Polyphenols In Green Tea

It's widely known that green tea has many health benefits. What you may not know is that a class of substances called polyphenols are responsible for most of these benefits. In this article I will address polyphenols and their part in improving our wellbeing.

What Is A Polyphenol?
Polyphenols are substances naturally produced in plants. A subgroup of polyphenols called flavonoids have been discovered to have health benefits. Flavonoids are found in vegetables, fruits, and tea. Tea has especially large quantities of flavonoids, about 8 to 10 times as much as vegetables and fruits.

Flavonoids are strong antioxidants. Antioxidants are thought to be advantageous to our health because they help prevent cell damage. Antioxidants act by cleaning up free radicals, and stopping them from causing harm to cells.

Catechins
Most of the flavonoids in green tea are catechins. Catechins are simply a subgroup of flavonoids. Catechins make up about 25% of the dry weight of green tea.

EGCG
There are several distinct catechins present in green tea, but epigallocatechin 3-gallate (EGCG) has received the highest degree of research. There is considerable evidence that EGCG is useful in treating many different cancers, as well as preventing them.

EGCG constitutes 50 to 75% of the flavonoid content in green tea. As the name flavonoid suggests, these substances contribute to the flavor of fruits, vegetables, and tea. EGCG is responsible for a lot of the bitterness in green tea. Steeping tea for longer times, with hotter water, will lead to a more bitter tea, with more EGCG. If you wish to increase the health benefits of tea, brew a stronger tea or use the leaves for multiple infusions to draw out more polyphenols.

Green tea has much greater levels of EGCG than black teas. This is because the oxidation processes used to produce black tea transforms the catechins into different polyphenols. These polyphenols may still have health benefits, but they have not been as thoroughly studied as EGCG.

Polyphenol Content Of Green Tea Beverages
The USDA has discovered that fresh brewed, hot tea has the highest concentrations of polyphenols. Instant tea has lower amounts, and ready to drink teas have even less. Decaffeinated green tea has low levels as well. To acquire utmost health benefit, brew your own regular green tea.

You might also consider using loose leaf tea over bag tea. Loose leaf has been less processed, and is made from higher quality leaves. Bag teas are made from leaves which have been cut into extremely tiny pieces. This results in the greater oxidation and more loss of beneficial substances.

By: Brian Chesterton

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