Grenx

Agricultural and Biological Chemistry.  1989.  Volume 53, No. 9 pp. 2307-2311 – An extract of Japanese green tea, one of the most popular drinks in Japan, was an inhibitor of the growth of Streptococcus mutans, a bacterium responsible for causing dental caries. The analysis of the extract revealed that the main antibacterial components of the extract were several polv phenolic compounds, especially gallocatechin (GC), epigallocatechin (EGC), and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCg). GC was the most active component and its minimum inhibitory concentration against the bacterium was around 250 μg per ml.

“Traiditionally in Japan individuals drink green tea after a meal.  This is said to have a cleansing effect on the teeth and mouth.  This research article shows how green tea does in fact help in the prevention of cavaties.  The most popular antioxidant from green tea, EGCG, usually gets all the attention, but in this case GC (gallocatechin) deserves the majority of the credit.  GC inhibits the growth of a certain bacteria that causes dental cavaties.” – Josh Smith

Can green tea do that? A literature review of the clinical evidence.  Preventive Medicine 49 (2009) 83–87 

Objective. Habitual green tea consumption has long been associated with health benefits including chemoprevention and cardiovascular protection. This non-systematic literature review presents the clinical evidence to date. Method. A literature review of peer-reviewed articles on observational and interventional studies was conducted to include green tea, its extract or its purified polyphenol (−)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG). Electronic databases searched included PubMed (1966–2009) and the Cochrane Library (Issue 4, 2008). Results: observational studies are inconclusive on the benefits of habitual consumption of green tea in the prevention of most cancers. However, there are trends towards prevention in breast and prostate cancers. Interventional studies have demonstrated reduction in relapses following surgical resection in colorectal adenomas and increased survival rates in epithelial ovarian cancer. Observational studies indicate that green tea may provide protection against hypertension and reduce the risk for stroke, and interventional studies are providing biochemical and physiological evidence. Conclusion. Although the overall clinical evidence is inconclusive, habitual green tea consumption may be providing some level of chemoprevention in prostate and breast cancer. Green tea may also attenuate the risk factors association with the development of atherosclerosis thus reducing the incidence of cardiovascular events and stoke.

“Taking a look at the clinical trials that have been conducted on green tea so far with such technical topics as cancer, hypertension and atherosclerosis, there are great emerging results of daily consumption of green tea.  400 milligrams of EGCG is the amount of antioxidants from green tea that have been identified as the “right amount”.  – Josh Smith 

Objectives To investigate the association between green tea consumption and liver cancer incidence. Methods: We prospectively followed 41,761 Japanese adults aged 40–79 years, without a history of cancer at the baseline or any missing data for green tea consumption frequency. Cox proportional hazards models were used to calculate hazard ratios (HR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI), adjusted for age, alcohol drinking, smoking, the consumption of coffee, vegetables, dairy products, fruit, fish, and soybean. Results Over 9 years of follow-up, among 325,947 accrued person-years, the total incidence of liver cancer was 247 cases. We found that green tea consumption was inversely associated with the incidence of liver cancer. In men, the multivariate-adjusted HRs (95% CIs) for liver cancer incidence with different green tea consumption categories were 1.00 (reference) for\1 cup/day, 0.83 (0.53–1.30) for 1–2 cups/day, 1.11 (0.73–1.68) for 3–4 cups/day, and 0.63 (0.41–0.98) for C5 cups/day (p for trend = 0.11). The corresponding data among women were 1.00 (reference), 0.68 (0.35–1.31), 0.79 (0.44–1.44), 0.50 (0.27–0.90) (p for trend = 0.04). Conclusions Green tea consumption is associated with a reduced risk of liver cancer incidence.

“Following over 40,000 individuals for 9 years has shown a strong association between decreasing the risk of liver cancer and drinking green tea.  Liver cancer is the 6th most common cancer and drinking 5 or more cups of fresh green tea per day significantly decreases the risk of liver cancer.” – Josh Smith

HOUSTON — Juanita Black has plenty to sing about. She turned 105 years old on Tuesday, KPRC Local 2 reported.

Her granddaughter Amy Black shouted in her ear, “How does it feel to be 105?”

Juanita answered, “OK.”

Other than being a little hard of hearing, Juanita’s in excellent health. She only takes three medications and has never consumed alcohol, smoked or driven a day in her life.

Amy Black said, “She walked everywhere. That might be why she’s so healthy.”

She then asked Juanita, “What’s your trick? Why are you 105?”

Juanita laughed, “Because I drink green tea.”

Amy nodded, “That’s right, people. Green tea.”