Green tea
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free skin care · Mon May 23, 2005 12:50 pm

Just took this article off MEDLINE I'm posting just the abstract. It is amazing to me that just drinking 1/2 a liter af green tea can have such a positive effect. Drinking a moderate amount of green tea is UV protective!

Authors
Morley N. Clifford T. Salter L. Campbell S. Gould D. Curnow A.

Institution
Cornwall Dermatology Research Project, Polgooth Ward, Royal Cornwall Hospital, Treliske, Truro, Cornwall TR1 3LJ, UK.

Title
The green tea polyphenol (-)-epigallocatechin gallate and green tea can protect human cellular DNA from ultraviolet and visible radiation-induced damage.

Source
Photodermatology, Photoimmunology & Photomedicine. 21(1):15-22, 2005 Feb.

Abstract
BACKGROUND: Antioxidant compounds in green tea may be able to protect against skin carcinogenesis and it is of interest to investigate the mechanisms involved. A study was therefore conducted to determine whether the isolated green tea polyphenol (-)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) could prevent ultraviolet radiation (UVR)-induced DNA damage in cultured human cells. This work was then extended to investigate whether drinking green tea could afford any UVR protection to human peripheral blood cells collected after tea ingestion. METHODS: The alkaline comet assay was used to compare the DNA damage induced by UVR in cultured human cells with and without the presence of EGCG. The same assay technique was then employed to assess UVR-induced DNA damage in peripheral leucocytes isolated from 10 adult human volunteers before and after drinking 540 ml of green tea. RESULTS: Initial trials found that EGCG afforded concentration-dependent photoprotection to cultured human cells with a maximal activity at a culture concentration of 250 microM. The cells types tested (lung fibroblasts, skin fibroblasts and epidermal keratinocytes) demonstrated varying susceptibility to the UVR insult provided. The in vivo trials of green tea also demonstrated a photoprotective effect, with samples of peripheral blood cells taken after green tea consumption showing lower levels of DNA damage than those taken prior to ingestion when exposed to 12 min ultraviolet A (UVA) radiation. CONCLUSION: The studies showed that green tea and/or some constituents can offer some protection against UV-induced DNA damage in human cell cultures and also in human peripheral blood samples taken post-tea ingestion.

free skin care · Tue May 24, 2005 4:17 am

Being from TX, naturally I prefer my tea iced. Yes, I know that blasphemous to our pals across the pond – and the only time I ever drink green tea is when I’m at a Chinese restaurant, waiting to be served! I guess I really need to get it in gear and start drinking green tea regardless...of course, the fact that Lipton is now advertising an iced green tea drink just might make it easier for me to keep this resolution! Wink

Seriously, it looks like green tea is good for us inside and out....

Thanks for the enlightenment!
Carrie

free skin care · Tue May 24, 2005 4:34 am

I used to drink green tea in the winter, haven't for ages, perhaps should start drinking it again - with all this water and green tea we never going to be thirsty! Laughing

Z

free skin care · Tue May 24, 2005 5:25 am

I'm quite partial to Wittards Green Tea and Jasmine. My other half is typically English, he loves his cups of PG Tips or Twinnings and his afternoon biscuits and homemade cakes Laughing

In the summer I make up a huge jug of green tea and add some lemon tea bags, then put it in the fridge when its cooled, this is so refreshing.
Am longing for summer, we have been having rain rain rain at the moment.

free skin care · Tue May 24, 2005 5:58 am

I like the Bigelow mint/green tea iced. It is very refreshing. I was drinking green tea only once in a while but for about a year using it as a toner and hair rinse (for the hair rinse I add a drop or two of peppermint oil because that is supposed to increase circulation). I never thought that just drinking 2 cups of tea could actually decrease DNA damage from sun exposure. I've stocked my office at work with a selection of green teas. The mint and Earl Green are my favs but I also just got the green/jasmine but haven't tasted it yet.

Regular tea also has some of the same benefits it just has less of the actives. I haven't tried mixing green and black teas but I might try that this summer for iced tea for my family. We basically live by the beach in the summer.

free skin care · Tue May 24, 2005 6:38 am

it does have a lot of caffeine though....so don't drink it indiscriminiately.

free skin care · Tue May 24, 2005 6:57 am

You can get decaf but that might remove some of the good actors. I do not worry about caffine except at bedtime. When I was prenant I searched MEDLINE for info on the health effects of caffine and except for the stimulant effect (blood pressure) that is important for some people there is nothing bad.

I also just went back and checked the recent literature. For studies of heavy coffee drinkers (described as >5c per day) There were no difference in recovery after heart attack. In obese men this high coffee drinking may increase stroke risk. Also not good for someone recovering from stroke. But there were also several studies showing no increase in any heart disease factor for the general population.

The only real risk is slight increase in blood pressure (and certain people such as obese men or stoke victims are likely more susceptible) but for a tea drinker to reach the levels used in these studies you'd have to drink over 20 cups a day which is highly unlikely in any circumstance.

free skin care · Tue May 24, 2005 8:47 am

I love green tea. Don't know if I could drink a liter a day though.

free skin care · Tue May 24, 2005 9:44 am

The study used only 2 cups (about 1/2 a liter). I thought it was pretty amazing that such a low level showed a big effect.

free skin care · Tue May 24, 2005 10:12 am

There is actually a difference in oriental teas. Green tea is predominantly drunk by the Japanese. The leaves are unroasted and produce a green liquid, and the tea tastes very different from Chinese tea. When we say "Chinese tea", it is the golden kind (the common ones being flavoured by Jasmine) like those served in Chinese restaurants.

free skin care · Wed May 25, 2005 4:50 am

sharky wrote:

but for a tea drinker to reach the levels used in these studies you'd have to drink over 20 cups a day which is highly unlikely in any circumstance.

Please allow me to introduce my self Very Happy

Still it is nice to know that my local hospital is doing something to counteract the numbers of the local population they manage to kill off rofl

free skin care · Wed May 25, 2005 11:01 am

GG That's really neat do you know the staff there!? It sounds like you've had some bad experience with the hospital.

Wed May 25, 2005 11:15 am

Just a note though... Lipton is pretty different from the Green Tea that's sold in China- which is usually the entire leaf or flower. Tea bags usually have the poorer parts of the tea plant and contain more additives.

Bad Bird wrote:

There is actually a difference in oriental teas. Green tea is predominantly drunk by the Japanese. The leaves are unroasted and produce a green liquid, and the tea tastes very different from Chinese tea. When we say "Chinese tea", it is the golden kind (the common ones being flavoured by Jasmine) like those served in Chinese restaurants.

Actually that's not true. Green Tea is the most popular tea in China (It was "invented" in China after all :P) and the Chinese don't roast their tea either Smile

The leaves are rolled and dried.

Though most types of Chinese green don't produce as dark a color as the Japanes ones, they have a purer tea taste.

Though in a lot of places in China, teas made from flowers and fruits aren't even considered "tea". And about "Chinese" resturants in the west... well, a lot of them don't even make Chinese food for starters.

The best green teas come from China, Japan and India. China and Japan always argue about which tea is better, heh- a bit pointless and stupid considering it' up to the drinker. But I guess it's a matter of national pride?

free skin care · Wed May 25, 2005 2:16 pm

Hi Alexine,

The Chinese do roast their tea - that's the main difference between Chinese and Japanese teas. Both Chinese tea and green tea come from the same plant. What makes them different is the way the leaves have been processed. Green tea is the least processed, and that's why the green colour is preserved and why it has that beautiful "raw" taste. Chinese green tea is also commonly fermented, producing an amber liquid. The taste between the two is worlds apart. That's why the common Japanese tea is known as "sencha", which means "raw (or alive) tea".

Some of the best and most expensive Chinese tea actually comes from Taiwan.

Wed May 25, 2005 5:49 pm

Bad Bird wrote:

Hi Alexine,

The Chinese do roast their tea - that's the main difference between Chinese and Japanese teas. Both Chinese tea and green tea come from the same plant. What makes them different is the way the leaves have been processed. Green tea is the least processed, and that's why the green colour is preserved and why it has that beautiful "raw" taste. Chinese green tea is also commonly fermented, producing an amber liquid. The taste between the two is worlds apart. That's why the common Japanese tea is known as "sencha", which means "raw (or alive) tea".

Some of the best and most expensive Chinese tea actually comes from Taiwan.

Again, that's not true. I have no idea where you're gettin this info from, but you should do some research on this. Maybe you've falled for a Japanese tea shop's marketing ploy? The best Chinese green teas still come from China- Taiwan barely produces any tea compared to China. which is one of the world's largest tea producers.

The most popular tea drink is China is Long Jing green tea. Fermented green tea is "black tea" which is more commonly drunk in India and England Smile

Perhaps the Chinese teas you've tried are the bad quality ones, which would also explain why they're fermented- black tea lasts longer and is usually the poorer parts of the plant. The finest Chinese green teas are rarely exported. And when they do leave the country, they're not what everyone can afford.

free skin care · Wed May 25, 2005 8:06 pm

Hi Alexine,

I'm sorry that you have not had the chance to taste true Japanese green tea, and the finest Chinese tea. They are not so easily obtained, even if you could afford it. A lot of green tea you can buy outside of Japan is produced in China, so I don't blame you for getting the facts wrong.

Chinese tea has a category of black tea, which is different from English tea (and Chinese green, for that matter). It is partially fermented, and this does not mean it is of inferior quality. Saying that fermented tea is of inferior quality is like saying all English teas are inferior. Smile

free skin care · Wed May 25, 2005 9:04 pm

I was served a very expensive green tea at a Japanese art gallery. It was bright green, and tasted like no other tea I'd ever tried -- very fresh, light and had no edge. I was told it wasn't available year-round, for it came from leaves harvested only during Spring. It was a delicacy.

I've found most green tea to be rather bitter (no wonder it's healthful!), but have to confess that I'm a big Earl Grey fan (with milk and honey), so I haven't really acquired a taste for it yet. One I've tried that's got a nice flavor is Harney & Sons Bangkok Flavored Green Tea (with coconut and spice, which make it much more palatable). Must start drinking more, after reading sharky's post!

free skin care · Wed May 25, 2005 9:28 pm

Wow ... April ... you're so lucky!

If you find green tea bitter, one thing I can suggest is not leaving the leaves to brew for more than 2 minutes. And don't use boiling water - let it stand for about a minute first. Smile

free skin care · Thu May 26, 2005 2:07 am

sharky wrote:

GG That's really neat do you know the staff there!? It sounds like you've had some bad experience with the hospital.

No! I don't know any of them personally, but they are notorious for * spam * ups. they nearly killed a friend who was HIV+ by giving him penicillin, despite being told on numerous occassions prior that he was allergic, a local woman went in with head pains, was told to take asprin and sent home. She collapsed outside the doors and died of a brain heamoragge and I nearly lost my youngest because when she was born there, the midwife who was delivering 4 babies at the same time on her own got her confused with another couples kid!

Still, it is nice to see that they do some good research Very Happy

free skin care · Thu May 26, 2005 3:14 am

I think hospitals are dangerous places. Ours is a major well known research hospital yet every time I've been there (and it's been frequently) they've done something horrible (wrong treatment, wrong patient). They're just so understaffed and the docs don't really research each case they just go by rule of thumb. I nearly died in childbirth because they induced me when I had very high blood pressure (HELLP syndrome) I was in a coma for 6 days.

free skin care · Thu May 26, 2005 4:03 am

Wrestling the reins back onto the topic....

Okay, this is a REALLY stupid question, but:

I hadn’t really thought about the fact that tea actually comes from a leaves. Yes, I knew they are called “tea leaves,” but I’d never really given much thought to its origins (kinda like I don’t care to think about the origins of that yummy medium rare Porterhouse steak I had for dinner last night!).

So, here’s my question: do tea leaves come from plants? Does it grow on trees? Where, exactly, does tea come from?

Signed,
Ignorant in TX Embarassed

free skin care · Thu May 26, 2005 4:21 am

tea is a by product of the petro chemical industry. we're stuffed when the oil runs out Laughing

...Ok, seriusly, it does come from a plant more like low growing bushes than trees, but that may be because of pruning Very Happy

free skin care · Thu May 26, 2005 7:24 am

"When research scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, found that green tea actually reactivated dying skin cells, they began referring to the botanical as the "fountain of youth." The researchers are still determining the implications of these findings, but they believe green tea's active ingredients could revolutionize skin care." Quote from UCB med site

free skin care · Thu May 26, 2005 10:57 am

Bottom line:
I do buy sencha at the tea store and I want to know from you guys if it is a good choice or not?

free skin care · Thu May 26, 2005 1:17 pm

I think that would be fine. I've bought teas labeled "Sencha" I do not know whther it is the Japanese name for green tea. I know I've had different tasting tea that had "Sencha" on the label. Geen tea is any real tea that has not been fermented before being dried. It is only minimally oxidized so it retains more of the good phytochemicals than teas processed in other ways.

So you got me interested this is directly from answers.com

"Chinese green teas
Grades of Chinese green tea (绿茶 lǜchá) include:

Longjing (龙井 lóngjǐng, "dragon well"; also lung ching) is a famous tea from the town of Longjing, near Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. Longjing is further divided into 7 grades: Superior (qiqiang), Special (queshe) and then 1 down to 5.
Mao feng ("Mao Peak") is a famous tea from Mount Huangshan.
Gunpowder is a basic green tea from China's Anhui Province. The tea takes its name from the grey-green rolled-leaf balls. In Chinese it is called 珠茶 (zhūchá, "pearl tea" / "bead tea," not to be confused with Boba tea). This is the tea which is exported to the Maghreb and used in the preparation of traditional North African mint tea.
Zhenmei (珍眉茶, zhēnméi chá, "precious eyebrow tea", also chun mee), the most common type in China, is named after the shape of the tea leaves.
Japanese green teas

Japanese Green TeaGreen tea (緑茶 ryokucha) is so ubiquitous in Japan that it is more commonly known as "honorable tea" (お茶, ocha) and even "Japanese tea" (日本茶, nihoncha). Types of tea are commonly graded depending on the quality and the parts of the plant used.

Gyōkuro (玉露, "jewel dew") Gyokuro tea is generally sweet and delicate in flavor. Selected from a grade of green tea known as tencha (天茶), Gyokuro is regarded as the highest grade of tea made in Japan. Gyokuro's name refers to the pale green color of the infusion.
Matcha (抹茶, "rubbed tea") is used primarily in the tea ceremony. Matcha comes from gyokuro leaves that have been steamed and dried. The tea bushes are shaded from sunlight for 3 weeks before harvesting, producing amino acids that sweeten the taste. All stems and veins are removed from the leaves. The pure dried leaves (tencha) are then stone ground into a super fine powder that is the consistency of talc. Most high quality matcha comes from the Uji Tawara area, the premier matcha producing region in Japan.
Sencha (煎茶, "broiled tea") is the most common type of green tea in Japan. It is made from the young leaves of uncovered plants. Over three quarters of all tea produced in Japanese tea gardens is sencha. The earliest season (first month's sencha harvest) is called 'Shincha'. Later harvests of sencha have more astringent qualities, a more robust flavor and generally less aroma.
Shincha (新茶, "new tea") is newly harvested, lightly steamed sencha. It is aromatic but highly perishable, lasting for only about 3 months. Shincha is available in April in the south of Japan, and prized for its high vitamin content, sweetness and superior flavor.
Bancha (番茶, "number tea") are a class of sencha harvested as a second flush tea between summer and autumn. While lacking the delicate sweetness of quality sencha it is respected for its well-defined character, vivid yellow colors and refreshing and deep flavors. Bancha's meaning references the coarser grades and heavier, late season crop from which this full-flavoured tea is made. It is milder, cheaper and contains less caffeine than other varieties.
Genmaicha (玄米茶, "brown rice tea") is a blend of bancha green tea and Genmai (roasted rice grain). The flavor is a mélange of these two ingredients. The roasted aroma of Genmai teas has the effect of lightening the bitterness of the lower grade sencha. The proportioning of tea to rice is important, the more aromatic Genmai teas have a higher amount of rice.
Hōjicha (焙じ茶, "roasted tea") is a pan-fried or oven roasted green tea commonly found in teashops throughout Japan. Both bancha and kukicha are used to make houjicha grades. Hōjicha tends to be a more aromatic tea. It holds very little astringency, has a distinctively clear red appearance and is lower in caffeine.
Kukicha (茎茶, "stem tea") is made from stalks produced by harvesting one bud and three leaves. The combined stalk fractions and emerald leaf of gyokuro and sencha blends are then processed. Kukicha is known for its light flavor and fresh green aroma with a very light yellow-green color. The best kikucha has a flavor considered to be as good as highest quality sencha. It contains only a tenth of the caffeine of leaf tea and its flavor is commonly compared to oolong teas.
Kabusecha - Unlike most sencha cultivated in unshaded gardens exposed to direct sunlight kabuse-cha sencha requires shading tea prior to harvest. Kabuse-cha sencha has a mellower flavor and more subtle color than sencha grown in direct sunlight.
There are large variations in both price and quality within these broad categories, and there are many specialty green teas that fall outside this spectrum. The very best Japanese green tea is said to be that from the Uji region of Kyoto."

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