Coronary Artery Disease
An elevation in the amount of free radicals in the arteries is a key event in many forms of cardiovascular disease. The latest research shows that green tea catechins inhibit the enzymes involved in the production of free radicals in the endothelial lining of the arteries. The arterial endothelium is a one-cell thick lining that serves as the interface between the bloodstream and the wall of the artery where plaques can form. By protecting the endothelium from free radical damage, green tea catechins help prevent the development of cardiovascular disease.
-www.whfoods.org
Inhibits Atherosclerosis
Green tea has been shown to effectively lower risk of atherosclerosis by lowering LDL cholesterol, triglycerides, lipid peroxides (free radicals that damage LDL cholesterol and other lipids or fats) and fibrinogen (a protein in the blood involved in the formation of blood clots), while improving the ratio of LDL (bad) to HDL (good) cholesterol.
Special Benefits for Persons with High Triglycerides
Green tea may offer special heart-protective benefits for persons with high triglycerides, suggests a laboratory study, published in the February 2005 issue of the Journal of Nutrition.
A series of experiments revealed that the mix of catechins naturally found in green tea dose-dependently inhibit the activity of pancreatic lipase, the enzyme secreted by the pancreas that digests fat. As a result, the rate at which the body breaks down of fats into triglycerides, and the rise of triglyceride levels in the bloodstream that occurs after meals, is greatly slowed.
Since a large rise in blood levels of triglycerides after a meal is a significant risk factor for coronary heart disease, drinking a cup or two of green tea along with your meals is a good idea, especially if your triglyceride levels are higher than normal.
-Journal of Nutrition, February 2005
Protects the Heart in Patients with Acute Cardiovascular Disease
The primary catechin in green tea, EGCG (epigallocatechin-3-gallate) confers such powerful protection that it can help prevent the death of heart muscle cells following ischemia/reperfusion injury. Ischemia is the medical term for a restriction in blood supply and therefore in oxygen and nutrients. When circulation is restored, oxidative damage occurs, and this is referred to as reperfusion injury.
EGCG prevents heart muscle damage by blocking the activation of inflammation-related compounds (including NF-kappa-B and STAT-1) that play a critical role in promoting the oxidative damage that kills heart cells in reperfusion injury. Researchers believe EGCG can be used to help minimize damage in patients with acute coronary artery disease.
-www.whfoods.org
Minimizes Damage and Speeds Recovery after a Heart Attack
Research conducted over the last several years by Dr. Anastasis Stephanou and his team at the UK's Institute of Child Health and published in the FASEB Journal, the journal of the Federation of Experimental Biology and the Journal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine has focused on EGCG's ability to block the action of the protein, STAT-1. Normally activated in cells after a heart attack or stroke, STAT-1 plays a major role in inducing cell death.
Not only does green tea minimize heart cell death after a heart attack or stroke, ECGC also appears to speed up heart cells' recovery from damage, allowing the tissues to recover more quickly and alleviating damage to organs.
Dr. Stephanou, a molecular biologist, noted: "We're extremely encouraged by these findings and hope to implement them in the clinical setting to minimize cell death activation in patients with acute coronary heart disease."
-www.whfoods.org
