Green tea and Smoking
Reduce Lung Cancer Risk
A green tea and smoking study found that it may reduce lung damage by 25%. Black tea does not have the same benefit.
Irritated by second hand smoke? Why should we be forced to breathe in
carcinogens just because the other people are smoking?
You might be surprised that green tea’s many benefits extend to mitigating
the harmful effects of smoke, especially if your body is not doing enough to
remove these toxins.
A study conducted by the University of Arizona in United
States studied the effects of smoking on heavy smokers.
100 women and 33 men participated in the study over 4 months. They drank
either green tea, black tea or water.
Researchers found that drinking decaffeinated green tea reduces the levels of
urinary 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (8-OhdG). A marker of DNA damage, 8-OhDG is
believed to cause cell damage.
"What we found was a 25% decrease in the green tea group," said Dr. Iman
Hakim, who headed the study.
However, no changes were seen in people who drank black tea or water.
An enzyme called glutathione S-transferase plays a key role in the liver's
ability to detoxify many of the carcinogens found in cigarette smoke.
Perhaps this is not surprising. After all, green tea has been known to
protect the liver.
Some individuals lack the genetic ability to produce normal amounts of this
beneficial enzyme. Unable to detoxify themselves, they are more susceptible to
developing cancers.
Green tea has been found to be especially effective in reducing DNA damage
for these individuals.
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