Summary
Medical College of Georgia has a press release saying that research there has found green tea can help protect against autoimmune disorders, which include lupus and type 1 diabetes.
Original source:
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=26086
Details
Green tea seems to help protect the body from autoimmune disorders, according to a Medical College of Georgia oral biologist.
Dr. Stephen Hsu, a researcher in the MCG School of Dentistry, has amassed a large bank of research helping document green tea's health benefits in everything from oral cancer to wrinkles.
As an added benefit, a green tea-induced protein called p57 protects healthy cells as polyphenols target cancer cells for destruction.
Dr. Hsu's most recent findings, which he will present June 17-20 in Atlanta at the Arthritis Foundation's fifth biennial Arthritis Research Conference, target autoimmune diseases.
These diseases, such as type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and Sjogren's disease, inexplicably prime the body's immune system to attack its own tissues, with often disabling and even life-threatening consequences.
Dry mouth occurs in about 30 percent of elderly Americans, but only in 1 percent to 2 percent of Chinese seniors.
Dr. Hsu is probing green tea's role in producing autoantigens.
Autoantigens are normal molecules in the body with useful functions, but changes in their amount or location can trigger an immune response.
He suspected a link because a polyphenol called EGCG is known to suppress inflammation, which results when the immune system mounts a defense to a real or perceived enemy.
"We were so shocked," Dr. Hsu said of the finding that further highlighted green tea's role in attacking tumor cells while protecting healthy cells.
And because of the low levels of autoantigens in healthy cells, "the immune system now has considerably fewer targets to potentially attack," greatly reducing the risk of autoimmune disease, Dr. Hsu said.
The Medical College of Georgia is the state's
health sciences university and includes the Schools of Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Studies, Medicine and Nursing.
About the author: Mike Adams is a consumer health advocate and award-winning journalist with a passion for sharing empowering information to help improve personal and planetary health He has authored more than 1,800 articles and dozens of reports, guides and interviews on natural health topics, and he has created several downloadable courses on survival and preparedness, including his widely-downloaded course on personal safety and self-defense. Adams is an honest, independent journalist and accepts no money or commissions on the third-party products he writes about or the companies he promotes. In 2010, Adams co-founded NaturalNews.com, a natural health video sharing site that has now grown in popularity. He also launched an online retailer of environmentally-friendly products (BetterLifeGoods.com) and uses a portion of its profits to help fund non-profit endeavors. He's also a veteran of the software technology industry, having founded a personalized mass email software product used to deliver email newsletters to subscribers. Adams is currently the executive director of the Consumer Wellness Center, a 501(c)3 non-profit, and practices nature photography, Capoeira, martial arts and organic gardening. Known by his callsign, the 'Health Ranger,' Adams posts his missions statements, health statistics and health photos at www.HealthRanger.org
Have comments on this article? Post them here:
people have commented on this article.
Wednesday, June 22, 2005
Email this article to a friend
Share
this article on: 
