Green Tea:Storm Brewing in a Tea Cup

According to legend, around 2700 B.C. a Chinese emperor sat under a tea shrub, and a few leaves fell into his cup of hot water. Eureka! Green tea was born. Now, modern research has found that this type of tea contains one of the most promising anticancer compounds ever discovered. 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.

Magic that EGCG weaves

What makes green tea a healing herb and distinctly different from its close cousin black tea is the availability of large amounts of super anti-oxidant epigallocatechin gallate-EGCG. The way its processed makes all the difference. Whereas, black and oolong tea are fermented, green tea is steamed which retains the mega anti-oxidant EGCG. This antioxidant not only inhibits the growth of cancer cells but also kills cancer cells without harming the healthy tissue.

Sip on green tea for a steady heartbeat

EGCG is effective in lowering LDL—unhealthy cholesterol levels, the cholesterol that sticks to your arteries and also inhibits abnormal formation of blood clots, which is the leading cause of heart attack and stroke.

What red wine is to French, green tea is to Japanese.

For long researchers have been intrigued by the fact that French despite consuming a diet rich in fat have a lower incidence of heart disease. The answer is red wine, which has reservatrol, 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 reservatrol, which may explain why Japanese men have lower risk of heart disease, though approximately 75 per cent of them are smokers.

Dieters delight

New evidence is emerging that green tea 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 green tea extract burned more calories than those given only caffeine or a placebo.

Prevent tooth decay

Green tea can even help prevent tooth decay! Just as its bacteria-destroying abilities can help prevent food poisoning, it can also kill the bacteria that cause dental plaque. Meanwhile, skin preparations containing green tea – from deodorants to creams – are starting to appear on the market.

Defeat arthritis

If you are a sufferer you know how painful it is to move with an arthritic knee. Studies also suggest green tea may help prevent or ease symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis. In one study of induced arthritis in mice, green tea cut the disease onset rate almost in half.

You can get the benefits of green tea either by taking green tea capsules or tablets, or by drinking several cups of the brew each day. Your aim should be to get 240 to 320 mg of polyphenols

Guidelines for use

• Take green tea supplements at meals with a full glass of water. Drink freshly brewed green tea on its own or with meals. To make tea, use 1 teaspoon of green tea leaves per cup of very hot water. Let the brew steep for three to five minutes; then strain and drink it.
• Green tea leaves contain hefty amounts of vitamin K, but a cup of brewed tea or green tea supplements have virtually none. This means that people taking anticoagulant drugs for heart disease (who may have been told to avoid large servings of foods rich in vitamin K because of the vitamin’s influence on blood clotting) can enjoy green tea with no fear of side effects.

Tips for that perfect cuppa

• Boil water briskly. Tea tastes best when water is at the boiling point, which allows tea to release its flavorful compounds quickly. Water that’s cooler than that tends to release flavors more slowly, weakening the tea.
• Keep steeping short. Let tea steep in hot water for about three minutes — and no longer than five. This brief steeping time allows tea to acquire a full-bodied flavor and release its nutrients, but withholds compounds that make tea taste bitter.
• Get a bag bonus. Tea purists favor the fresher flavor of loose tea, but some experts suggest that tea bags release more beneficial nutrients because smaller, ground-up particles expose more of the tea leaves’ surface area to hot water.

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