What Green Tea Can Do For You!

Taken from www.sportrontoday.com

Green tea, the ceremonial drink from the Orient that has found a heart-warming spot in Western homes for its soothing and enjoyable properties, is much more than that. A cup of tea-as well as extracts that provide concentrated forms of green tea's active ingredients-offers numerous disease-fighting properties.

The active constituents in green tea are the catechin polyphenols. Green tea catechins are potent antioxidants that provide health benefits beyond their ability to neutralize free radicals.

The ability of green tea to prevent cancer is so well established that new studies are testing green tea as a potential cancer therapy. Green tea may be especially protective against lung cancer in former and current cigarette smokers. Its lung cancer protective effects are of significant importance based on new studies showing that former smokers are at greater risk for developing lung cancer than was previously thought.

Green tea catechins have been shown to prevent cancer in the following ways:

* Helping to neutralize dietary carcinogens such as nitrosamine and aflatoxin;
* Interfering with the binding of cancer-causing agents to cellular DNA, thereby protecting cells against mutations that can eventually cause cancer;
* Protecting against free-radical DNA damage that causes some cancers;
* Inhibiting bacterial-induced DNA mutations that also can lead to certain cancers;
* Working with enzymes and other antioxidants in the intestine, liver and lungs to prevent the activation of certain carcinogens before they damage DNA; and
* Protecting against the effects of ionizing radiation and ultraviolet radiation. Green tea has been shown to counteract both the initiation and promotion of carcinogenesis. Some studies have shown that green tea blocks the formation of certain tumors. If green tea's only benefit were to reduce the risk of cancer, it would be well worth taking as a beverage or supplement.


When starch is consumed, it requires the enzyme amylase to break it down into simple sugars that can be absorbed in the blood stream. Green tea polyphenols inhibit amylase, which therefore cuts down on the harmful sugars absorbed into the blood. One study showed that just one cup of green tea inhibited amylase activity by 87 percent. Another study showed that green tea extract reduced the normal elevation of glucose and insulin when 50 grams of starch were ingested. This is good, because high blood levels of glucose and insulin predispose people to diabetes and cardiovascular disease, and are associated with accelerated aging.

For many people, sugar is the primary culprit in the accumulation of body fat. One animal study showed a significant reduction in body fat in response to green tea-catechin supplementation.

Other Health Benefits:

Green tea polyphenols are potent antioxidants, especially in the brain. Some studies show that the polyphenols most prevalent in green tea (the catechins) are far more potent in suppressing free radicals than vitamins C or E.

Green tea also can kill bacteria. Taking green tea with meals may reduce the risk of bacterial food poisoning. Green tea also is effective against a strain of staph that has become antibiotic-resistant. Green tea promotes the growth of friendly bifidobacteria in the intestine and prevents the growth of dangerous intestinal bacterial strains such as clostridia and E. coli.

In addition, the polyphenols in green tea suppress the production of an uremic toxin (methylguanidine) to improve the clinical appearance of the kidney after renal failure. A human study showed that the toxic compound methylguanidine decreased significantly one month after the administration of green tea polyphenols. Six months later, the mean methylguanidine level was about 70 percent of what it had been at the initiation of treatment.

Drinking green tea may kill oral bacteria that cause cavities and bad breath. Indeed, the Japanese drink green tea to suppress foul breath caused by certain foods. The deodorizing effect of green tea leaves has been known for centuries, and tea leaves traditionally have been used as deodorants. A study demonstrated the deodorizing action of green tea polyphenols in a test against methyl mercaptan, the compound most closely associated with halitosis. Green tea also has been shown to suppress bad smells produced by trimethylamine and ammonia.

Green tea inhibits several viruses, including viral hepatitis. High stores of iron in the liver preclude successful treatment of hepatitis C. Green tea lowers iron levels throughout the body and may have a direct anti-viral effect against certain strains of the hepatitis C virus. Excessive iron in the liver precludes successful treatment with ribavirin and interferongenerate free radicals that cause cirrhosis of the liver.

And you thought green tea was just a delightful way to relax. It is that, of course. But it is so much more.

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