
Is any other food or drink reported to have
as many health benefits as green tea? The
Chinese have known about the medicinal
benefits of green tea since ancient times,
using it to treat everything from headaches
to depression. In her book Green Tea: The
Natural Secret for a Healthier Life, Nadine
Taylor states that green tea has been used
as a medicine in China for at least 4,000
years.
Today, scientific research in both Asia and
the west is providing hard evidence for the
health benefits long associated with
drinking green tea. For example, in 1994 the
Journal of the National Cancer Institute
published the results of an epidemiological
study indicating that drinking green tea
reduced the risk of esophageal cancer in
Chinese men and women by nearly sixty
percent. University of Purdue researchers
recently concluded that a compound in green
tea inhibits the growth of cancer cells.
There is also research indicating that
drinking green tea lowers total cholesterol
levels, as well as improving the ratio of
good (HDL) cholesterol to bad (LDL)
cholesterol.
To sum up, here are just a few medical
conditions in which drinking green tea is
reputed to be helpful: cancer; rheumatoid
arthritis; high cholesterol levels;
cariovascular disease; infection; impaired
immune function. |