Green tea could lead to longer life by protecting DNA
Last year, scientists from The Chinese University of Hong Kong found a positive association between high consumption of tea (Camellia sinensis) and longer telomere length – a marker of younger “biological age” – and living an average of five years longer, but it was unclear just how much of an impact was made by the tea. Now scientists from Hong Kong Polytechnic University have discovered, through a cell culture study then followed by a controlled trial of supplementation in humans, that drinking two cups of green tea daily may offer notable DNA protection from oxidation. Writing in the September issue of British Journal of Nutrition, the study’s authors state that the “genoprotective effects of green tea lend support to its use as a functional food and provide scientific evidence for the more confident recommendation of regular intake of green tea for health promotion.” In the in vitro trial, the scientists prepared an infusion of tea that was used to treat human immune cells. The cel...