Green tea may protect against Alzheimer's

Published on 05/01/2011 14:46

REGULARLY drinking green tea might protect the brain against Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia, scientists have revealed.

The ancient Chinese remedy might also play a vital role in protecting the body against cancer, a study, published in the journal Phytomedicine, suggests.

A Newcastle University team worked in collaboration with Dr Gordon McDougall, of the Plant Products and Food Quality Group at the Scottish Crop Research Institute in Dundee. They wanted to know if the protective properties of green tea remain active once the tea has been digested.

Dr Ed Okello said: "What was really exciting was that we found when green tea is digested by enzymes in the gut, the resulting chemicals are actually more effective against key triggers of Alzheimer's development than the undigested form of the tea."