Jane V. Higdon and Balz Frei*Linus Pauling Institute, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331

 ABSTRACT: Increasing interest in the health benefits of tea has led to the inclusion of tea extracts in dietary supplements and functional foods. However, epidemiologic evidence regarding the effects of tea consumption on cancer and cardiovascular disease risk is conflicting. While tea contains a number of bioactive chemicals, it is particularly rich in catechins, of which epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) is the most abundant. Catechins and their derivatives are thought to contribute to the beneficial effects ascribed to tea. Tea catechins and polyphenols are effective scavengers of reactive oxygen species in vitro and may also function indirectly as antioxidants through their effects on transcription factors and enzyme activities. The fact that catechins are rapidly and extensively metabolized emphasizes the importance of demonstrating their antioxidant activity in vivo. In humans, modest transient increases in plasma antioxidant capacity have been demonstrated following the consumption of tea and green tea catechins. The effects of tea and green tea catechins on biomarkers of oxidative stress, especially oxidative DNA damage, appear very promising in animal models, but data on biomarkers of in vivo oxidative stress in humans are limited. Larger human studies examining the effects of tea and tea catechin intake on biomarkers of oxidative damage to lipids, proteins, and DNA are needed. 

“This study was a compilation of about one-hundred different studies that have investigated the general health benefits of EGCG from green tea.  The amount of data compiled from all these sources have indicated a benefit when consuming 100-200 mg EGCG per day and even more benefit to consuming 400 mg EGCG per day.  Getting the right amount is paramount to the benefits for general health.” – Josh Smith

THE JOURNAL OF ALTERNATIVE AND COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINEVolume 11, Number 3, 2005, pp. 521–528

Medicinal Benefits of Green Tea: Part I.

Review of Noncancer Health Benefits

RAYMOND COOPER, Ph.D.,1 D. JAMES MORRÉ, Ph.D.,2 and DOROTHY M. MORRÉ, Ph.D.

 ABSTRACT

Tea, in the form of green or black tea, is one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world. Extracts of tea leaves also are sold as dietary supplements. However, with the increasing interest in the health properties of tea and a significant rise in scientific investigation, this review covers recent findings on the medicinal properties and noncancer health benefits of both green and black tea. In Part II, a review of anticancer properties of green tea extracts is presented. Green tea contains a unique set of catechins that possess biological activity in antioxidant, anti-angiogenesis, and antiproliferative assays potentially relevant to the prevention and treatment of various forms of cancer. Although there has been much focus on the biological properties of the major tea catechin epigallocatechin gallate (EGCg) and its antitumor properties, tea offers other health benefits; some due to the presence of other important constituents. Characteristics unrelated to the antioxidant properties of green and black teas may be responsible for tea’s anticancer activity and improvement in cardiac health and atherosclerosis. Theanine in green tea may play a role in reducing stress. Oxidized catechins (theaflavins in black tea) may reduce cholesterol levels in blood. Synergistic properties of green tea extracts with other sources of polyphenolic constituents are increasingly recognized as being potentially important to the medicinal benefits of black and green teas.

“Increasing cardiovascular health, recuding stress levels and improving weight loss were the main questions tackled in this article.  Regular consmption of green tea extract helps improve cholesterol levels as well.  These benefits are achieved through long term use of green tea!”  – Josh Smith

Author: Suzuki, Etsuji ; Yorifuji, Takashi ; Takao, Soshi ; et al. Annals of Epidemiology Oct2009, Vol. 19 Issue 10, p732-739 8p

Description: Purpose: To investigate the association between green tea consumption and mortality from all causes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) among elderly people. Methods: In a population-based, prospective cohort study, a total of 14,001 elderly residents (aged 65-84 years), randomly chosen from all 74 municipalities in Shizuoka, Japan, completed questionnaires that included items about frequency of green tea consumption. They were followed for up to 6 years, from December 1999 to March 2006. Consequently, 12,251 subjects were analyzed to estimate the hazard ratios (HRs) for all-cause mortality, cancer, and CVD. Results: Among 64,002 person-years, 1,224 deaths were identified (follow-up rate, 71.6%). The multivariate HRs and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for CVD mortality compared those who consumed seven or more cups per day with those who consumed less than one cup per day, were 0.24 (0.14-0.40), 0.30 (0.15-0.61), and 0.18 (0.08-0.40) for total participants, men, and women, respectively. Although green tea consumption was not inversely associated with cancer mortality, green tea consumption and colorectal cancer mortality were inversely associated with a moderate dose-response relationship. Conclusions: Green tea consumption is associated with reduced mortality from all causes and CVD. This study also suggests that green tea could have protective effects against colorectal cancer.

“The conclusions from this study are bold and quite powerful!  Those who consumed 7 or more cups of fresh green tea per day had a significant decrease in the amount of all cause mortality (stroke, cancer, heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes) and cardiovascular disease.  This study followed about 13,636 people for 6 years to obtain this information.  Regular consumption of green tea has short-term and long-term health benefits.”  – Josh Smith

PHYSIOLOGY & BEHAVIOR 93 (3): 486-491 FEB 27 2008 Author: Auvichayapat, P ; Prapochanung, M ; Tunkarnnerdthai, O et al.

Description: This study was undertaken to investigate the effects of green tea on weight reduction in obese Thais.;A randomized, controlled trial involving 60 obese subjects (body mass index, BMI > 25kg/m(2)) was conducted. All subjects consumed a Thai diet containing 3 meals (8373.6kJ/day) for 12weeks, prepared by the Nutritional Unit at Srinagarind Hospital. The diet contained 65% carbohydrates, 15% protein, and 20% fat. Body weight, BMI, body composition, resting energy expenditure, and substrate oxidation were measured at baseline, and during weeks 4, 8, and 12 of the study. Serum levels of leptin and urine VMA were measured at baseline and during the 12th week. Differences over time and between the treatments (green tea or placebo) over time were determined using two-factor ANOVA with repeated measures.;In comparing the two groups, differences in weight loss were 2.70, 5.10, and 3.3kg during the 4th, 8th, and 12th weeks of the study, respectively. At the 8th and 12th weeks of the study, body weight loss was significantly different (P < 0.05). At the 8th week, the difference in resting energy expenditure was 183.38kJ/day (P < 0.001), the difference in the respiratory quotient was 0.02 (P < 0.05), and no significant differences existed in satiety score, food intake, or physical activity. Urine VMA was significantly different in the 12th week of the study (P < 0.05).;We conclude that green tea can reduce body weight in obese Thai subjects by increasing energy expenditure and fat oxidation.

“The findings of this study among obese Thai subjects found that daily consumption of green tea extract increased the amount of calories burned at rest.  Another interesting finding in this particular study is the amount of weight loss for those who consumed green tea extract for 12 weeks.  The weight loss was 7.35 pounds greater than those who didn’t use green tea extract.”  – Josh Smith

Abstract: Osteoporosis is a major health problem in both elderly women and men. Epidemiological evidence has shown an association between tea consumption and the prevention of age-related bone loss in elderly women and men. Ingestion of green tea and green tea bioactive compounds may be beneficial in mitigating bone loss of this population and decreasing their risk of osteoporotic fractures. This review describes the effect of green tea or its bioactive components on bone health, with an emphasis on (i) the prevalence and etiology of osteoporosis; (ii) the role of oxidative stress and antioxidants in osteoporosis; (iii) green tea composition and bioavailability; (iv) the effects of green tea and its active components on osteogenesis, osteoblastogenesis, and osteoclastogenesis from human epidemiological, animal, as well as cell culture studies; (v) possible mechanisms explaining the osteoprotective effects of green tea bioactive compounds; (vi) other bioactive components in tea that benefit bone health; and (vii) a summary and future direction of green tea and bone health research and the translational aspects. In general, tea and its bioactive components might decrease the risk of fracture by improving bone mineral density and supporting ostcoblastic activities while suppressing osteoclastic activities.

“Osteoporosis is not limited to one gender.  Both genders are susceptible to losing bone mass as we age.  One great way to offset this process is PINK by GreenTeaHP which contains the necessary EGCG content along with l-carnitine both promote healthy bone mass.”   – Josh Smith

Obesity (2009) doi:10.1038/oby.2009.256

Hongqiang Wang¹, Yibo Wen¹, Yaping Du¹, Xiuyuan Yan¹, Hongwei Guo², Jane A. Rycroft³, Niels Boon⁴, Eva M.R. Kovacs⁴ and David J. Mela⁴ Received 30 October 2008; Accepted 2 July 2009; Published online 13 August 2009.

Obesity is a major health problem in the developed and developing world. Many “functional” foods and ingredients are advocated for their effects on body composition but few have consistent scientific support for their efficacy. However, an increasing amount of mechanistic and clinical evidence is building for green tea (GT). This experiment was therefore undertaken to study the effects of a high-catechin GT on body composition in a moderately overweight Chinese population. In a randomized placebo-controlled trial, 182 moderately overweight Chinese subjects, consumed either two servings of a control drink (C; 30 mg catechins, 10 mg caffeine/day), one serving of the control drink and one serving of an extra high-catechin GT1 (458 mg catechins, 104 mg caffeine/day), two servings of a high-catechin GT2 (468 mg catechins, 126 mg caffeine/day) or two servings of the extra high-catechin GT3 (886 mg catechins, 198 mg caffeine/day) for 90 days. Data were collected at 0, 30, 60, and 90 days. We observed a decrease in estimated intra-abdominal fat (IAF) area of 5.6 cm² in the GT3 group. In addition, we found decreases of 1.9 cm in waist circumference and 1.2 kg body weight in the GT3 group vs. C (P < 0.05). We also observed reductions in total body fat (GT2, 0.7 kg, P < 0.05) and body fat % (GT1, 0.6%, P < 0.05). We conclude that consumption of two servings of an extra high-catechin GT leads to improvements in body composition and reduces abdominal fatness in moderately overweight Chinese subjects.

“What an interesting study!  The moral of the story here is that ingesting 400-800 mg of EGCG per day results in a reduction of weight and waist.  An additional insight here is that majority of individuals who lose weight (more than 10 lbs) will gain it all back in 5 years.  The secret is to have a long term contingency plan that will help you keep the weight off.  My recommendation is to use one Peach Cream, one Muscle Pump and a Beauty Tea each day!” – Josh Smith

Published in HortScience 44: 15-19 (2009)American Society for Horticultural Science

Declining Fruit and Vegetable Nutrient Composition: What Is the Evidence?

Donald R. Davis Biochemical Institute, The University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712; and Bio-Communications Research Institute, 3100 North Hillside Avenue, Wichita, KS 67219

“Three kinds of evidence point toward declines of some nutrients in fruits and vegetables available in the United States and the United Kingdom: 1) early studies of fertilization found inverse relationships between crop yield and mineral concentrations. The widely cited “dilution effect”; 2) three recent studies of historical food composition data found apparent median declines of 5% to 40% or more in some minerals in groups of vegetables and perhaps fruits; one study also evaluated vitamins and protein with similar results; and 3) recent side-by-side plantings of low- and high-yield cultivars of broccoli and grains found consistently negative correlations between yield and concentrations of minerals and protein, a newly recognized genetic dilution effect. Studies of historical food composition data are inherently limited, but the other methods can focus on single crops of any kind, can include any nutrient of interest, and can be carefully controlled. They can also test proposed methods to minimize or overcome the diluting effects of yield whether by environmental means or by plant breeding.”

In other words the 20% percent of the population that actually eats what they’re supposed to, now will need to eat more to offset the decline in nutrient content. Which adds calories…the solution…GreenTea HP! Concentrated antioxidants with minerals to compensate for the decrease in our food!  Josh Smith