Hopefully Helpful | Jasmine Mayfair | Reviews

Green tea is one of the best known supplements in the world.

It has been touted for everything from weight loss to cancer prevention to longevity. It's used by serious herbalists (who actually understand it), and it's used in some of the most basic formulas in the world such as One A Day WeightSmart, albeit at meaningless pixie dust levels. But more to the point, it's back in the news with the release of a new study that shows it may actually help slow the progression of prostate cancer. But this newsletter isn't about the virtues of green tea, although we will explore them. Instead, it's about some of the shenanigans going on behind the scenes concerning not just green tea, but all supplements, and even some basic vitamins – specifically B6.

But first, let's talk about some of the virtues of green tea as demonstrated in clinical studies.

The biochemicals of health in green tea

Green tea antioxidants are of the same family as grape seed and pine bark extracts. They are polyphenols, chief of which are the flavonoids called proanthocyanidins. In green tea, the main proanthocyanidins are the catechins, and the most powerful of the catechins is Epigallocatechin Gallate (EGCG), found in the high concentrations in green tea. Why don't other teas have similar properties – particularly since many of them come from the same plant, Camellia sinensis? Quite simply, what sets green tea apart is the way it is processed.

Green tea leaves are lightly fermented and steamed, which prevents the EGCG compound from being oxidized. By contrast, black and oolong tea leaves are made from heavily fermented leaves, which results in the EGCG being converted into other compounds that are not as effective in preventing and fighting various diseases.