Green Tea & Your Liver: The Facts

GREEN TEA & YOUR LIVER.

Millions of people across the world drink green tea daily for the wide range of health benefits, and for the taste. Apart from water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage globally, and is also the most clinically researched due to the incredibly positive effects that it can have on the human body.

While the evidence is there to support the inclusion of green tea in your daily diet, there can also be (as with most things) “too much of a good thing” when it comes to highly concentrated green tea supplements and extracts boasting very high amounts of tea per individual dose.

AN OVERVIEW

In this post, we’ll examine some of the positive health effects that green tea can have on your general health, and your liver, when enjoyed daily within recommended guidelines. We’ll also touch on the dangers of consuming highly concentrated doses in single sittings (Example: “20 cups of green tea” in one dose).

The good news is that there are clear and measurable recommendations for the safe and effective consumption of green tea that give you the health benefits without compromising your liver. These may not apply if you have an existing liver condition, or a predisposition to liver problems. Read on…

*As with anything that you consume, please consult your doctor if you are unsure about whether green tea will interact with any of your medications or medical condition.

WHAT IS THE LIVER AND WHAT DOES IT DO?

The liver is a vital organ that sits up under your ribcage on the right hand side of your abdomen.

It has a number of important functions, but its main function is to filter the blood that comes from your digestive tract before it enters the rest of the body.

The liver also detoxifies chemicals within the bloodstream and works to metabolise products such as medications, sports supplements, vitamins, and alcohol, all of which have the potential to cause issues.

HOW DOES GREEN TEA BENEFIT MY GENERAL HEALTH?

Green Tea is naturally full of antioxidants called catechins (EGCG, EGC, ECG, EC).

These antioxidants work to protect the body from the free radicals that cause cellular damage and inflammation, thus assisting in the promotion of health, and the prevention of disease.

Green Tea has been clinically shown to reduce the risk of certain types of cancer, reduce blood sugar level spikes, promote healthy gut flora (it is a pre-biotic), and even help to prevent obesity and Type 2 Diabetes.

Enjoyed daily, green tea can also positively affect cardiovascular health, cognitive function (there are promising signs in prevention of Alzheimer’s Disease), and even improve anxiety and depression.

HOW DOES GREEN TEA BENEFIT MY LIVER?

The antioxidants found in green tea (catechins such as EGCG & ECG) have also been found to assist liver function and protect the liver from the damaging effects of toxic substances such as alcohol.

These antioxidants have substantial free radical scavenging activity and may protect cells from DNA damage caused by reactive oxygen species.

Studies have also shown that daily ingestion of green tea blocks the amount of fat stored in the livers of obese mice that otherwise develop the severe fatty liver disease; improves liver function; and reverses declines in antioxidant defences in the liver. (Reference: Read More Here)

SAFETY AND PRECAUTIONS

Given the widespread consumption of green tea and its extract, liver injury from green tea is rare. (REFERENCE: Read More Here)

The problems associated with green tea and the liver are primarily linked to the consumption of high concentrations of green tea in single doses, such as those associated with weight loss supplements and highly concentrated extracts.

These are often teamed up with protein powders and other herbal additives that may also be responsible for some of the damage. In these cases, it is hard to isolate one culprit.

RECOMMENDATIONS AND DAILY DOSES

Human clinical studies demonstrate that single doses of up to 1.6grams of green tea extract are well tolerated. (REFERENCE: Read More Here)

The maximum tolerated dose in humans is reported to be 9.9grams of green tea extract per day. (REFERENCE: Read More Here)

This is equivalent to a maximum of 24 cups of green tea per day. (REFERENCE: Read More Here)

INTRODUCING GREEN TEA IN 3 SECONDS – Tea Benefits Made Safe and Easy.

As nurses, we developed this gentle range of green tea as a fast, health-boosting alternative to sugary, flavoured drinks.

Our belief is that consistent, gentle health practices that support the body’s natural functioning will lead to the best long-term health outcomes for the individual. We also want to ensure that you are receiving enough green tea antioxidants per day to get the amazing health benefits, without the risk of extreme doses.

This is why we’ve made sure that:

Each sachet of Green Tea in 3 Seconds contains just 0.6g, which is the equivalent of 5g raw green tea (2 standard cups).
Only 2 ingredients: 90% green tea + 10% fruit extract.
The antioxidant content is absolutely precise and well within recommended guidelines for safe consumption.
Each batch is tested thoroughly to ensure absolute purity and freedom from pollutants.

Green Tea in 3 Seconds is not a supplement or a heavily-concentrated extract, but a gentle alternative to sugary drinks or plain water.

Each sachet is equivalent to just 2 cups of green tea and contains exactly 265mg polyphenol antioxidants and 106mg of EGCG per sachet.

Replacing your sugary, flavoured drinks each day with water and Green Tea in 3 Seconds (we recommend 2-3 sachets per day) will not only reduce your intake of sugar and artificial ingredients, it has the ability to boost your health in the long term.

*As with anything that you consume, please consult your doctor if you are unsure about whether green tea will interact with any of your medications or medical condition.

Additional Relevant References:

Chow HS, Cai Y, Hakim IA, et al. Pharmacokinetics and safety of green tea polyphenols after multiple-dose administration of epigallocatechin gallate and polyphenon E in healthy individuals. Clinical Cancer Research 2003; 9(9):3312–3319. [PubMed Abstract]

Henning SM, Niu Y, Lee NH, et al. Bioavailability and antioxidant activity of tea flavanols after consumption of green tea, black tea, or a green tea extract supplement. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2004; 80(6):1558–1564. [PubMed Abstract]

Imai K, Nakachi K. Cross-sectional study of effects of drinking green tea on cardiovascular and liver diseases. BMJ 1995; 310: 693-6. PubMed Citation (In a population based survey of 1371 Japanese men, drinking >10 cups of green tea daily was associated with lower total cholesterol and triglycerides levels, increased HDL and lower ALT [19 vs 24 U/L] and AST [23 vs 25 U/L] values).

Estes JD, Stolpman D, Olyaei A, Corless CL, Ham JM, Schwartz JM, Orloff SL. High prevalence of potentially hepatotoxic herbal supplement use in patients with fulminant hepatic failure. Arch Surg 2003; 138: 852-8. PubMed Citation (Among 20 patients undergoing liver transplantation for acute liver failure at two US transplant centers during 2001-2, 10 were attributed to herbals, but none to green tea extract).