Green tea boasts potent antioxidants known as catechins, which have been associated with a variety of health benefits for the prostate.
Here are seven reasons you should enjoy green tea often:
1. It interferes with the activity of an enzyme called ortnithine decarboxylase, which plays a role in the “birth” of prostate cancer (Gupta 1999)
2. Green tea slows the growth of human prostate cancer cells and prompts them to “commit suicide” (apoptosis) (Gupta, Ahmad 2000)
3. It encourages the repair of damaged DNA that might otherwise promote cancer growth (Butt 2009)
4. Green tea inhibits the activity of an enzyme called COX-2, which accumulates in prostate cancer tissue and is involved in the prostate cancer process. (Hussein, Gupta 2005). Research shows that prescription medications called COX-2 inhibitors, such as celecoxib (Celebrex) have the ability to slow the growth of prostate cancer in animal models. However, a recent study published in Clinical Cancer Research shows that the EGCG found in green tea was nearly as effective as COX-2 inhibitors in slowing the growth of prostate cancer. (Adhami 2007)
5. It stimulates the activity of certain immune system cells that fight cancer tumors. (Butt 2009)
6. In a study published in the journal Cancer Prevention Research in June 2009, researchers reported that green tea polyphenols, primarily EGCG, significantly reduced the levels of PSA. The study included 26 men who had prostate cancer and who were scheduled for radical prostatectomy. (McLarty 2009)
7. It also appears that catechins may benefit men who have pre-cancerous prostate lesions (prostate intraepithelial neoplasia, or PIN), a condition that indicates a high risk of developing prostate cancer. Studies indicate that 30 percent of men who have a high-grade PIN go on to develop prostate cancer within one year after repeated biopsy. In a 2006 study published in Cancer Research, 60 men who had high-grade PIN participated in the double-blind, placebo-controlled study. (Bettuzzi 2006) Men in the treatment group received three 200-mg capsules of catechins daily. After one year, only one tumor was diagnosed among the 30 treated men, compared with nine cancers found among the 30 controls. As a “bonus,” the researchers also noticed that the men who took the catechins had reduced lower urinary tract symptoms, which suggests catechins may be helpful in treating symptoms of BPH.
Related blogs
