Miscellaneous Health Benefits of Green Tea

Calming Mood, Effortless Focus
Green tea contains L-theanine, an amino acid found almost exclusively in tea leaves. L-theanine stimulates the production of alpha waves, associated with relaxation and mental alertness, as well as influencing dopamine and serotonin. In conjunction with other nutritional compounds, this allows the positive effects of green tea to be released into the blood stream in a steady, long-lasting time frame and is thought to be the secret to the calming energy boost and effortless focus associated with green tea

- Nadine Taylor, M.S., R.D., Green Tea, The Natural Secret for a Healthier Life, Kensington Health

Bladder Infections
Green tea is also superb at killing certain bacteria, especially in the bladder. Its flair for stopping these bladder bugs from propagating is revealed in this statistic: Tea drinkers have a 40 percent lower incidence of urinary tract infections.  Green tea also aids in digestion by increasing the number of helpful bacterial in your intestines while decreasing the number of harmful ones.

-Waking the Warrior Goddess, Kristine Horner, M.D.

Longevity
In recent years, green tea has received much coverage in the media as one of the reasons for the longevity of the Japanese, which ranks among the highest in the world. (This is true despite high rates of smoking, stress and pickled meats, which is not doing them any favors as it relates to longevity.) Furthermore, with more scientific evidence on the effectiveness of green tea for certain health problems, its popularity has soared. As a drink that heals the spirit as well as the body, green tea can indeed be called a "green treasure."

-New Tastes in Green Tea, Mutsuko Tokunaga

Bone Density
If you're concerned about osteoporosis, drink this healthy brew often. A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in April 2000 found that women aged sixty-five to seventy-five who drank at least one cup of green tea a day had significantly higher bone densities than those who didn't.

-Waking the Warrior Goddess, Kristine Horner, M.D.

Thins the Blood and Helps Prevent Blood Clots
Green tea catechins help thin the blood and prevent the formation of blood clots by preventing the formation of pro-inflammatory compounds derived from omega-6 fatty acids, which are found in meats and polyunsaturated vegetable oils such as corn, safflower and soy oil. These pro-inflammatory compounds-specifically, arachidonic acid from which the inflammatory cytokines thromboxane A2 and prostaglandin D2 are derived-cause platelets to clump together.

-www.whfoods.org

Bone Health
The Tokyo team hypothesized the catechin flavonoids in green tea provided the benefits via estrogenic effects known to build bone strength and/or induce apoptosis ("suicide") in bone-destroying cells called osteoclasts. Both mechanisms are similar to the ways in which bisphosphonate drugs like Fosamax prevent bone loss. But while these potent drugs can provoke inflammatory eye disorders, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, dyspepsia and diarrhea, green tea is not only completely safe, but a delicious beverage that offers a legion of other health benefits.

-www.whfoods.org

-cbsnews.com

EGCG Protects T- Cells from HIV
In lab tests, EGCG, found in green tea, was found to prevent HIV from attacking T-Cells. However, it is not known if this has any effect on humans yet.

-webmd.com

Green Tea Compound Helps Alleviate Stress
A study published in the August 22, 2006 edition of Biological Psychology looked at the modification of the stress response via L-Theanine, a chemical found in green tea. It "suggested that the oral intake of L-Theanine could cause anti-stress effects via the inhibition of cortical neuron excitation."

Green Tea May Help Crohn's Disease & Inflammatory Bowel Disease
University of Maryland Medical Center - Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) -Green tea may help reduce inflammation associated with Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, the two types of IBD. If green tea proves to be helpful for preventing colon cancer, this would be an added benefit for those with IBD because they are at risk for colon cancer.

Green Tea & Skin Health
This is a literature based research paper on benefits of green tea to skin health: The outcome of the several experimental studies suggests that green tea possess anti-inflammatory and anticarcinogenic potential, which can be exploited against a variety of skin disorders 

-Arch Dermatol. 2000 Aug;136(8):989-94

Tea Drinkers Loose Less Bone Density
Tea Helps Toughen Older Women's Hips -- Those Who Drink it Daily Lose Less Bone.
New Australian research suggests that having a cuppa (tea, that is) may help strengthen older women's hips. This study suggests that drinking tea in moderation can actually benefit your bones, said lead researcher Amanda Devine, a senior lecturer in the nutrition program at the School of Exercise, Biomedical and Health Science, Edith Cowan University, and adjunct senior lecturer at the University of Western Australia's School of Medicine and Pharmacology, in Perth. "Those who drank tea in the study had a higher bone density over the four years that they were studied," she said. "These women lost less bone than those who did not drink tea. More than three-quarters of the women drank tea daily, and they consumed on average about three cups per day." 

-U.S. News and World Report, October 2007

Tea & Bone Health
Tea flavonoids may be bone builders: Tea flavonoids may be bone builders. A report in this week's Archives of Internal Medicine looked at about 500 Chinese men and women who regularly drank black, green, or oolong tea for more than 10 years. Compared with nonhabitual tea drinkers, tea regulars had higher bone mineral densities, even after exercise and calcium-- which strengthen bones--were taken into account.

-U.S. News & World Report, May 20, 2002

Green Tea Halts Free Radicals
Free radicals (activated oxygen) are powerful oxidizing agents in the body which are known to cause a wide variety of diseases, aging, and wrinkles. Free radicals increase by overexposure to ultraviolet rays, aging, smoking, and too much drinking. If you want to remove free radicals that have been created in your body, you may do this by consuming foods that have strong antioxidant properties. Catechin and Vitamin C are well known antioxidants. Japanese green tea contains both Catechin and Vitamin C. It is beneficial to drink Japanese green tea to remove these harmful free radicals.

Green Tea Compounds Boost Immune Function
Vitamin C, Catechin, and Vitamin E work together to enhance immune function. These three nutrients also help to make your skin more beautiful by reducing blemishes, wrinkles and sun damage.

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