A new study claims green tea may prolong life by reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease. The study, conducted by Dr. Shinichi Kuriyama, of Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, in Sendai, Japan, analyzed information over an eleven year period. The study followed 40,530 Japanese adults, 40 to 79 years old, from a northeastern region of the country where most of the adults drink green tea three or more times per day. None of the participants had a history of stroke, coronary heart disease or cancer.
Prior to this study, laboratory and animal studies showed that the polyphenols (chemical substances found in plants with antioxidant characteristics) in green tea may protect against cardiovascular disease and cancer, but these results couldn’t necessarily be extended to humans. A few clinical trials on humans had been conducted, but the results were inconsistent.
The data analyzed by Dr. Kuriyama and his team show that Japanese adults who consumed the most green tea over the 11-year period were less likely to die from cardiovascular disease or any other cause, except cancer, than were the less-frequent green tea drinkers. Of those who drank at least five cups of green tea each day, the men were 12 percent less likely to die from any cause and the women were 23 percent less likely to die from any cause and 31 percent less likely to die from cardiovascular disease. Higher green tea consumption did not appear to be related to a lower risk of death from cancer, however.
SOURCE: Journal of the American Medical Association, September 2006.
Antioxidants are not new to the public but how successful they are at slowing aging and their positive affect on so many diseases is new. How many more studies do we need to show green tea’s benefits, as well as, fruits and vegetables? Remember that less then 80% of our children get even one serving of antioxidants from food and I am confident they don’t get the green tea either. I will keep these coming as they come out, but please heed the message of good health and just do it!
God Bless,
Dr. Benzinger
