| Green tea's medicinal benefits studied Some believe brew guards against cancer BY RICHARD SALTUS Boston Globe Ever since Chinese Emperor Shen Nung discovered tea in 2737 BC -- or so legend has it -- the leafy brew has been hailed as a small miracle of natural medicine. Green tea, especially, is said to be good for the heart, to prevent cancer, improve digestion and slow aging. Now, scientists are using modern molecular tools to probe the reputed secrets of the ancient herb. Green tea -- and black tea, but less so -- contains cancer-fighting antioxidants and flavenoids. Fujiki also identified a crucial substance in green tea, which contains antioxidant compounds called polyphenols. Antioxidants, also found in many vegetables, help prevent disease because they eliminate chemical fragments called free radicals that accumulate in body tissues as a normal part of living and aging. Free radicals are blamed for damaging cells' DNA, and such mutations can trigger cancer. Fujiki reported that one of those polyphenol antioxidants, called epigallocatechin gallate, blocked a gene so that the cells of mice no longer expressed TNF-alpha (tumor necrosis factor-alpha), a known cancer cause. The best doses for cancer prevention haven't been worked out yet, Fujiki said, but he recommends 10 cups a day, or the equivalent in green tea tablets. Fujiki himself drinks one liter of it a day, he said. Published Thursday, August 31, 2000, in the Miami Herald |
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