and Edinson Cavani and European players such as Antoine Griezmann and Paul Pogba.
The reason for Suárez and Cavani’s consumption is obvious. Gourds (the container in which mate is made) are common in homes in Uruguay, Paraguay, and parts of Brazil, Bolivia, and southern Chile.
The tea that Sergio Agüero, in the photo, also drinks has become the “footballer’s best friend”, in the words of Argentina’s own tourist office.
But now it is emerging across Europe, driven by the influence of South American footballers.
Former Spurs defender Eric Dier, a regular name in the England squad, revealed he was a “bit addicted” to mate in the run-up to the 2018 World Cup in Russia, saying the Argentine contingent integrated into the Tottenham (including then-coach Mauricio Pochettino) had hooked him. His teammate Dele Alli was also a fan.
So, is it really a footballer’s ‘secret weapon’? And will mate give you the boost you so need?
Packed with caffeine, it provides a coffee-like energy boost, with around 80mg of punch per 150ml. However, unlike coffee, its proponents often say that they don’t feel the same “crash” after drinking mate.
In addition to getting a boost of energy, swapping your morning cup of coffee for mate can also help you lose a few pounds.
David Beckham has also shared images of himself drinking the green drink on social media.
Researchers in Brazil said in 2019 that the green drink has “anti-obesity” properties.
Meanwhile, a South Korean from 2015 study found that overweight people who took yerba mate capsules every day could lose up to 0.7 kg (1.5 pounds).
Other articles have discovered similar benefits. For example, a 2018 study in Norway tested the supplement on 11 male cyclists and found that it increased the amount of fat burned when exercising.
But although it’s full of antioxidants and other stimulants, mate’s effects on weight loss could also be due to caffeine, according to dietician Dr Duane Mellor, from Aston University.
He said: ‘There is one published study that looked at exercise-related fat metabolism, using young people who were considered to have a healthy body weight.
‘They were given a placebo or yerba mate tea (1,000 mg), which contains about 1.5 percent caffeine.
“Caffeine is known to support fat metabolism during exercise and it is unclear whether it is the tea or the caffeine added to the capsule that has the effect.”
Packed with caffeine, it provides a coffee-like energy boost, with around 80mg of punch per 150ml.
Caffeine achieves this by raising adrenaline levels, which promotes the breakdown of fatty tissue.
Mate is also rich in polyphenols, powerful compounds from fruits and vegetables that some studies suggest stimulate metabolism.
Dr Mellor said: “There are many claims relating to natural caffeine and antioxidants also found in regular tea and coffee.
“The problem with claims about antioxidants is that our body often absorbs them poorly, so the effects seen in the laboratory cannot be replicated in the same way in our body.”
Unless you really enjoy drinking mate, you may not get much benefit from going to the gym and eating healthy anyway.
“Healthy diet and exercise will do most of the work in helping someone lose weight; it might be something that someone thinks will help, but the actual effect will be minimal,” Dr. Mellor said.
“The important thing is to focus on the overall healthy balance of diet and exercise.”
