Doctor Finds New Green Tea Benefits
The Augusta Chronicle, 06-29-05
To the touted anti-cancer benefits of drinking green tea, Stephen Hsu wants to add another: It might keep your body from turning against itself. And that could become more important as some medications are pulled off the market or required to carry warnings about heart disease.
Dr. Hsu, a researcher at Medical College of Georgia and former green tea farmer in his native China, is looking at a new area where the brew might be beneficial.
In a very preliminary study presented earlier this month at the Arthritis Foundation’s Arthritis Research Conference, Dr. Hsu found that a green tea extract called EGCG helped suppress proteins that can trigger an autoimmune response, in which the immune system attacks other cells in the body.
The benefits of green tea range from cancer prevention to cognitive enhancement. It is such a useful herb that I have been experimenting with it for several years now. It is important to get enough (at least five cups of the right green tea a day) and I have found that I do not consistently drink enough so supplements are required. In researching supplements, I have found that most do not have the desired effect. The best I have found is Life Extension Foundation Mega Green Tea Extract. It stabilizes blood sugar levels and has even altered the fat metabolism in some clients causing them to lose abdominal fat that has plagued them for years.
As a result, in addition to a high grade vitamin supplement, Transfer Factor Plus Advanced Formula, and Sears pharmaceutical grade fish oil, I recommend to everyone that they try one capsule a day in the morning of Life Extension Foundation Mega Green Tea Extract.
The Lancet Reports Extremely Positive Data on Green Tea: Modern Science Confirms the Myriad Disease-Preventive Effects of this Ancient Drink
By Stephen Laifer, LE Magazine, Jan 2005
Protecting Aging Brains
Researchers believe that green tea may slow the effects of normal aging and its associated brain regression. A 2004 study investigated the effect of long-term green tea catechin intake on aging and oxidative damage, using aged mice with cerebral atrophy and cognitive dysfunction. Catechin intake was shown to effectively suppress further atrophy and cognitive dysfunction,23 strongly suggesting that green tea can at least partially improve the negative functional alterations that occur naturally in aging brains.
Another recent clinical trial found that green tea also offers protection against brain-deteriorative functions typically associated with stroke. As noted earlier, green tea catechins have potent antioxidant properties, protecting the body from atherosclerosis, a trigger of stroke. In this recent trial, catechins were further shown to reduce both the area and volume of damage to the brain following a stroke.24 According to the research-ers, daily intake of green tea catechins adds a measurable level of protection to the brain, helping shield it from “irreversible damage due to cerebral ischemia [stroke] and consequent neurological deficits.”
Healthy Blood Sugar Levels
Green tea may help to normalize and maintain healthy blood sugar levels. Epidemiological data suggest that green tea consumption prevents type II diabetes.26 In healthy human volunteers, green tea promoted healthy glucose metabolism, as determined by oral glucose tolerance tests.26 Green tea also lowered blood glucose levels in diabetic mice without affecting serum insulin levels.26 Green tea therefore appears to have anti-hyperglycemic effects. Green tea may be a helpful agent in preventing type II diabetes and in promoting healthy glucose metabolism.