All About Green Tea And Polyphenols

-A discovery is said to be an accident meeting a prepared mind, Albert von Szent-Gyorgyi (1893 - 1986)
By the way, have I said how much I passionately enjoy green tea, the personal benefits I have witnessed from green tea and what a fantastic unearthing this ‘ancient medicine' is for modern western living? Or as I like to say… When the student is ready, the teacher shall appear!
After a good deal of research, I have found that there isn't any other food or drink in general consumption reported to have the innumerable health benefits that green tea possesses...none!
And did you know that green tea has been used as a medicine in China for over 4,000 years… When will we westerners learn? The Chinese have known about the medicinal benefits of green tea since ancient times, using it to treat everything from headaches and lethargia to depression.
For instance, in 1994 the Journal of the National Cancer Institute published the results of an epidemiological study demonstrating that drinking green tea lowers total cholesterol levels, as well as improving the ratio of good (HDL) cholesterol to bad (LDL) cholesterol. At present, in both Asia and America, scientific research is providing a more than solid substantiation for the health benefits long associated with drinking green tea.
To abridge just a few of the medical conditions in which drinking green tea has proved to be helpful:
impaired immune system function
cardiovascular disease
cancer
rheumatoid arthritis
elevated cholesterol levels
numerous types of infections
muscle wasting diseases
Quite startling, don't you think? The preceding takes on added importance when you consider that thrombosis (the formation of abnormal blood clots) is the foremost cause of heart attacks and stroke. It has also been exceedingly effective in lowering LDL cholesterol levels, and inhibiting the abnormal formation of blood clots.

EGCG is a powerful anti-oxidant: besides inhibiting the growth of cancer cells, it kills cancer cells without harming healthy tissue. Green tea's ‘secret' lies in the fact it is rich in catechin polyphenols, particularly epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG).
For The Record Books…
In a 1997 study, researchers from the University of Kansas concluded that EGCG is twice as powerful as resveratrol, which may explain why the rate of heart disease among Japanese men is significantly low, even though in excess of seventy-five percent are smokers. The answer was found to lie in red wine, which contains resveratrol, a polyphenol that limits the negative effects of smoking and a fatty diet. In a 1997 study, researchers from the University of Kansas concluded that EGCG is twice as powerful as resveratrol, which may explain why the rate of heart disease than Americans.

The answer was found to lie in red wine, which contains resveratrol, a polyphenol that limits the negative effects of smoking and a fatty diet. Correlates are being drawn between the effects of drinking green tea and the "French Paradox." For years, researchers were mystified by the fact that, despite consuming a diet rich in saturated fat, the French have a lower incidence of heart disease than Americans.
What sets green tea apart is the way it is processed.In particular, green tea leaves are processed from fermented leaves, which results in the EGCG being transformed into other compounds that are not nearly as effective in preventing and fighting various conditions and diseases. Green, oolong, and black teas all come from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant. So why don't other Chinese teas have similar earth-shaking health benefits?
Some Additional Benefits…
The latest evidence emerging is that green tea can even help dieters attain success more rapidly an efficiently. In November, 1999, the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition published the results of a study at the University of Geneva in Switzerland. Researchers found that men who were given a combination of caffeine and green tea extract burned more calories than those given only caffeine or a placebo.
Meanwhile, skin preparations containing green tea - from deodorants to creams - are starting to appear on the market showing positive effects. Just as its bacteria-destroying abilities can help prevent food poisoning, it can also kill the bacterium that causes dental plaque. Incidentally, green tea can even help prevent tooth decay!
The Potential Unsafe Effects?
in eight ounces of coffee and can you imagine the huge contrast in caffeine content between green tea and these ‘new' high-tech energy drinks that are currently being consumed by the masses with such ravenous voracity. in eight ounces of tea, compared to over one-hundred mg. of caffeine in six - eight ounces of tea, compared to over one-hundred mg.

On the other hand, green tea contains much less caffeine than coffee and most soda: there are approximately thirty to sixty mg. As of today, the only adverse side effect reported from drinking green tea is mild insomnia due to the fact that it contains caffeine.
Green Tea Polyphenols, What Are They You Ask?
Antioxidants have been proven to prevent damage caused by free radicals to DNA and other molecules. Specifically, tea polyphenols are compounds in tea leaves that are natural plant antioxidants.
How Do They Work?
In addition to antioxidant activity, these compounds may as previously mentioned have shown to reduce abnormal cell growth and inflammation; help the body get rid of cancer-causing agents; and restore communication between different cells in the body. Green tea polyphenols have corroborated several cancer preventive properties.
On Cancer… The Facts
Both EGCG and Polyphenon E are being tested for safety and efficacy in humans. Animal studies were inconclusive as to whether EGCG or Polyphenol E caused DNA mutations that might trigger cancer growth. A polyphenol mixture with EGCG, called Polyphenon E, has also shown cancer preventive properties in animals.

The purified component, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), prevented colon cancer, but did not prevent cancer of the esophagus in animal models. In animal studies, different tea extracts, tea polyphenol mixtures, purified tea components, and tea infusions as the sole drinking fluid have more consistently been shown to prevent cancer, including cancers of the colon, esophagus, liver, stomach, lung, breast, pancreas, and skin. Certain dietary, environmental, and population differences may account for these discrepancies. Some of the studies comparing green tea drinkers to non-green tea drinkers support the claim that green tea-drinking, in fact prevents certain types of cancer. The relationship between green tea consumption and human cancer has been studied in several different populations and at various cancer sites.
Slower Prostate Cancer Cell Growth Found From Consumption Of Green And Black Tea
Serum from men who drank comparable amounts of diet or regular soda showed no such slowing in cancer cell proliferation. More notably, the scientists found that prostate cancer cells grew more slowly when placed in a medium containing blood serum of men who had consumed either green or black tea for five days compared to serum collected before the men began their tea-drinking regimen. A study at The Experimental Biology 2004, in Washington, D.C., reported as part of the scientific program of the American Society of Nutritional Sciences, anti-tumor effects of green and black tea polyphenols in prostate tissue after a very limited consumption of the tea.
Consequently, Dr. Susanne Henning, UCLA Center for Human Nutrition, pronounced that the UCLA research team - a combination of nutrition scientists and urologists - focused on the feasible outcome of tea polyphenols on factors named polyamines and the enzymes responsible for the production of polyamines. Elevated levels of polyamines have been connected with malignancy in humans, including prostate cancer, and - since polyamines are current in prostate tissue in high concentration - are considered a logical target for chemoprevention of prostate cancer.
Prostate cancer is one of the most widespread cancers among males in the United States, and more than a fourth of all those patients with prostate cancer are known to use alternative therapies, including green tea. This study suggests that both black and green tea are promising natural dietary supplements useful for chemoprevention of prostate cancer, according to Dr. Henning. She plans to investigate if this effect can be enhanced by consuming larger amounts of tea polyphenols in the form of green tea extract supplement capsules.
So If It's That Good, How Much Should I Drink?
Strangely enough, there are as many answers to this question as there are researchers investigating the beneficial properties of green tea per day stayed cancer-free for three years longer than men who drank less than three cups a day (there are approximately 240 - 320 mg of polyphenols in three cups of green tea).
Meanwhile, a study by Cleveland's Western Reserve University concluded that drinking four or more cups of green tea daily.
If you're a real aficionado, by all means imbibe more; but whether or not you'll derive added health benefits remains to be determined. But given all the evidence, it is almost certainly safe to plan on drinking four to five cups of green tea daily. I personally don't buy the hype that those that manufacture and sell green tea products are propagating…moderation is, like with all things probably your best bet!

So which is it? A University of California study on the cancer-preventative qualities of green tea concluded that you could probably attain the desired level of polyphenols by drinking merely two cups per day.
Okay, enough science… Let's all just relax and have a cup of green tea or if you like your beverages cold like I do, a glass of ‘iced' green tea.
-To Your Absolute Health, Kurt Lee Hurley

Healthy Reasons Why You Should Drink Green Tea

Green tea has been used as a medicine in China for at least 4,000 years. The Chinese have been using it since ancient times for treating everything from headaches to depression. Did you ever realize that simply by drinking two cups of green tea can actually save you from so many health problems?
The process:
It is believed that they stimulate the spirit better than any other blend thus improving the abilities to think and meditate for prolonged periods without fatigue. Green teas are rich in vitamin C. This is very different to how green tea is processed today. It was then transferred out of the mould, dried in the sun, and baked to prevent rotting.

After that the tea was pressed and left to harden. Then this mud was placed into moulds. At the time of Tang Dynasty wild tea was gathered and then processed which involved steaming the tea on a bamboo tray and grinding the tea into a fine pulp called tea mud. China produces the world's finest green teas. The Chinese are said to be the first ones to discover tea.
Benefits of Green Tea:
It has also been effective in inhibiting the abnormal formation of blood clots. There is also research indicating that drinking green tea lowers total cholesterol levels, as well as improving the ratio of good (HDL) cholesterol to bad (LDL) cholesterol. The reason being that green tea is rich in catechin polyphenols, particularly EGCG-Epigallocatechin Gallate which is a powerful anti-oxidant: besides inhibiting the growth of cancer cells, it kills cancer cells without harming healthy tissue. There is also research indicating that drinking green tea reduced the risk of esophageal cancer in Chinese men and women by nearly sixty percent.

The reason being that green tea is rich in catechin polyphenols, particularly EGCG-Epigallocatechin Gallate which is a powerful anti-oxidant: besides inhibiting the growth of cancer cells, it kills cancer cells without harming healthy tissue. According to a research it has been estimated that drinking green tea reduced the risk of esophageal cancer in Chinese men and women by nearly sixty percent.
Apart from this green tea has been claimed to be good for:
• Stopping certain neurodegenerative illnesses such as Alzheimer
• Preventing/ treating cancer
• Burning fat and increasing metabolism
• Treating rheumatoid arthritis
• Treating Cognition
• Lowering high cholesterol levels
• Treating cardiovascular disease
• Treating infection
• For impaired immune function
• Prevent tooth decay
How much should one take?
Different researchers claim different estimation of how much green tea should one consume. Some say that drinking ten cups of green tea per day would help you stay cancer-free for three years longer than if you drink less than three cups a day .Meanwhile, another study suggests that drinking four or more cups of green tea per day could help prevent rheumatoid arthritis, or reduce symptoms in individuals already suffering from the disease. It is also reported that breast cancer spreads less quickly, in women with a history of drinking five cups or more of green tea daily. A University of California study on the cancer-preventative qualities of green tea concluded that you could probably attain the desired level of polyphenols by drinking merely two cups per day. As green tea does not have any known side effects so you can drink according to what you think is the right amount for you.
On the other hand black and oolong tea leaves are made from fermented leaves, as a result of which the EGCG compound gets converted into other compounds which is not effective in preventing and fighting various diseases. Then they are rolled by hand to squeeze out excess moisture and to release flavor enzymes. On the other hand black and oolong tea leaves are made from fermented leaves, as a result of which the EGCG compound from being oxidized.

Then they are rolled by hand to squeeze out excess moisture and to release flavor enzymes. The tea leaves used for green tea are steamed or pan-dried immediately after picking, arresting bacterial growth and thus preventing the EGCG compound from being oxidized. Green tea has so many health benefits though Green, oolong, and black teas all come from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant so what sets green tea apart from the other teas is the way it is processed.
So, get your green tea today and enjoy your drink!!

The Many Benefits of Green Tea Extract

The Benefits of Green Tea Extract: Anti-Aging, Anti-Cancer, Weight Control
Green tea: Here are just a few. One of the great advancements in nutrition in the twenty-first century is the scientific confirmation of the many benefits of green tea extract.
Lowers cholesterol
Slows arthritis
Prevents the growth of cancer cells
Assists weight loss
What accounts for the health benefits of green tea extract? Over 1,800 scientific studies have found that the active constituents in green tea are powerful antioxidants. These are called polyphenols (catechins) and flavonols. Epigallocatechin gallate (you can just call it EGCG) is the most powerful of these antioxidants.
Milligram for milligram, EGCG has 25 to 100 times the antioxidant power of vitamins C and E. A cup of green tea has more antioxidants than a serving of broccoli, spinach, carrots or strawberries.


These abundant antioxidants power the benefits of green tea extract. They keep DNA intact and they stabilize the membranes of cells. These effects of green tea make it a powerful support in many health conditions. Let's look at the benefits of green tea supplements in more detail.


Green tea has been shown to lower "bad" LDL cholesterol and serum triglyceride levels.


Who would have imagined that simple green tea could be as potent as Lipitor or Zocor or Crestin with none of their side effects? Scientific studies show that middle-aged men and women in Japan who drink 2 or more cups of green tea a day almost always have normal cholesterol. Scientists have also recently reported that if you drink green tea after you eat a fatty food, less cholesterol will go into you bloodstream.


And if you have high cholesterol when you begin taking green tea supplements, your body will convert less of it into a form that clogs your arteries.


Green tea protects your joints against osteoarthritis.


This is one of the least known but most beneficial effects of green tea extract. Green tea prevents inflammation. When there is less inflammation, there is less wear and tear on your joints.


Green tea prevents the growth of cancer cells.


The EGCG in green tea prevents cancer cells from growing by binding to a specific enzyme. This health benefit of green tea is especially important in cancers of the prostate, breast, and lung.


Researchers studied two groups of men who a pre-cancerous condition of the prostate. One consumed the equivalent of 12 to 15 cups of green tea a day. One did not. One year later, 30% of the men who did not consume green tea supplements developed prostate cancer. Only 3% of the men who took green tea supplements developed cancer.


Another of the benefits of green tea extract is support for women who have breast cancer. Green tea provides chemicals that bind estrogen. This hormone is not then free to stimulate breast cancer cells.


Women who consume the greatest amount of green tea before menopause have the least severe forms of breast cancer when the disease occurs. Women who drink green tea are less likely to have recurrences of breast cancer after treatment. And most important of all, women who consume green tea are 50% less likely to develop breast cancer at all.


Another of the benefits of green tea extract is protection against lung cancer.
The Japanese have both the highest rate of smoking and the lowest rate of lung cancer in the developed world. Japanese smokers who consume a lot of green tea seem to be protected against lung cancer.


And green tea can even help you lose weight. In a clinical trial, men eating a high-fat diet were given enough green tea provide the caffeine in a single cup of coffee. Although this amount of caffeine has no effect on weight loss, when the caffeine comes from green tea, it is highly significant.


The green tea supplement boosted the number of calories burned by 4.5%. While this is just 135 calories a day, the study showed that taking green supplements could help the average man on a high-fat diet lose 18 lbs (8 kg) in a year's time. It could help the average woman on a high-fat diet lose 11 pounds (5 kg). This is without eating less or exercising more.



How Can I Take Green Tea?



The benefits of green tea extract are greatest if you take green tea supplements rather than drink green tea. A study in the December 2004 edition of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition confirmed that green supplements get more antioxidants into your bloodstream that drinking green tea. Two capsules of green tea extract a day can provide all the benefits of 20 cups of green tea-all you need to support even difficult health conditions.


Green tea is safe and effective. Take 1 to 3 capsules of green extract every day. It is better to take green tea supplements in the morning or afternoon rather than at night. In the unlikely event of stomach upset, take with food.
Oktay Özadam has an avid interest in health and well-being and is a senior editor of
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