Green Tea Health Benefits: Understanding Its Role in Cancer Prevention

You may have heard about a number of green tea health benefits in the past. But do you know the science behind these claims? Or how do you reap these benefits for yourself? Don't miss the rest of this post, where you'll get all of those answers and more!

Japanese green tea has been known to have major health benefits for many years. Many medical experts believe it increases stamina, sharpens the mind, and can even extend the lifespan. It has been proven to aid the immune system, have fat-burning properties, and help fight off disease. But now, newer health studies have shown evidence that Japanese green tea might actually prevent or reduce the effects of certain types of cancer.

Green Tea Health Benefits

Green tea can protect your body from harmful fats and aid in digestion. It can also protect the brain and liver and promote healthy gums.

Other health benefits of green tea include being known to reduce blood pressure, defend against diabetes, reduce the chance of a heart attack, and lower cholesterol levels. It's also high in antioxidants. As a result, it's becoming increasingly evident that green tea seems to inhibit the growth of certain types of cancer.

Green Tea's Cancer-Fighting Properties

Tea is the most popular drink on Earth, next to water. In around 80% of the world, most people prefer to drink black tea rather than green tea. This makes comparative studies fairly simple to conduct on a rudimentary level.

In Japan, green tea is very popular. It's part of the culture there. The World Health Organization has reported that Americans are three times more likely to get breast cancer than people in Japan. It is also consumed in China and other Asian countries, which also have much lower rates of breast and prostate cancer.

Japan has an overall low rate of cancer, even though smoking is very popular and has traditionally been linked to lung cancer. These findings suggest that green tea seems to have benefited the health of entire countries. And yes, even those high in pollution and smoking! The fact that most people in Japan and China are thin suggests that the fat-burning agents in green tea are potent.

(Read more about Japanese Green Tea and Diet in this article next.)

The Science of Green Tea Health Benefits

There are chemicals in Japanese green tea known as polyphenols. There is evidence to suggest these agents block certain proteins that help cancer spread and grow. The two proteins most affected are the vascular endothelial and hepatocyte growth factors. Interestingly, both of these are main factors in cancer promotion.

There is also evidence that specific green tea polyphenols like EGCG fight enzymes that are necessary for cancer to grow. Even better, they also seem to kill other cancer cells without harming the rest of the body or interior organs.

EGCG is one of the antioxidants that are similar to Vitamin E and Vitamin C, except that it's much more powerful. There was a study done at the University of Kansas that proved that it is twice as strong as the cancer-killing resveratrol. Resveratrol is found in purple grapes, and it has been a staple of cancer-fighting diets for years.

EGCG works in concert with an amino acid called L-Theanine. L-Theanine is the agent in green tea that makes you feel relaxed and can put you in an alert, calm state. It's also known to enhance concentration while reducing feelings of stress. Thus, it's very popular among students, lawyers, and people who work in high-stress environments.

But L-Theanine is not commonly found in most foods or drinks. It can only be obtained through black and green tea.

(Read more about this topic in my other article, - Science Behind Why Japanese Green Tea is Good for Health, or more about EGCG and polyphenols.)

Green Tea Treatments and Research Findings

In a study from the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center involving patients with prostate cancer, it was shown that green tea seems to help fight the disease in the early stages before it has spread. The green tea seemed to reduce the growth rate of tumors to a noticeable degree. It seems to be most effective in the early stages of prostate, breast, and lung cancer.

The men who participated in the prostate cancer study were asked to drink six cups of green tea each day. Those who did so were found to have much lower levels of prostate-specific antigen, which is an agent that causes tumors to grow.

In a study at the Columbia University Medical Center, women with breast cancer were given green tea polyphenols. These chemicals actually lowered the rate of tumor growth over a period of two months. As the study went on, the scientists tried to determine the optimum amount of tea for maximum beneficial effect. They believed that 6–8 cups of green tea per day achieved optimal results.

How Much Green Tea is Safe to Drink Each Day?

Too much of anything is bad for you. The question is, How much green tea is safe to drink? Of course, tea contains caffeine, which is linked to insomnia, headaches, nausea, and more.

Physicians agree that adults can consume up to 400 mg of green tea per day. That's the equivalent of eight cups of green tea, and that's a conservative estimate. The true number could be as high as 16 cups per day. In most cases, the increase in caffeine intake does not lead to any substantial issues, partly because green tea is much lower in caffeine than black tea and other types of drinks.

Japanese green tea is also a good choice because it's lower in fluoride than other types of tea. In Japan, there is less fluoride in the soil than in other places, such as China. The medical community has found in recent years that fluoride is unhealthy when consumed in large doses, and intake needs to be monitored carefully. Many people have it in their drinking water, meaning that tea drinkers are getting a double dose.

The Best Way to Consume Green Tea

To get the maximum health benefits from green tea, you should know that the form it comes in is important. Many believe that loose-leaf tea is the most beneficial form of green tea. To make it, you can put tea leaves in a teapot and add boiling water. Let it steep for a minute or two. And then strain out the leaves while you pour it into the cup.

You could also use a tea maker that has built-in filters, or you could try using a tea filter, which is a tea bag that you put leaves into yourself. Some people prefer to use a tea ball. (You can download our brewing technique book to learn more by clicking here.)

Green tea can be part of a plan to prevent or fight cancer. It also promotes health in a staggering variety of ways! Including green tea in your diet is a great idea for anyone hoping to improve or maintain their health.

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