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Is any other food or drink reported to have as many health benefits as green tea? The Chinese have known about the medicinal benefits of green tea since ancient times, using it to treat everything from headaches to depression. In her book Green Tea: The Natural Secret for a Healthier Life, Nadine Taylor states that green tea has been used as a medicine in China for at least 4,000 years.
Today, scientific research in both Asia and the west is providing hard evidence for the health benefits long associated with drinking green tea. For example, in 1994 the Journal of the National Cancer Institute published the results of an epidemiological study indicating that drinking green tea reduced the risk of esophageal cancer in Chinese men and women by nearly sixty percent. University of Purdue researchers recently concluded that a compound in green tea inhibits the growth of cancer cells. 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.
To sum up, here are just a few medical conditions in which drinking green tea is reputed to be helpful:
cancer
rheumatoid arthritis
high cholesterol levels
cariovascular disease
infection
impaired immune function
What makes GT so special?
The secret of GT lies in the fact it is rich in catechin polyphenols, particularly epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). EGCG is a powerful anti-oxidant: besides inhibiting the growth of cancer cells, it kills cancer cells without harming healthy tissue. It has also been effective in lowering LDL cholesterol levels, and inhibiting the abnormal formation of blood clots. The latter takes on added importance when you consider that thrombosis (the formation of abnormal blood clots) is the leading cause of heart attacks and stroke.
Links are being made between the effects of drinking GT and the “French Paradox.” For years, researchers were puzzled by the fact that, despite consuming a diet rich in fat, the French have a lower incidence 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. In a 1997 study, researchers from the University of Kansas determined that EGCG is twice as powerful as resveratrol, which may explain why the rate of heart disease among Japanese men is quite low, even though approximately seventy-five percent are smokers.
Why don’t other Chinese teas have similar health-giving properties? Green, oolong, and black teas all come from the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant. What sets GT apart is the way it is processed. G.T. leaves are steamed, which prevents the EGCG compound from being oxidized. By contrast, black and oolong tea leaves are made from fermented leaves, which results in the EGCG being converted into other compounds that are not nearly as effective in preventing and fighting various diseases.
Other Benefits
New evidence is emerging that G.T. can even help dieters. 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 G.T. extract burned more calories than those given only caffeine or a placebo.
G.T. can even help prevent tooth decay! Just as its bacteria-destroying abilities can help prevent food poisoning, it can also kill the bacteria that causes dental plaque. Meanwhile, skin preparations containing g.t. - from deodorants to creams - are starting to appear on the market.
Harmful Effects?
To date, the only negative side effect reported from drinking g.t. is insomnia due to the fact that it contains caffeine. However, g.t. contains less caffeine than coffee: there are approximately thirty to sixty mg. of caffeine in six - eight ounces of tea, compared to over one-hundred mg. in eight ounces of coffee.

Adapted from www.cityslim.com

Everywhere you turn these days, you can easily find yourself bombarded with campaigns advising you to “Go Green.” Go green to save the environment, to conserve energy… but to stop cancer? Yes, that’s right. Now, you can go green (in terms of your tea selection) to save, well… yourself!

Green tea stands apart from other teas due to its possession of a special ingredient: EGCG, or Epigallocatechin-3-gallate. This biologically-active constituent of green tea imparts numerous health benefits to its drinkers, such as alleviating rheumatoid arthritis, improving the ratio of good (HDL) cholesterol to bad (LDL) cholesterol, preventing cardiovascular disease and infection, and improving impaired immune function.[i] However, the most compelling evidence of the powers of EGCG becomes evident when examining its effects on various types of cancers.

A powerful antioxidant, EGCG has been shown to inhibit growth of ovarian cancer cells and sensitize them to certain anticancer drugs.[ii] In the laboratory where I work at Columbia University, studies have recently been published examining the mechanism by which EGCG inhibits colon cancer cell lines in vitro.[iii] Moreover, our laboratory was the first to propose a novel mechanism by which EGCG exerts anticancer effects in various experimental systems. EGCG has been proposed to target multiple components in cancer cell membranes, thereby disrupting several aspects of membrane organization and function.[iv] Myriad other laboratory studies demonstrate the natural anti-cancer effect of EGCG in the inhibition of the growth and development of tumors in a vast array of human cancers.

Overall, the results of EGCG’s anticancer effects look promising. However, Dr. I Bernard Weinstein, Director Emeritus of the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Research Center (ICRC) and head of an ICRC oncology laboratory, advises that before we can go around telling people to drink tea, more studies are needed on smaller doses. “The doses our laboratory works with are very high; the amount of EGCG we use would be the equivalent of about 8-10 cups of tea.” While we cannot be sure that the benefits of EGCG hold true for lower doses, the live-saving potential of EGCG certainly exists.

Not a fan of drinking tea? You can still get your fix of EGCG without the brew!

Here’s how:

Kashi Heart to Heart Toasted Oat Cereal

I’ve been eating Kashi’s tasty Heart to Heart Toasted Oat Cereal for years, but I have only recently discovered the “green tea extract” hidden amongst the other heart-healthy ingredients on the nutrition panel. Eat your EGCG daily with this crunchy, honey-sweetened breakfast. Bonus: Heart to Heart also includes the anti-oxidants beta-carotene, grapeseed extract, lycopene, and vitamin E. Approximately $3.75/box.

T Bar

Made by the Tze The company, this nutrition bar boasts 130 mg of EGCG and 4 g of fiber, with a Rice Krispy Treat-esque consistency. Three grams of green tea leaves combined with brown rice and other whole grains give an earthy, but sweet, taste to this healthy treat. Approx. $18/dozen.

Luna Tea Cakes

With 130 calories and 1.5 g of fat and described as a “cross between a cookie and an energy bar,” Luna Tea Cakes are baked with green tea. The vanilla-macadamia variety has over 80 mg of EGCG, as well as about 3 g each of protein and fiber. Approx. $16/dozen.

And finally, a company called Neuchatel produces Green Tea Chocolates, containing EGCG extract from Green Tea. However, Neuchatel has informed me that their chocolates, which come in varieties such as Dark Swiss Chocolate and Sugar-Free Milk Chocolate are created especially for people with cancer. These chocolates contain very high EGCG concentrations and are not recommended for the general public.

In the wise words of an ancient Chinese proverb: “Better to go three days without food than one without tea.” Go green!

READ MORE ON WWW.CITYSLIM.COM

[i]http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0846/is_7_26/ai_n18629771

[ii] Chan MM, Soprano KJ, Weinstein K, Fong D. Epigallocatechin-3-gallate delivers hydrogen peroxide to induce death of ovarian cancer cells and enhances their cisplatin susceptibility. J Cell Physiol. 2006 May;207(2):389-96.

[iii], [iv] Adachi S, et al. The inhibitory effect of (-)-epigallocatechin gallate on activation of the epidermal growth factor receptor is associated with altered lipid order in HT29 colon cancer cells. Cancer Res. 2007 Jul 1;67(13):6493-501.

In this straight-forward reading, The Best Darn Book About Nutrition and Health, Dorothy Ziegler shows you how to: * Distinguish between nutrition and myth * Pinpoint nutritional areas in your life to change for the better * Learn what foods are healthy and when to eat them * Avoid the habits that keep you from becoming healthier and happier * Resist society pressures which unconsciously make you unhealthy * Change and maintain an active lifestyle with little sacrifice * And more

About the Author
Dorothy Ziegler, R.D. is a lecturer at Santa Ana College in southern California. She is a consultant and speaker to various organizations and corporations. Dororthy is a graduate of the Eastern Michigan Dietetics Prog (more…)