The tea tree is a persistent leaf shrub of the theaceae family. Its leaves have been used for its medicinal properties for more than 5,000 years.
Tea is the second most consumed drink in the world after water.
The different teas are obtained thanks to the fermentation of the leaves; this fermentation lasts only a few seconds to a few minutes for green tea while it can last several hours for black tea. The longer the fermentation the longer the molecules in the leaves will oxidize. This is why green tea is the most interesting from a therapeutic point of view, and more particularly Japan’s green tea.
EGCG is an antioxidant 30 to 100 times more powerful than vitamin C or E!
Several studies in both humans and animals have shown that daily consumption of 250 mg of catechins reduces cholesterol (LDL), lipoperoxidation and increases the removal capacity of free radicals (ERBA & al, 2005).
The EGCG easily passes the blood-meningeal barrier and plays a role of heavy metal chelator (Zinc, Iron, Copper). This reduces the risk of formation of amyloid peptide and reduces inflammation by acting on IL-1 beta and TNF alpha (CHENG-CHUNG WEI J, 2016) and also fights against the aggregation of Tau proteins (HEIKE JUOBST, 2015).
Which is very interesting in delaying the evolution of neurodegenerative pathologies such as Alzheimer’s disease or Parkinson’s disease.
Through inhibitory cell adhesion of pathogens, EGCG opposes the proliferation of Helicobacter pylori and reduces inflammation of the stomach mucosa (STOICOV & al, 2009).
Antimutagenic pathways are not understood well, but many epidemiological studies show the value of using EGCG, with a dependent dose effect, on colon, breast, and pancreatic cancers (32% less risk, WANG & al, 2012), prostate, kidney or bladder cancer (WU & al, 2013).
Studies have shown that EGCG inhibits both nitric oxide and COX-2 synthesis, resulting in decreased mediators of inflammation such as PGE2 (SINGH & al, 2002), inhibition of metalloproteases 1 and 13, and decreases the degradation of proteoglycans and type 2 collagen (ADCOKCS, 2002).
EGCG causes a marked inhibition of mediators such as COX-2, IFN gamma and TNF alpha in mice.
The daily consumption of green tea brings many very interesting effects to protect the cardiovascular sphere: reduction of lipemia, cholesterolemia, antioxidant effect, anti-inflammatory, anti-thrombogenic effect, antihypertensive effect. It reduces heart hypertrophy but also the risk of cardiac decompensation (BABU & LIEU al, 2008 ; NEVES & al, 2008).
It improves the quality of vascular endothelium and reduces thrombogenesis by decreasing platelet adhesion (BHARDWAJ & KHANNA, 2013).
A 13-year meta-analysis of nearly 80,000 people showed that tea intake reduced the risk of heart disease, heart attacks, hypertension, and in cardiac patients this reduced mortality (KOBUKO & al, 2013).
EGCG restores cellular antioxidant protection capabilities, allowing the synthesis of SOD, catalase and heme oxygenase by action on the Keap1-NRF2 complex.
EGCG reduces the cellular apoptosis of kidney tubules, acting directly at the mitochondrial level (on BaxBcl2 genes) and at the endoplasmic reticulum level by inhibiting caspase 12 (HUI & al, 2016).
Green tea thus improves kidney function, reducing tissue damage and reducing macrophage infiltration and fibrosis. It reduces creatinemia and proteinuria (KAKUTA & al, 2011).
In addition, green tea also protects against uro and nephrolithiasis because it inhibits the expression of alpha-enolase, an enzyme that allows the adhesion of calcium oxalate crystals. This reduces the risk of cystitis and calculations (KANLAYA & al, 2016).
Generally speaking, in humans, consumption between 0.6 and 1.5 litres per day is ideal for these effects.
SO DRINK AND ELIMINATE!
