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
Author: H. Aoshima and S. Ooshima
Shoyu is the Japanese name for soy sauce and the most popular liquid condiment (seasoning) used in Japanese cuisine as well as in cuisines of other oriental countries. Shoyu is prepared by digesting mold-cultured soybeans and wheat seeded with an aspergillus (koji in Japanese) in the presence of sodium chloride. Gyoshoyu is produced when the soybeans and wheat are replaced with fish. Both Shoyu and Gyoshoyu have high level of 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical-scavenging activity. Hydrogen peroxide is produced in green tea after exposure to air. To find a safe and economical method of preventing the production of H2O2 in green tea, effects of Shoyu and Gyoshoyu on H2O2 level in bottled green tea were examined. Both Shoyu and Gyoshoyu suppressed the production of H2O2. Gyoshoyu decomposed H2O2 possibly because of the presence of a thermostable catalase, while Shoyu did not. Some components of Shoyu and Gyoshoyu may be useful to suppress the production of H2O2 in green tea.
Author: Zhou Danrong and Chen Yuqiong and Ni Dejiang
Green tea extracts (GTEs) were prepared with tap water (TW), activated carbon adsorbed water (AC), deionized water (DI), distilled water (DW), reverse osmosis water (RO) and ultra-pure water (UP). Their nutritional components were determined by chemical methods. Deoxyribose assay and the xanthine oxidase method were applied to test the antioxidant activities of GTE in vitro. The results indicated that there were statistically significant differences (P < 0.05) in the yield rate, the contents of polyphenols, catechins, caffeine, copper, lead and fluorine. Among them, DI gave the greatest yield rate and polyphenols, with low caffeine, DW increased the contents of non-ester catechins and AC enhanced the concentrations of ester catechins. The contents of copper and lead in GTEs were highly correlated with those of the tested water (r = 0.767 and 0.871, respectively). Fluorine contents in all GTEs were above 6.0 g kg−1. GTEs prepared with RO displayed the highest antioxidant activities among the six GTEs.
Author: Haim Shapiro and Shaul Lev and Jonathan Cohen and Pierre Singer
Sepsis is the overwhelming systemic response to infection of a normally sterile body compartment. Despite advances in elucidating its pathophysiology, severe sepsis remains a leading cause of death in the critically ill. Polyphenols are a family of chemicals found in food and beverages derived from plants, such as cocoa, green tea, turmeric, and soya, as well as in medicinal herbs. These phytochemicals exhibit anti-inflammatory and vasculoprotective properties in clinical and preclinical studies. The oral or systemic administration of polyphenols protects rodents from endotoxinemia and microbial sepsis. Under these circumstances, polyphenols reproducibly attenuate microvascular hyperpermeability, tissue infiltration by leukocytes, oxidative and nitrosative stress, tissue injury, organ dysfunction, shock and vasoplegia, lactate production, and mortality. Importantly, efficacy is maintained in some cases even when treatment is initiated hours after the onset of sepsis. The inhibition of nuclear factor–κB activation and subsequent expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase, adhesion molecules, and tumor necrosis factor–α by polyphenols is operative in ameliorating the sequelae of sepsis. Enhancement of the endogenous antioxidant capacity probably also contributes to the effectiveness of the polyphenols. Because several of the polyphenols reviewed in this article appear to be safe and to exert anti-inflammatory effects in humans, clinical trials assessing their efficacy in the critically ill are indicated. Whether delivered alone or in combination with nutritional formulas, polyphenols may help to prevent and treat sepsis.
Author: Soichiro Kori and Hideo Namiki and Kingo Suzuki
Green tea polyphenols have been reported to have anti-inflammatory activities, although the molecular mechanisms responsible for this effect remain unclear. In the present study, we examined the effect of green tea extract and a variety of polyphenolic compounds on spreading of peripheral blood polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) over fibrinogen-coated surfaces. Green tea extract exerted a biphasic effect on PMN spreading; it induced or suppressed spreading at low and high concentrations, respectively. We also found that pyrogallol-bearing compounds have spreading induction activity. Among the compounds tested, tannic acid (TA) had the strongest activity; the concentrations required for induction of maximal spreading were 2 µM for TA, 200 µM for (−)-epigallocatechin gallate, and 2000 µM for the other active compounds. Furthermore, TA was the only compound showing a biphasic effect similar to that of green tea extract; TA at 20 or 200 µM suppressed spreading. The spreading-stimulatory signal was still latent during PMN exposure to TA at concentrations that inhibited spreading, because the pre-exposed PMNs underwent spreading when plated after removal of free TA by centrifugation. The spreading-inhibitory effect of TA at high concentrations overcame the induction of spreading by other stimuli, including phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate, hydrogen peroxide, denatured fibrinogen surfaces, and naked plastic surfaces. These results suggest that TA as well as green tea extract is bi-functional, having pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory effects at low and high concentrations, respectively. Pharmacological use of TA may thus provide new strategies aimed at regulation of PMN spreading for control of inflammation.
Author: Yoshiharu Mukai and Kazuko Kamijo and Yukio Hirata and Toshio Teranaka
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the influence of a bottled green tea beverage on dentin demineralization with a demineralization gel system in vitro. Samples were cut from bovine root dentin. Each sample was immersed in 8% methylcellulose gel onto which a layer of green tea beverage was placed. For comparison, sugar-free coffee beverage, deionized water, and 0.8-ppm F solutions were used. After two weeks, the treatment solutions were replaced with demineralization solution. The mineral profiles and mineral loss values of the lesions were obtained by transversal microradiography (TMR) after one-week demineralization. The green tea, coffee, and fluoride solution treatments induced a significantly thicker surface layer when compared with the deionized water treatment. In particular, the mineral volume % of the demineralized dentin specimens treated with green tea was approximately seven times higher than that of the de-ionized water treatment. The green tea treatment showed significantly lower mineral loss than the other three treatments. TMR measurements clearly showed that the sugar-free bottled green tea beverage inhibited dentin lesion progression, presumably due to the effect of sub-ppm fluoride levels.
Author: Naping Tang and Yuemin Wu and Bo Zhou and Bin Wang and Rongbin Yu
Studies investigating the association of green tea and black tea consumption with lung cancer risk have reported inconsistent findings. To provide a quantitative assessment of this association, we conducted a meta-analysis on the topic. Studies were identified by a literature search in PubMed from 1966 to November 2008 and by searching the reference lists of relevant studies. Summary relative risk (RR) estimates and their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated based on random-effects model. Our meta-analysis included 22 studies provided data on consumption of green tea or black tea, or both related to lung cancer risk. For green tea, the summary RR indicated a borderline significant association between highest green tea consumption and reduced risk of lung cancer (RR = 0.78, 95% CI = 0.61–1.00). Furthermore, an increase in green tea consumption of two cups/day was associated with an 18% decreased risk of developing lung cancer (RR = 0.82, 95% CI = 0.71–0.96). For black tea, no statistically significant association was observe through the meta-analysis (highest versus non/lowest, RR = 0.86, 95% CI = 0.70–1.05; an increment of two cups/day, RR = 0.82, 95% CI = 0.65–1.03). In conclusion, our data suggest that high or an increase in consumption of green tea but not black tea may be related to the reduction of lung cancer risk.
Author: Benno F. Zimmermann and Menelaos Papagiannopoulos and Sonja Brachmann and Mario Lorenz and Verena Stangl and Rudolf Galensa
This paper describes a new and straightforward method for determination of the green tea catechins epicatechin, epicatechin gallate, epigallocatechin, and epigallocatechin gallate in human plasma. Sample preparation includes addition only of dimethylformamide and trichloroacetic acid. After centrifugation, the supernatant can be injected into the HPLC. If required, the glucuronides and sulphates of the catechins can be enzymatically hydrolysed before extraction. Recovery ranges from 92.9 to 98.2%; limits of detection, from 2.4 to 5.0 ng/mL; and relative standard deviations, from 3.1 to 8.6%. Twelve samples can be processed within 45 min, and are then ready to be injected into the HPLC. The method was successfully applied to human plasma. This method is suitable for studies on absorption, bioavailability, and kinetics of green tea catechins in plasma. Since manual work and time consumption are minimal, the procedure is especially useful for large numbers of samples.
Author: Sara A. Khan and Shubha Priyamvada and Neelam Farooq and Sheeba Khan and Md Wasim Khan and Ahad N.K. Yusufi
Gentamicin (GM) is an effective aminoglycoside antibiotic against severe infections but nephrotoxicity and oxidative damage limits its long term clinical use. Various strategies were attempted to ameliorate GM nephropathy but were not found suitable for clinical practice. Green tea (GT) polyphenols have shown strong chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic effects against various pathologies. We hypothesized that GT prevents GM nephrotoxicity by virtue of its antioxidative properties. A nephrotoxic dose of GM was co-administered to control and GT-fed male Wistar rats. Serum parameters and enzymes of oxidative stress, brush border membrane (BBM), and carbohydrate metabolism were analyzed. GM increased serum creatinine, cholesterol, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), lipid peroxidation (LPO) and suppressed superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase activities in renal tissues. Activity of hexokinase, lactate dehydrogenase increased whereas malate dehydrogenase decreased. Gluconeogenic enzymes and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase were differentially altered in the cortex and medulla. However, GT given to GM rats reduced nephrotoxicity parameters, enhanced antioxidant defense and energy metabolism. The activity of BBM enzymes and transport of Pi declined by GM whereas GT enhanced BBM enzymes and Pi transport. In conclusion, green tea ameliorates GM elicited nephrotoxicity and oxidative damage by improving antioxidant defense, tissue integrity and energy metabolism.
Author: Antonios E. Koutelidakis and Konstantina Argiri and Mauro Serafini and Charalambos Proestos and Michael Komaitis and Monia Pecorari and Maria Kapsokefalou
Objective We tested in mice the hypothesis that ingestion of infusions of green tea, white tea, or the aromatic plant Pelargonium purpureum increases total antioxidant capacity (TAC) of plasma and organs. Methods Twenty-five mice were randomly assigned to five groups, each of which received by gavage 0.1 mL of infusion from green tea, white tea, or P. purpureum (8 g/100 mL of water) or catechin (0.01 g/100 mL) or water for 5 consecutive days. On the fifth day the animals were euthanized. Blood was taken by heart puncture and the heart, lungs, liver, spleen, kidney, and brain were removed. TAC was measured in plasma and in all organ homogenates with the ferric reducing antioxidant power assay and in selected organ homogenates by the total radical-trapping antioxidant parameter assay. Results Green tea and P. purpureum increased TAC in the plasma and lungs, whereas green tea, white tea, and catechin increased TAC in heart homogenates. No effect was observed on the liver, brain, spleen, and kidney homogenates in comparison with the water control with the ferric reducing antioxidant power assay or the total radical-trapping antioxidant parameter assay. Conclusion These results suggest that green tea, white tea, and P. purpureum exhibit antioxidant effects in vivo that may be observed not only in plasma but also in some organs.
Author: Doriane Richard and Kaouthar Kefi and Ullah Barbe and Andrea Poli and Pedro Bausero and Francesco Visioli
We investigated whether regular decaffeinated green tea intake could modulate body weight in an experimental model of obesity. Male leptin-deficient (ob/ob) mice and their C57BL/6J lean littermates (4 weeks of age; n 20/genotype) were assigned randomly to receive either decaffeinated green tea or vehicle, for 6 weeks. Body weights were recorded weekly and fluid intake was measured at each replacement. Blood was collected from the heart into collection tubes, with Li+-heparin as the anticoagulant. Administration of decaffeinated green tea to ob/ob mice significantly slowed their rate of weight gain, as compared with animals that were fed buffer alone. This effect is apparent after only 1 week of supplementation. No significant difference was recorded between C57BL/6J lean mice administrated decaffeinated green tea and those given buffer alone. Decaffeinated green tea consumption by ob/ob mice was also associated with significantly lower cholesterolemia, triglyceridemia, and adiponectin concentration. Fecal lipids did not change significantly throughout the experiment. In conclusion, administration of decaffeinated green tea might contribute to weight control and provides an opportunity for through-the-day consumption, without the excitatory effects of caffeine.