EGCG together with ibuprofen may have significant prostate cancer fighting activity

Scientists at the University of North Texas Health Science Center in Fort Worth are aware of the value of both EGCG from Green Tea and ibuprofen, a drug commonly prescribed for arthritic pain, in fighting prostate cancer cells. DU-145 cells are prostate cancer cells used to study how this cancer grows. When either EGCG or ibuprofen was added to the prostate cancer cells they reduced the number of cells by 25% at most. However, when both EGCG and ibuprofen were added to the cells together they reduced the number of prostate cancer cells by a whopping 90%. The study is published in the November-December 2007 issue of the journal Anticancer Research.

Tea strongly lowers the risk of diabetes in the non-obese

Obesity and diabetes are metabolic disorders related to an increased cardiovascular risk that affect a large number of the elderly. Drinking tea has been associated with a lower risk of dying and illness in some studies. Researchers from Harokopio University in Athens evaluated the association between drinking tea and fasting blood sugar levels in a sample of elderly adults; 542 men and women aged 65-100 years were enrolled. Analysis revealed that moderate tea consumption (1-2 cups/day) was associated with an 88% lower risk of developing diabetes among non-obese participants, irrespective of age, sex, smoking, physical activity status, dietary habits and other clinical characteristics. The study is published in the February 2008 issue of the European Journal of Nutrition.

Green Tea Polyphenol Liquid may decrease the risk of gastric cancer seen with Helicobacter pylori infection

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a vicious bacterium that is a leading cause of peptic ulcers and gastric cancer. Recently it was found that in mice with gastric cancer there was commonly an associated H. pylori infection. H. pylori causes gastric cells to proliferate and also causes gastric cells to die in abundance. Scientists at the Department of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Nihon University School of Medicine in Tokyo say that Green Tea antioxidants have a variety of reported anti-cancer activities and the ability to kill some bacteria. In this study they infected mice with H. pylori and 18 weeks after infecting them they started to supplement the drinking water of a group with 0.5% Green Tea Polyphenols every day for 2 weeks. H. pylori caused the proliferation of cells but giving the Green Tea preparation suppressed this abnormal activity. Green Tea Polyphenols also prevented the death of the gastric cells, but the gastric cells did die in the non-supplemented mice. Supplementation with liquid Green Tea Polyphenols may decrease the risk of cancer seen with H. pylori infection. The study is published in the March 2007 issue of the Journal of Clinical Biochemistry and Nutrition.