Green tea has many benefits to human body. A recent study finds the green tea extract enhances the captivity functions of the brain. The new findings suggest breakthrough clinic implications for the treatment of cognitive impairments in psychiatric disorders such as dementia.
In the past the main ingredients of green tea have thoroughly studies in cancer research. Recently, scientists have also been further discovered the benefits green have on brain. Researchers from the University of Basel has discovered the evidence that green tea can enhance the cognitive ability, bringing hope to dementia patients.
According to the Medical News Today’s recent report, Prof. Christoph Beglinger from the University Hospital of Basel and Prof. Stefan Borgwardt from the Psychiatric University Clinics has studied 12 health male participants. Researchers has distributed the soft drinks with or without green tea extract to volunteers and conducted working memory tasks. The scientists analyzed the brain activity using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
The finding discovered that the participants who drunk the soft drinks with green tea extract show increased connectivity between the parietal and the frontal cortex of the brain. This brain activity is correlated with the task performance of the memory.
Possible treatment for dementia
Researchers think the efficacy of green tea for the treatment of cognitive impairments in neuropsychiatric disorders such as dementia is worth study. However, due to the limited number of participants, the actual task performance results after drinking green tea is not sufficient enough to conclude more obvious research findings. Researchers had added that because the drink that the participants have drunk is not the pure green tea extract, but soft drinks with green tea extract. It might contain caffeine and other substance that affect the cognitive performance of the participants.
This is not the only study conducted on the benefits of green tea on brains. According to the report on Medical News Today of 2003, a study from San Francisco has find the polyphenol contained in tea can enhance the place in the brain where dopamine is produced. Dopamine is the essential substance to help produce good mood in the brain circuit. This substance is also responsible for transfer reward signals and help the smooth muscle movement. Parkinson patients have problem in producing dopamine which lead to the phenomenon of muscle rigidity.
6 Functions of Green Tea
The Huffington Post’s report last year has listed the 6 lesser-known benefits of green tea
- the ultimate chill pill
Green tea contains theanine, which can stimulate alpha brainwaves naturally associated with deep stats of relaxation and enhanced mental clarity. Different than caffeine, theanine balances the stimulatory effects of caffeine so you stay alert without feeling jittery.
- Keep off extra pounds
According to a study form Penn State University, mice feed with a compound found in green tea known as EGCG along with high-fat diet gained weight close to 50% slower than their counterparts that did not receive the green tea supplement. Therefore, scientists believe green tea has weight losing benefits.
- Control blood sugar
Drinking green tea with a starchy carb may help control by blunting the sharp rise in blood sugar levels. An enzyme called alpha-amylase helps break down starch into maltose and glucose in the body. EGCG may inhibit these enzymes. Drink one to two cups of green tea with your carb meals in particular for best results.
- Protect your eyes for the long haul
Research in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry found that antioxidants in green tea may protect against glaucoma and other common eye diseases. The effects of green tea catechins in reducing harmful oxidative stress in the eye lasted for up to 20 hours.
- Protect you against superbug
Scientists find that the tea helped the antibiotics fight against battle resistant superbugs, making the combo up to three times more effective than antibiotics along.
- Improve learning ability and memory
Researchers think the organic compound EGCG in green tea can affect the brain cell production, providing benefits for memory and spatial learning. Researchers have studies the group received EGCG and another group did not receive the EGCG. The results show that the group that received EGCG required less time to find the cognitive tasks. Therefore, scientists believe green tea can enhances the brain ability, which can protect brain against the memory loss related disorders.