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Research Database
The only comprehensive database for clinical and medical research papers on the healthy benefits of matcha/green tea.
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Cognitive Function
Matcha consumption leads to much higher intake of green tea phytochemicals compared to regular green tea. Previous research on caffeine, L-theanine, and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) repeatedly demonstrated benefits on cognitive performance.
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Heart Health
According to Harvard Medical School, “lowering your risk of cardiovascular disease may be as easy as drinking green tea. Studies suggest this light, aromatic tea may lower LDL cholesterol and triglycerides, which may be responsible for the tea's association with reduced risk of death from heart disease and stroke.”
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Mental Health
Matcha contains an amino acid called L-theanine, which has been shown to reduce physiological and psychological stresses. L-theanine also improves cognition and mood in a synergistic manner with caffeine, and promotes alpha wave production in the brain
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Cancer Prevention
Matcha/green tea has for many centuries been regarded as an essential part of good health in Japan and China. Many believe it can help reduce the risk of cancer, and a growing body of evidence backs this up.
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Immunity
A recent study in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences concluded that drinking matcha daily greatly enhanced the overall response of the immune system. The exceedingly high levels of antioxidants in matcha mainly take the form of polyphenols, catechins, and flavonoids, each of which aids the body’s defense in its daily struggles against free radicals that come from the pollution in your air, water and foods.
Learn MoreMost Recent Research Articles
Green Tea Consumption and Mortality Due to Cardiovascular Disease, Cancer, and All Causes in Japan: The Ohsaki Study
Author: Kuriyama S and Shimazu T and Ohmori K and Kikuchi N and Nakaya N and Nishino Y and Tsubono Y and Tsuji I
CONTEXT: Green tea polyphenols have been extensively studied as cardiovascular disease and cancer chemopreventive agents in vitro and in animal studies. However, the effects of green tea consumption in humans remain unclear. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the associations between green tea consumption and all-cause and cause-specific mortality. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: The Ohsaki National Health Insurance Cohort Study, a population-based, prospective cohort study initiated in 1994 among 40,530 Japanese adults aged 40 to 79 years without history of stroke, coronary heart disease, or cancer at baseline. Participants were followed up for up to 11 years (1995-2005) for all-cause mortality and for up to 7 years (1995-2001) for cause-specific mortality. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Mortality due to cardiovascular disease, cancer, and all causes. RESULTS: Over 11 years of follow-up (follow-up rate, 86.1%), 4209 participants died, and over 7 years of follow-up (follow-up rate, 89.6%), 892 participants died of cardiovascular disease and 1134 participants died of cancer. Green tea consumption was inversely associated with mortality due to all causes and due to cardiovascular disease. The inverse association with all-cause mortality was stronger in women (P = .03 for interaction with sex). In men, the multivariate hazard ratios of mortality due to all causes associated with different green tea consumption frequencies were 1.00 (reference) for less than 1 cup/d, 0.93 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.83-1.05) for 1 to 2 cups/d, 0.95 (95% CI, 0.85-1.06) for 3 to 4 cups/d, and 0.88 (95% CI, 0.79-0.98) for 5 or more cups/d, respectively (P = .03 for trend). The corresponding data for women were 1.00, 0.98 (95% CI, 0.84-1.15), 0.82 (95% CI, 0.70-0.95), and 0.77 (95% CI, 0.67-0.89), respectively (PCONCLUSION: Green tea consumption is associated with reduced mortality due to all causes and due to cardiovascular disease but not with reduced mortality due to cancer.
Determination of riboflavin in urine and beverages by capillary electrophoresis with in-column optical fiber laser-induced fluorescence detection
Author: Li Hu and Xiupei Yang and Chunling Wang and Hongyan Yuan and Dan Xiao
A simple, rapid and sensitive method was developed for routine analysis of riboflavin in beverage, green tea and urine by capillary electrophoresis with in-column optical fiber laser-induced fluorescence detection (LIF). The difference between the present detector in the study and others is that an optical fiber was adopted in the former, which can guide the excitation light into the capillary right at the detection window. The linearity of the method (r2 = 0.998) was good over the concentration range from 0.05 to 20 μM for riboflavin. The limit of detection (LOD) was determined using linear regression analysis and was found to be 3.0 nM. The percent recoveries of riboflavin in beverage, green tea and urine samples were 95.3 ± 2.9, 105.5 ± 3.9 and 94.3 ± 1.7, respectively. These results of quantitative analysis of riboflavin in beverage and green tea samples is in agreement with that of obtained by the AOAC of fluorometric method. In the analysis of urine samples, all electropherograms of urine samples and corresponding concentrations of riboflavin in the period of 13 h after orally administrating the ingestion of vitamin B2 tablets were illustrated.
Antioxidant activity of Camellia sinensis leaves and tea from a lowland plantation in Malaysia
Author: E.W.C. Chan and Y.Y. Lim and Y.L. Chew
Methanol extracts of fresh tea leaves from a lowland plantation in Malaysia were screened for total phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant activity (AOA). AOA evaluation included 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical-scavenging ability, ferric-reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), and ferrous-ion chelating (FIC) ability. Ranking, based on TPC and AOA, was as follows: shoots > young leaves > mature leaves. TPC and AOA of lowland leaves were comparable to those of highland plants. A green tea produced by drying young leaves in a household microwave oven for 4 min showed significantly higher TPC and AOA than did four commercial brands of green and black tea.
Impact of heating on chemical compositions of green tea liquor
Author: E.S. Kim and Y.R. Liang and J. Jin and Q.F. Sun and J.L. Lu and Y.Y. Du and C. Lin
Heating pasteurization changed flavour of green tea liquor and it was a technical barrier in ready-to-drink tea production. The effect of heating on chemical compositions of green tea liquor was investigated by high performance liquid chromatography and gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. With increase of heating temperature from 85 °C to 120 °C, the green tea liquor became darker and less green, but deeper yellow in colour. During the heating, epigallocatechin gallate, epigallocatechin, epicatechin and epicatechin gallate partially epimerized, and concentration of total catechins decreased. Twenty volatiles were identified and concentrations of pentanol, cis-3-hexenol, linalool oxide I, linalool oxide II and β-ionone were decreased while phenylacetaldehyde, linalool, linalool oxide III, α-terpineol and indole increased. The decline of volatiles with pleasant odours and increase of some volatiles with unpleasant odours, such as indole (animal-like) and α-terpineol (faint ammoniacal), was considered to be responsible for the change in flavour of green tea liquor. Treatment at 85 °C caused fewer changes in liquor colour and concentrations of catechins and volatiles and it is recommended that extraction and pasteurization of canned ready-to-drink green tea should be carried out at 85 °C or less.
Production of green tea EGC- and EGCG-enriched fractions by a two-step extraction procedure
Author: Laurent Bazinet and David Labbé and Angelo Tremblay
The aim of the present work was to test the feasibility of a two-step extraction procedure to fractionate EGCG and EGC from green tea. This work was based on previous observations that there was a variable interdependence between the brewing duration and the brewing temperature on catechin concentrations: EGC being a time-dependent compound while EGCG being a time/temperature-dependent compound. It appeared from these results that it was possible to produce from green tea, on a simple way with adding no organic solvent, an EGC-enriched extract (78.9% total catechins) in the first step and an EGCG-enriched extract (47.6% total catechins) in the second step. The two-step brewing procedure based on the temperature-dependent solubilization of both major catechins, EGC and EGCG, allowed the production of such extracts by decreasing ash and EGC contents during the second step extraction.
Reading the Tea Leaves: Anticarcinogenic Properties of (-)-Epigallocatechin-3-Gallate
Author: Jennifer R. Carlson and Brent A. Bauer and Ann Vincent and Paul J. Limburg and Ted Wilson
Green tea is an extremely popular beverage worldwide. Derivatives of green tea, particularly (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), have been proposed to have anticarcinogenic properties based on preclinical, observational, and clinical trial data. To summarize, clarify, and extend current knowledge, we conducted a comprehensive search of the PubMed database and other secondary data sources, as appropriate, regarding the chemopreventive potential of EGCG. Apparently, EGCG functions as an antioxidant, preventing oxidative damage in healthy cells, but also as an antiangiogenic agent, preventing tumors from developing a blood supply needed to grow larger. Furthermore, EGCG may stimulate apoptosis in cancerous cells by negatively regulating the cell cycle to prevent continued division. Finally, EGCG exhibits antibacterial activity, which may be implicated in the prevention of gastric cancer. Although in vitro research of the anticarcinogenic properties of EGCG seems promising, many diverse and unknown factors may influence its in vivo activity in animal and human models. Some epidemiological studies suggest that green tea compounds could protect against cancer, but existing data are inconsistent, and limitations in study design hinder full interpretation and generalizability of the published observational findings. Several clinical trials with green tea derivatives are ongoing, and further research should help to clarify the clinical potential of EGCG for chemoprevention and/or chemotherapy applications.
Effects of green tea on cognition, perceived workload, mood, and endurance.
Author: A. Reed and B. Raudenbush
Previous research indicates green tea extract can have beneficial effects on health and performance. The present study was designed to determine the extent to which green tea extract significantly impacts cognitive functioning, endurance, perceived workload, and mood over time. Participants were 18 student athletes who were tested over a 6-week time period. Results of the experiment reveal athletes show a significant improvement in the number of push-ups completed when given green tea extract. No statistically significant improvements were found for cognition, mood, or perceived workload; however, the majority of these measures were greater in the green tea condition. The implication of these results is that natural, and in the case of green tea, very healthy, substances could be used to enhance endurance, rather than pharmacological methods such as caffeine and steroids.
Glucuronide transport across the endoplasmic reticulum membrane is inhibited by epigallocatechin gallate and other green tea polyphenols
Author: Katalin Révész and Anna Tüttő and Éva Margittai and Gábor Bánhegyi and Judit É. Magyar and József Mandl and Miklós Csala
Toxic endogenous or exogenous compounds can be inactivated by various conjugation reactions. Glucuronidation (i.e. conjugation with glucuronate) is especially important due to the large number of drugs and chemical carcinogens that are detoxified through this pathway. Stable and harmless glucuronides can be reactivated by enzymatic hydrolysis thus inhibitors of glucuronidase activity reduce the risk of chemical carcinogenesis. The aim of this study was to reveal whether this mechanism contributes to the anti-cancer effect of green tea flavanols, which has been shown in various animal models. Therefore, we investigated the effect of these polyphenols on deglucuronidation in rat liver microsomes and in Hepa 1c1c7 mouse hepatoma cells, using 4-methylumbelliferyl glucuronide as model substrate. Tea flavanols inhibited β-glucuronidase in intact vesicles, where glucuronide transport across the microsomal membrane is rate-limiting, but were almost ineffective in permeabilized vesicles. Epigallocatechin gallate, the major green tea flavanol was shown to have a concentration-dependent inhibitory effect on both β-glucuronidase activity and glucuronide transport in native vesicles. Epigallocatechin gallate also inhibited β-glucuronidase activity in native Hepa 1c1c7 mouse hepatoma cells, while failed to affect the enzyme in alamethicin-permeabilized cells, where the endoplasmic membrane barrier was eliminated. Our findings indicate that tea flavanols inhibit deglucuronidation in the endoplasmic reticulum at the glucuronide transport stage. This phenomenon might potentially contribute to the cancer-preventing dietary or pharmacological effect attributed to these catechins.
Matrix proteases, green tea, and St. John's wort: Biomedical research catches up with folk medicine
Author: Isabella Dell'Aica and Rosy Caniato and Susan Biggin and Spiridione Garbisa
Background Some proteases involved in extracellular matrix degradation are instrumental not only in overcoming tissue barriers to allow normal extravasation of hematic cells, but also in facilitating pathological processes such as inflammation, angiogenesis and tumor invasion. The possibility of blocking these enzymes has led to the development of synthetic inhibitors, though clinical trials have been disappointing owing to considerable side effects. However, long before enzymes were first isolated, these same pathologies were being treated in plant-based folk remedies, and today science is screening them for their reputed beneficial effects. State of the art We present studies of 2 vegetable components as protease inhibitors. The first, (−)epigallocatechin-3-gallate — from green tea, has proved a good weapon for inhibiting gelatinases MMP-2 and MMP-9, but an even better inhibitor of leukocyte elastase (LE) activity; in vivo it blocks inflammation, angiogenesis and tumor invasion. The second, hyperforin – from Hypericum sp, inhibits LE-triggered activation of MMP-9, PMN chemotaxis and chemoinvasion, PMN-triggered angiogenesis, and inflammation-triggered pulmonary fibrosis; it also represses tumor-cell expression of MMP-2, thereby restraining invasion and metastasis. Conclusion Modern research clearly vindicates epidemiological and historical evidence of the beneficial effects of two long-used allies from the plant kingdom, going a step beyond by shedding light on mechanistic keys.
Proposed mechanisms of (−)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate for anti-obesity
Author: Hyun-Seuk Moon and Hong-Gu Lee and Yun-Jaie Choi and Tae-Gyu Kim and Chong-Su Cho
Green tea catechins (GTCs) are polyphenolic flavonoids formerly called vitamin P. GTCs, especially (−)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), lower the incidence of cancers, collagen-induced arthritis, oxidative stress-induced neurodegenerative diseases, and streptozotocin-induced diabetes. Also, inhibition of adipogenesis by green tea and green tea extract has been demonstrated in cell lines, animal models, and humans. The obesity-preventive effects of green tea and its main constituent EGCG are widely supported by results from epidemiological, cell culture, animal, and clinical studies in the last decade. Studies with adipocyte cell lines and animal models have demonstrated that EGCG inhibits extracellular signal-related kinases (ERK), activates AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), modulates adipocyte marker proteins, and down-regulates lipogenic enzymes as well as other potential targets. Also, the catechin components of green tea have been shown to possess anti-carcinogenic properties possibly related to their anti-oxidant activity. In addition, it was shown that dietary supplementation with EGCG could potentially contribute to nutritional strategies for the prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus. In this review, the biological activities and multiple mechanisms of EGCG in cell lines, animal models, and clinical observations are explained.