Green Tea – A Tea for Life
By:  Andreas Moritz
Posted: December 8, 2011 — updated 2018

For more than 30 years, Western researchers have known that the occurrence of solid tumor cancers is far less in countries where populations consume large amounts of green tea. Cultures that are endowed with a long tea tradition have much to contribute to individual and global health. However, this applies only to green tea. Regular black tea, presently very popular almost everywhere, has not much to do with real tea. Real tea is derived from the tea plant Thea sinensis or Thea asoncica, not to be confused with herb teas such as peppermint, chamomile or fennel.

Both black and green teas originate from the same tea plant, but their methods of processing are different. The breaking of the leaves of the plants, and exposing them to the oxygen of the air, produces black tea. The resulting natural fermentation process destroys the most important biological ingredients of the tea – the tannins. By contrast, during the production of green tea, the leaves are stabilized through exposure to both humid and dry heat. This eliminates fermentation-producing enzymes and safeguards the nutrients.

Due to fermentation, black tea assumes drug-like qualities. Since tannins and other important nutrients are no longer present in the tea, its caffeine appears in free and unbound form. The stimulating effect of the quickly-released caffeine causes the addictive effect of black tea. It triggers a ‘fight or flight’ response in the body. Since the body treats the ingested caffeine as a nerve toxin, the adrenal glands naturally respond by secreting the antidote adrenaline. This defense response by the body has a stimulating and enlivening effect. However, as the effects of the caffeine and adrenaline diminish, the body starts feeling tired and may end up exhausted.

Green tea works in a different way. The large amounts of tannins in green tea make certain that the caffeine is taken to the brain in only small and well-dosed amounts, which actually harmonizes the energies in the body. Unlike black tea, the original green version of the tea makes the body’s own energy-use more efficient. This helps the consumer of green tea improve his or her vitality and stamina without having to experience the ‘up and down’ effect so often accompanied with the consumption of black tea.

The value of tannin has been studied for centuries all over the world. Besides its ability to bind caffeine, it also has healing properties. Green tea is particularly helpful with intestinal disorders and high blood pressure. It has been shown to be 20 times more effective in slowing the aging process than vitamin E. Studies have demonstrated that the success rate of green tea in reducing oxidants in the body (considered responsible for aging) is 74 percent compared to 4 percent with vitamin E. The vitamin C content of green tea is four times higher than in lemon juice, and it contains more B-vitamins than any other known plant. This makes green tea useful for facial skin conditions such as rosacea/acne. Apart from drinking green tea, you may apply it directly to the skin before bedtime, and after washing your face in the morning.

Since green tea is highly alkaline, it naturally helps combat hyperacidity. People who drink green tea also suffer less from arteriosclerosis. Additionally, it also keeps the blood thin and prevents coronary heart disease, heart attacks and strokes. Furthermore, researchers from the University of Osaka, Japan have been able to prove that green tea kills microbes responsible for cholera and tooth decay; it also destroys salmonella germs before they even have the chance to enter the stomach. A substance called ‘EGCG’ has been found to retard tumor growth. The Botikin Hospital in Moscow reported that green tea is more effective against infection than antibiotics, without producing any harmful side effects.

Green tea has over 100 ingredients that have been found useful for a number of conditions. It inhibits cell mutations leading to cancer; reduces blood fats; balances serum cholesterol levels; prevents high blood pressure; increases heart efficiency; improves brain functions; enhances metabolism; improves vision; supports secretion of saliva; increases growth of hair; reduces body fat and weight; stimulates digestion; and, helps clear urinary tract obstructions.

In a study testing the preventative action of green tea, a team of researchers from the Department of Preventive Medicine at the University of Southern California (USC) found that green tea prevented breast cancer in women by 30 percent if they consumed about half a cup per day. If they drank more than that, their risk of developing breast cancer was further reduced. Women who regularly drank black tea, on the other hand, didn’t have a reduction in their breast cancer risk. The good news is that this study revealed that you don’t need to drink buckets full of green tea to benefit from it.

The best green tea comes from the Shizuoka area in Japan; it grows organically and has no additives. People living in this area have a much lower cancer rate than those living in other areas of Japan. A reliable brand is Sencha sold by Kurimoto Trading Co., Japan. With over 130 ingredients, it is the richest of all green teas. Other brands are Ocha or Bancha; you should be able to find at least one of them at a good health food store.

Note: The effectiveness of green tea depends on how you prepare it. Take 1½ teaspoons of green tea to prepare 2 cups of tea. Bring water to a boil and turn the heat off. Put the tea into a pot and pour the boiled water over the tea as soon as the water has stopped bubbling. After no longer than 35-45 seconds, pour the tea through a sieve into a teapot, otherwise the tea loses much of its effectiveness. You may use the same leaves a second time by applying the same procedure.

Does Green Tea Contain Toxins?

Some websites claim that tea is very high in fluoride content. Fluoride in tea is supposedly much higher than the Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) set for fluoride in drinking water. One site confirms that information, adding that the typical cup of tea exceeds one milligram of fluoride, which is well over the recommended amount for fluoridated drinking water. On yet another site, it says that fluorine and its compounds in food are entirely different from chemically-produced sodium fluoride. It states that once an element is extracted from the soil and incorporated into plant life, its properties change greatly. All this can be greatly confusing for those concerned about fluoride poisoning.

Yes, fluoride is found in tea and also in mother’s milk. This applies also to areas where there is no fluoride in the drinking water or air. Numerous plants contain naturally occurring fluorine or fluoride compounds. The hideous version of fluoride that is added to drinking water in so many parts of the world is the poison we ought to protect ourselves against. “Fluoride, once touted as an osteoporosis treatment, is, in fact, toxic to bone cells,” says John R. Lee M.D. Thankfully, the American Dental Association, which has for many years been one of fluoride’s biggest advocates, changed course when it alerted its members in 2006 that parents of infants younger than a year old “should consider using water that has no or low levels of fluoride” when mixing baby formula.

If the naturally occurring fluoride in green tea were even remotely toxic (like the fluoride added to drinking water), it would not have been shown to have such a wide range of preventive and curative effects. The body’s immune system would reactively respond to it and become weakened in the process. Yet quite the opposite is true. Green tea inhibits cell mutation, stimulates digestion and enhances brain functions. Synthetic fluoride has the exact opposite effects.

The fluoride—or fluorine—that occurs naturally in tea and other foods is so volatile that most of it evaporates in the heating process. The synthetic sodium fluoride added to water, on the other hand, remains stable when heated. So the sodium fluoride in your cup of tea is of much greater concern than the natural fluoride in the tea itself. Excessive fluoride intake can lead to hyperthyroidism. If you have been diagnosed with this disorder, you should consult with a doctor of Ayurveda, Chinese Medicine or an ND (doctor of naturopathic medicine) who is knowledgeable about nutrition and its effects on the body’s endocrine glands.

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 Caffeine Toxicity and Nerve Damage
Sirah Dubois

Caffeine is the most widely consumed and unregulated stimulant in the world. The majority of Americans knowingly or unknowingly consume caffeine each day, usually from coffee, tea and soda, but also from chocolate, energy drinks and many over-the-counter medications. In the quantities found in most food and drinks, caffeine is very unlikely to cause toxicity; however, many drugs contain high levels of caffeine and pose a considerable risk for some users. Nerve damage can develop as a consequence of excessive caffeine intake, but it is not the most common symptom.
Prevalence of Caffeine Toxicity

According to "Nutrition Concepts & Controversies," 3,343 cases of caffeine poisoning were reported to the American Association of Poison Control Center in 2009. Of the 3,343 cases, 1,249 represented children younger than 6 years old, mainly because of their smaller size and lesser ability to metabolize caffeine and remove it from their blood serum. Death is not an uncommon result of caffeine toxicity, with the causes often related to heart failure, seizures and adrenal failure. There is no data to suggest that race or gender alter the biochemical effects of caffeine.
Unsafe Dosages

In adults, lethal toxicity from caffeine is estimated to occur between 150 and 200 mg/kg, which equates to drinking at least 80 cups of brewed coffee in a short period of time, according to the "Complete Guide to Prescription and Non-prescription Drugs" by H. Winter Griffith, M.D. In terms of lethal dosages, consumption of between 7 and 10 g of caffeine will kill most adults. Caffeine doses of 78 mg/kg can cause toxicity and serious adverse effects in young children. In 1989, the US Food and Drug Administration limited the amount of caffeine in over-the-counter drugs to a maximum of 200 mg/dose. Caffeine is commonly found in alertness-promoting drugs, menstrual aids, pain killers and diet aids.
Toxicity Symptoms

Caffeine affects your central nervous system, heart, blood vessels, adrenal glands, thyroid gland, kidneys and a variety of neurotransmitters and hormones, but it is dose dependent. For example, at doses between 85 and 250 mg, caffeine may cause feelings of alertness, reduced fatigue and eased flow of thought, according to "Functional Biochemistry in Health and Disease." Doses between 250 and 500 mg can cause undesirable effects, such as restlessness, nervousness, insomnia, fatigue and tremors. Higher daily doses can cause severe glandular fatigue from over-production of adrenaline and other hormones, cardiovascular problems and altered brain activity that culminates in seizures. People most at risk for severe caffeine toxicity are bodybuilders and other athletes that intentionally supplement with caffeine, people addicted to drugs with caffeine, long-term energy drink addicts and epileptics, as noted by Sari Edelstein, author of "Nutrition and Public Health."
Caffeine and Nerve Damage

Caffeine can damage nerves in a couple of ways. According to the book "Advanced Nutrition and Human Metabolism," the main action of caffeine is to counteract the effects of the brain chemical adenosine, which results in reduced blood flow to your brain and damage to neurons. Damage to neurons in your brain is experienced as headaches, dizziness, seizures and reduced fine-motor coordination in your hands.

Further, caffeine indirectly promotes the depletion of B vitamins, some of which are needed for conductance and maintenance of nerves. As such, high consumption of caffeine can cause numbness and tingling in your arms, legs and around your head. Reducing your caffeine consumption and supplementing with a B-complex vitamin should help combat these symptoms. Long-term vitamin B-6 and B-12 deficiency often results in permanent nerve damage.

Green tea health risks:
Could green tea actually be bad for you?
By Bryan Walsh

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Green tea has received a lot of positive media attention in recent years. But is it really good for everyone?

Not necessarily.

There is a group of people for whom green tea may be hazardous. And given green tea’s popularity these days, it’s critical to share this information with anyone interested in health.

Green tea has a wealth of research behind it demonstrating a number of health-promoting benefits including anti-inflammatory, anti-carcinogenic and antioxidant properties.

Many of green tea’s benefits are due to its effects on the immune system, which is also where it can cause problems.

But before telling you how green tea impacts the immune system, let’s take a quick look at a simplified version of how it works.
Should you banish this harmless-looking substance from your pantry?
Should you banish this harmless-looking substance from your pantry?
A primer on the immune system

The immune system is composed of white blood cells, which are then differentiated into five different type of immune cells. One of those is a group of cells called lymphocytes.

Lymphocytes are then broken down even further into B cells, as well as T cells, which have their own subset of cells called T helper cells, T regulatory cells, cytotoxic T cells and T suppressor cells.

The immune system can be confusing, so rather than describe these cells in detail, I’ll use a real life example of how it works.

Let’s say you cut yourself with a dirty knife.  Bacteria penetrate your skin, engaging a first line of defense from our immune system called a macrophage (picture Pac Man).

Macrophages are like big, fat security guards wielding tiny billy clubs –- ineffective, but they’ll slow an invader down while they call on more sophisticated security guards.

When confronted with an invader, macrophages call on their friends, the T helper cells. The T helper cells tell the entire immune system through a series of chemical signals that there has been an invader that has crossed the barrier.

Specifically, the T helper cells call directly on two types of cells, cytotoxic T cells and natural killer cells, both soldiers with muscle that live up to their name and help attack and kill the bacterial invaders.

Once the bacteria have been killed, it is time for the immune system to call off the attack, which is the job of the T suppressor cells, who “suppress” the fight.

In the event that the bacteria is too powerful for the T cells, or if the T cells have a difficult time finding the invader, as in the case of a virus, the B cells are called to join in the fight. B cells make antibodies for a given invader based on instructions from the T helper cells.

In other words, if the T helper cells tell the immune system that the invader is a guy wearing an orange sweater, the B cells will create antibodies for a guy in an orange sweater, so that when they meet him, they can latch onto him and wave a flag, making it easier for the cytotoxic T cells and natural killer cells to find the invader.

But here’s what you really need to know:

    The initial T cell response is called a “Th1 response”.
    The secondary B cell antibody response is called a “Th2 response”.

In a healthy body, there is balance between the Th1 (T cell) and Th2 (B cell) parts of our immune system. And that’s the desirable state.

However, sometimes an imbalance of the Th1/Th2 system can be beneficial. For example, during pregnancy women have a tendency to shift towards a Th2 dominance, which is advantageous since a Th1 shift would induce rejection of the fetus.
Autoimmune disease: An immune system out of balance

Virtually all autoimmune diseases -– conditions where the immune system begins to attack self-tissue –- have either a Th1 or a Th2 dominance.

Put another way, autoimmune conditions generally have either a T cell upregulation and B cell suppression (Th1 dominant) or the opposite (Th2 dominant).

Th1 dominant: T cells up; B cells down

Th2 dominant: T cells down; B cells up

It’s imperative that people with autoimmune disorders maintain Th1/Th2 balance.

When the immune system is dysregulated and starts attacking body tissues, the more out of balance the immune system is, the more voraciously it will attack those tissues.

For example, in someone with rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune condition where the immune system attacks cartilage, the more out of balance the Th1/Th2 system is, the more cartilage destruction will take place.
When healthy foods are unhealthy

According to research, a number of natural compounds have a tendency to push either side of the Th1/Th2 balance.

Green tea is one such substance.  The active components of green tea have a tendency to push the Th2 system to be more dominant by inhibiting the Th1 side of the immune system.

Therefore someone with a Th2-dominant autoimmune condition (see table below) would be wise to stay away from green tea or products containing concentrated green tea (such as a green tea supplement), because it can upregulate an already dominant system and lead to more tissue destruction.

Conversely in someone with a Th1-dominant autoimmune condition, green tea would be beneficial because it inhibits the Th1 side of the immune system.

Another common example most people know of is the herb echinacea.

When people get sick with a cold or flu, echinacea helps boost the T cells (Th1 response) involved with the initial attack of a foreign invader.

However, in a Th1-dominant autoimmune condition, echinacea will likely make the condition worse and is therefore be something to be avoided.
Real world example

We had a patient come into our office and report that she took a single antioxidant capsule one night before bed and experienced an array of symptoms including heart palpitations, anxiety, “inward trembling” and insomnia.

The patient had been previously diagnosed with hypothyroidism, a low thyroid condition characterized by weight gain, fatigue, and depression-like symptoms.

The number one cause of hypothyroidism in the United States is an autoimmune condition called Hashimoto’s syndrome (or Hashimoto’s thyroiditis).

The patient’s symptoms after taking the antioxidant indicated an upregulated, or increased attack on her thyroid gland, which then released extra thyroid hormone into her system causing what are classically hyperthyroid symptoms.

When we looked at the ingredients in the antioxidant, it made sense.

Two of the main ingredients –- green tea extract and curcumin -– have been shown to push the immune system towards a Th2 dominance.  Given the symptoms she experienced after taking the antioxidant, we concluded that she suffered from a Th2-dominant Hashimoto’s autoimmune condition.

We surmised that the green tea and curcumin stimulated her already lopsided immune system into more aggressively attacking her thyroid gland.
Conclusion

There is no one food that is good for everyone.

We are all unique individuals, with different genetics, different biochemical needs and different reactions to ingested food.  Indeed, one person’s food is another person’s poison.

Many foods and supplements have a wealth of proven health benefits, but not for everyone.

If you have an autoimmune condition, some of these compounds can make you much better or much worse depending on your Th1/Th2 dominance.  You can talk with your doctor about running a lymphocyte panel to determine which dominance you have and then take the appropriate compounds to help push your immune system in the opposite direction.

But do not do this without the advice of a qualified medical professional! Pushing your system in the wrong direction can lead to further destruction of whatever tissue(s) your immune system might be attacking.

Green tea has a proven track record of benefits for the average person and, if you do not have an autoimmune condition, it seems wise to include green tea into your diet.

However if you have a diagnosed autoimmune condition, especially a Th2 dominance disorder, green tea might not be for you.

You may be wondering at this point whether you should clear your cupboard.

While there’s a basic list of common autoimmune conditions as a general guideline below, please be aware that this doesn’t always pan out in practice. I’ve found this along with some other practitioners.

When we run lymphocyte panels on people, we find some that differ from the clinical literature that categorizes people by Th dominance status. (In other words, the research says they should be one thing; but we find in fact that they’re the other.)

There is a lot we still don’t know about autoimmune conditions. If you see yourself on this list, don’t jump to any conclusions or self-diagnose, take the wrong supplement and make yourself worse (i.e. a Th2 dominant MS patient who demyelinates themselves by taking green tea).

Always check with a qualified practitioner.
Common Th1 dominance disorders

Organ-specific autoimmune diseases (Possible benefit from green tea)

    Multiple sclerosis
    IBD/Crohn’s disease
    Type 1 diabetes
    Hashimoto’s disease, Graves disease (thyroiditis)
    Psoriasis
    Rheumatoid arthritis
    Heliobacter pylori induced peptic ulcer

Th1 stimulating compounds

    Echinacea
    astragalus
    licorice root
    beta-sitosterol
    ashwaganda
    panax ginseng
    mushrooms (Maitake, Reishi, Shiitake)
    chlorella
    grape seed extract

Common Th2 dominance disorders

Systemic autoimmune diseases (Possible harm from green tea)

    Allergies
    Asthma
    Chronic sinusitis
    Many cancers
    Hepatitis B and C (mixed Th1 and Th2)
    Ulcerative colitis
    Viral infections
    Systemic lupus erythematosus
    Helminth infections

Th2 stimulating compounds

    Green tea
    resveratrol
    pycnogenol
    curcumin
    genistein
    quercetin

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