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Green tea may prevent breast cancer in women

Keep it Green

If you think you’ve heard it all when it comes to green tea, then keep reading. Because I’ve just come across a study that takes the research of green tea out of the laboratory and into the homes of more than 1,000 women, with surprising and promising results concerning the prevention of breast cancer.

In the City of Angels

A team of researchers from the Department of Preventive Medicine at the University of Southern California (USC) interviewed almost 1,100 Asian American women (aged 25 to 74) living in Los Angeles. 501 women had been diagnosed with breast cancer, and 594 were cancer-free.

Between 1995 and 1998, each subject was interviewed in person to determine a wide variety of factors, including food and beverage intake, personal medical history, family health history, and general lifestyle details such as smoking habits and alcohol intake. An examination of the data showed that women in the non-cancer group were much more likely to be regular green tea drinkers. In fact, on average, those who drank at least 8.5 milliliters (less than half a cup) of green tea each day, had a reduced breast cancer risk of nearly 30 percent. Those who consumed more than 8.5 milliliters reduced their risk even more.

This benefit was found only with green tea consumption. Women who regularly drank black tea didn’t reduce their breast cancer risk.

Cutting off the supply

Writing in a recent issue of the International Journal of Cancer, the USC researchers noted that the reduction in breast cancer risk among the green tea drinkers held true even among women who had a family history of breast cancer as well as among women who smoked or ate processed foods. Exercise habits – either good or bad – also did not play a role in the outcome for green tea drinkers.

The conclusions of this study support the important results of a 2002 laboratory study. According to a report in Science News, researchers at the University of California and the University of Texas found that green tea extract may prevent breast cancer cells from manufacturing the new blood vessels necessary to promote cancer cell growth. If further research confirms these findings, it may help explain why the green tea drinkers in the USC study were at lower risk of breast cancer, regardless of other health, diet, and family history factors.

Benefits on benefits

This USC study reminded me that drinking tea – either green or black tea – may also give your immune system a boost.

In several recent e-Alerts I’ve addressed the yearly autumn obsession with the topic of flu shots. You may or may not experience protective benefits from a flu vaccine, but without question you will improve your ability to fight the flu if you take steps now to strengthen your immune system.

In the e-Alert “Model T” (5/22/03) I told you how researchers at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital had demonstrated that the amino acid L-theanine (found in both green and black tea) may prompt the liver to secrete interferon – an important compound that helps the body fight an assortment of infections: viral, parasitic, fungal, and bacteria.

Using a group of 21 subjects, researchers took blood samples from all, then had 10 of them drink five cups of coffee each day for four weeks, while 11 drank five cups of black tea each day for the same period. At the end of the test period more blood was drawn from each subject. All of the blood samples were then exposed to E-coli bacteria. In response to the bacteria, the blood cells from the tea drinkers secreted five times the amount of interferon as blood samples taken from the same subjects before the test period. The amount of interferon secreted by the blood samples of the coffee drinkers was the same, both before and after the test.

The Harvard researchers believe that their study offers a reliable indication that a daily intake of five cups of tea each day can significantly help the immune system fight infection.

And as an added bonus, Japanese research has shown that L-theanine may also relieve stress. Approximately 30 minutes after it’s ingested, L-theanine stimulates production of alpha waves, which can create a feeling of being simultaneously alert and relaxed. L-theanine also stimulates production of gamma aminobutryic acid (GABA), a neurotransmitter that’s been shown to limit nerve cell activity in those areas of the brain associated with anxiety.

Drink up

Whether you’re avoiding breast cancer, trying to reduce stress, or looking for ways to boost your immune response, the evidence is mounting – almost daily – that the consumption of green tea delivers a host of bioactive elements that enhance your well being in large ways and small.

To Your Good Health,

Jenny Thompson
Health Sciences Institute

Sources:
“Green tea and risk of breast cancer in Asian Americans” International Journal of Cancer, Vol. 106, No. 4, 574-579, 9/10/03, interscience.wiley.com
“Another Green that Might Prevent Breast Cancer” Janet Raloff, Science News, Vol. 164, No. 11, 9/13/03, sciencenews.org
“A Cup of Tea May Be Germs’ New Enemy – Study Finds Tea Sharpens Body’s Defense Against Infection” Associated Press, 4/22/03, edition.cnn.com
“Tea is Good for You” Health 24, 5/15/03, health24.co.za
“The Omega Principle” Sally Squires, Washington Post, 8/19/03, washingtonpost.com

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