Description Of The Included Studies
Of the 407 citations identified from the database searches, 17 studies met the inclusion criteria and were finally included in the meta-analysis, including six cohort studies , three case-control studies and eight cross-sectional studies . The study selection process is shown in Figure Figure1.1. Among the included studies, twelve were from Asia, two were from Europe, two were from North America, and one was from Australia, involving a total of 48,435 participants. The characteristics of these studies are summarized in Table Table1.1. All included studies measured tea consumption by self-administered questionnaire or self-reported food frequency questionnaire. The diagnosis of cognitive disorders was based on standard criterion in all the articles. Most of the included studies adjusted for potential confounding factors. We recorded relative risks of cognitive disorders according to the highest vs. the lowest category of tea consumption. The results of quality evaluation for each study are presented in detail in the Supplementary Materials .
Flowchart for the selection of eligible studies
Reverse The Effects Of Alzheimers Disease
The production of new adult neurons, a process called neurogenesis, is the key feature of brain plasticity, which is critical to brain function as we age.17
Producing new adult neurons in the hippocampus may serve as a new treatment strategy for early stage Alzheimers or other forms of dementia.57 Thats why scientists focused their attention on the effects of EGCG on neurogenesis in this specific area of the mouse brain.17
Amazingly, both the in vitro and in vivo results of this study showed that EGCG boosts the production of neural progenitor cells, which are brain cells that can transform into various types of neural cells.17,58
In order to determine if this increased brain-cell production would result in a direct boost in memory or spatial learning, the researchers gave one group of lab mice EGCG from green tea, while the other group was given a placebo containing no EGCG. The mice were subsequently trained for seven days to find a hidden platform.
The mice that were administered EGCG found the hidden platform substantially fasterindicating that EGCGs ability to enhance the production of new adult neurons had directly boosted learning and memory by improving object recognition and spatial memory.17
Whats remarkable is that EGCG promotes the production of new neurons in the same area of the brain in which neurons are killed during the development of Alzheimers disease!
Continued on Page 2 of 2
How Tea Impacts The Brain
While tea for Alzheimers is exciting news, its just the latest proof that tea actually works to protect your brain. What makes tea so special is some of the compounds found in it, like catechins and theaflavins. These ingredients are packed with antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties that might protect the brain from aging.
A 2013 study found that the theanine and caffeine in tea helped drinkers perform better at work. It also increased creativity and alertness. Caffeine pairs up well with L-theanine, too, a relaxation-promoting amino acid. In fact, the combo works in tea to reduce mental fatigue while increasing alertness and memory.
And in 2012, researchers discovered that EGCG, a chemical found in green tea, actually improves memory. EGCG actually boosts production of neural progenitor cells, which the brain can then adapt to its own needs. When scientists tested the theory on lab mice, they found EGCG helped the rodents recognize objects while improving spatial memory. Amazing side note? Thanks to EGCG, green tea makes the cancer-fighting foods list, too.
Better memory, increased alertness, reduced mental fatigue and its all-natural? Are you ready to become a tea drinker yet?
You May Like: End Stages Of Alzheimer’s Disease
What Does Science Say
A July 2020 study in the journal Frontiers in aging neuroscience offered this assessment: EGCG is the main bioactive polyphenol in green tea extract that has neuroprotective effects partly owing to its antioxidant activities. Green tea consumption seems to improve cognitive performance in the healthy as well as cognitively challenged elderly However, the results of a long-term clinical trial of EGCG in the early stages of AD are yet to be published The EGCG dose and frequency needed for AD prevention and/or reversal must be explored further.
This reaffirms the common consensus about nutrients and supplements that they can help, optimizing their benefits is always the challenge.
At the Magaziner Center for Wellness, we treat Alzheimers Disease with an individualized, patient-centered treatment plan.
Every person has a unique biochemistry which reacts to pollutants and toxins differently. In order to determine the factors that underlie each case, we utilize extremely thorough blood and urine tests, as well as a complete examination of every aspect of the body, from mitochondrial function to nutrient imbalances to heavy metal toxicity. We recommend dietary modifications to reduce foods that may cause inflammation while increasing intake of those that are anti-inflammatory. Brain inflammation is a hallmark of dementia and memory decline.
Related Articles
Best Ways To Enjoy Tea
If youre ready to add more tea into your life, heres how to do it right.
Use real tea leaves. While tea bags are super convenient, the tea for Alzheimers study specified that its the tea leaves that have all the healing benefits. While tea bags arent bad for your health, you will be missing out on all of the leafy goodness tea has to offer. Luckily, these days you can buy convenient tea pots that trap the leaves, making brewing tea as simple as instant coffee. Whether youre looking for black tea benefits or prefer green tea or another type, its easier than ever to find loose leaf, organic teas.
Dont brew too long. Keep your eye on the clock when making tea. Green tea doesnt need to steep very long, just 2 to 3 minutes. Any longer and the tea will release tannins, leaving a bitter taste in your drink. For other types of tea, 3 to 5 minutes is ideal.
Beware of what youre adding. Like most foods and drinks, tea starts off healthy but, depending on what you add to it, can become an unhealthy beverage pretty quickly. People often sweeten up their tea with a few teaspoons of table sugar. Not only are these empty calories, but sugar will send you on a high and then a crash. Why ruin your drink with that?
This coconut milk coffee creamer makes a nice addition to your favorite tea. Perk: its dairy-free.
Final Thoughts on Tea for Alzheimers
Don’t Miss: Biogen Treatment For Alzheimer’s
Who Has Another Name For It: The Brain Killer
Another threat of the disease is the cost of care-taking the patient. A person who has lost her memory and ability to understand her environment is in danger even in her own home.
My mother used to live with one of my sisters. Before we confirmed that she had Alzheimers, she herself had taken on hiding in the apartment and afraid to go out. I went there once or twice a week during the day when my sister was at work so I could take her out for a walk in the park and some simple exercises. As conditions worsened my sister hired a maid to look after her. It was a total nightmare and ended almost in tragedy. I think both my mother and the maid were not prepared for the rapid development of the disease and what it really means in behavioural patterns.
caption to A structural diagram of a neuron cell:
Conclusion And Future Challenges
In the beginning half of this review, we outlined the epidemiological evidence showing how tea consumption in many different regions of the world has been associated with either a decreased risk of neurodegenerative disease AD or an improvement in cognitive function in older populations. In the second half of this review, we discussed the numerous mechanisms by which the bioactive components in tea have anti-amyloid effects, thereby resulting in protection against AD. The anti-amyloid mechanisms of these bioactive compounds include: inhibiting APP cleavage by regulating the activity of related enzymes, preventing protein misfolding and membrane damage induced by A, mitigating A-induced oxidative stress, suppressing the aggregation of A oligomers, regulating signaling pathways involving A generation, reducing A-induced mitochondria disfunction, and inhibiting hyperphosphorylation of TAU protein .
Read Also: Activity Vests For Dementia Patients
Green Tea And Early Alzheimers Disease
In the research above, green teas impact on the neuro network of the brain demonstrated that green tea could make the brain function better by strengthening the areas of neuroconnectivity or plasticity, the brains ability to change, adapt, and repair. In a 2017 study, doctors wrote is not only shaped by learning and memory but is also a mediator of responses to neuron attrition and injury . As an ongoing process it reacts to neuronal cell activity and injury, death and genesis, which encompasses the modulation of structural and functional processes of axons, dendrites, and synapses. . We now appreciate that mild cognitive impairment in early Alzheimers Disease may be due to synaptic dysfunction occurring well in advance of evident widespread synaptic loss and neurodegeneration. In other words, the brain is not repairing, green tea may help repair damage.
Data Extraction And Quality Assessment
Two research assistants collected the following data from the literature: the first authors last name publication year research country study design number of participants and cases OR HR and RR , as well as variables that were adjusted in the primary analysis. The NewcastleOttawa Scale and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality were used for quality assessment.
Also Check: What Is The Difference Between Memory Loss And Dementia
Search Strategy And Eligibility Criteria
The guidelines published by the Meta-analysis of Observational Studies in Epidemiology group was followed to complete the meta-analysis . Eligible studies that published in the international journals were searched in electronic databases of Pubmed, Embase, and Cochrane Library by two investigators. We used the following MeSH and free-text terms in the search strategy: Tea , Cognitive Dysfunction , Alzheimer Disease , Dementia , tea consumption, tea intake, tea, cognitive decline, cognitive impairment, cognitive disorder, dementia, Alzheimer disease, and Alzheimer’s disease. The search was restricted to studies in human beings and publications in English language. The reference lists of identified articles and relevant reviews were also checked for potentially eligible studies.
Studies that met the following criteria were included in our meta-analysis: examination of tea consumption as the variable of interest determination of incidence of cognitive impairment, cognitive decline, dementia, or Alzheimer’s disease as the outcome of interest and reporting the relative risks or odds ratios of cognitive disorders, and 95% confidence intervals , or sufficient data with which to calculate these, according to the different levels of tea consumption. Studies about animal experiment, mechanistic research and review research were excluded.
Protect Your Brain Health With Green Tea
Recent research has uncovered one of the most exciting benefits of green tea yetits power to prevent, and possibly reverse the effects of Alzheimers disease and other forms of dementia! One study found a 54% reduction in the risk of developing cognitive decline. Investigations revealed that green tea Catechin antioxidants, the most potent beneficial compound in green tea, protect against cognitive and memory impairments associated with aging.
How does Green Tea protect your brain?
EGCG is the most potent and plentiful Catechin Polyphenol in green tea. It provides antioxidant activity. Scientists discovered EGCG is a powerful neuro protector against oxidative stress-induced cell death. Studies show that EGCG protects the brain in many other ways, in addition to the protection that antioxidant activity offers. Scientists discovered Amyloids in the brain is the root of Alzheimers diseases. Amyloids are proteins that stick together and forms fibrils. Amyloids have been linked to the development of various diseases. Amyloid fibrils in the brain cause neuron death and Alzheimers cognitive symptoms. Green Tea helps battle against Alzheimers disease in each critical level:
Interfering formation of Amyloid plaques
Breaking down existing Amyloid plaques by disrupting early-stage and late-stage aggregation processes
Preventing Amyloid plaques from binding to neuronal prions
Detoxifying Amyloid fibrils by changing them into shapes that are not toxic to neurons
Resources
Recommended Reading: What Type Of Dementia Progresses Rapidly
Some Words Of Caution
Michelle Rauch, a registered dietician for the Actors Fund Home in Englewood, New Jersey, told Healthline that coffee has been associated with other health benefits, such as reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, Parkinsons disease, certain cancers, and cirrhosis.
However, theres also a downside.
There are some cons to drinking coffee and tea when done excessively, Rauch said. Tea and coffee contain compounds called tannins, which can interfere with iron absorption if taken in excess. These tannins can also cause staining to teeth when they build up on the enamel.
And the caffeine and what people add to coffee and tea can be problematic, Rauch said.
Like coffee, the caffeine in tea can also cause an issue if taken in excess leading to restlessness, shakiness, rapid heart rate, insomnia, and anxiety, Rauch said. The catechins in tea may interfere with some heart and blood pressure medications. The health benefits from tea and coffee may be negated if sugar, honey, cream, and other caloric or fat laden ingredients are added.
People Who Drank Coffee Or Tea Or A Combination Had A Lower Incidence Of Stroke And Dementia
To examine how coffee or tea may impact the risk of stroke and dementia, investigators studied 365,682 participants between ages 50 and 74 from the UK Biobank. The Biobank is an international health resource that has collected blood, urine, and saliva samples along with other detailed health information for research purposes.
The subjects were recruited between 2006 and 2010 and followed until 2020. During the study period, 5,079 people developed dementia and 10,053 experienced at least one stroke.
Coffee and tea intake were reported by the participants at the start of the trial. After adjusting for many factors that could influence stroke or dementia risk, including sex, age, ethnicity, body mass index, physical activity, smoking status, and previously existing health conditions, investigators found the following:
- People who drank two to three cups of coffee, or three to five cups of tea per day, or a combination of four to six cups of coffee and tea had the lowest incidence of stroke or dementia.
- Two to three cups of coffee with two to three cups of tea daily was associated with a 32 percent lower risk of stroke and a 28 percent lower risk of dementia compared with people who drank neither coffee nor tea.
- Coffee alone or in combination with tea was associated with lower risk of post-stroke dementia. Post-stroke dementia is a condition where symptoms of dementia occur after a stroke.
Also Check: Can A Dementia Patient Be Charged With Assault
What Is Alzheimers Disease
Forgetfulness, the symptom that we all know Alzheimers Disease of, is only but one of the sufferings of the disease.
The disease is basically a degeneration of the brain. W.H.O. has another name for it: the Brain Killer. The neuron cells in the brain get deformed and die. The connections between them, which are the basis to our brain functions, are gradually cut off. Slowly as the brain shrinks, the patient loses her cognitive ability, becomes agitated easily, has depression, delusions, and/or hallucinations. She is more and more withdrawn from her surrounding, including her immediate family. Increasingly she has no control over her bladder and bowels, and also her motor and verbal skills. This can get to a point when she cannot even control her muscles to swallow properly. As the disease progresses, it becomes lethal.
The Study: Who Conducted It And How It Came About
Giuseppe Melacini took the lead in the study of the efficacy of green tea in preventing Alzheimers disease. A member of the Department of Chemistry and Department of Chemical Biology at McMaster University in Canada, he and other colleagues submitted their findings in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.
The researchers, being seasoned in their respective fields, used a state-of-the-art facility in conducting their study. In fact, they used a nuclear magnetic resonance to make sure they have a clear picture of the EGCG. The technology enabled them to link the relationship and effect of EGCG to the formation of beta-amyloid plaques. Melacinis group explained that tiny binding molecules called beta-amyloid monomers form beta-amyloid oligomers. Eventually, these oligomers clump together. As they clump together, they can form harmful beta-amyloid plaques.
You May Like: Does Essential Tremors Cause Dementia
The Future Of Green Tea As An Alzheimers Treatment
While studies of the effects of green tea on brain health look promising, there is a lot of work to be done before it can actually be used as a treatment method for Alzheimers patients.
For starters, the diseases main fighting ingredient found in green tea, ECGC, isnt available for patenting by pharmaceutical companies which will limit investment for clinical trials. Also, more research needs to be done to determine the direct link between brain health and ECGC to rule out any other ingredients that may have had an effect on cognition, such as caffeine.
Do you drink green tea for brain health? Have you noticed an improvement in your memory? Share your story with us in the comments below.
Related Articles:
Green Tea Protects Brain Cells
Studies show that green tea could prevent Alzheimers by protecting the brain from the formation of beta-amyloid plaques that are thought to cause the disease. A flavonoid in green tea called EGCG can bind to beta-amyloid proteins to prevent formations, and ultimately, prevent Alzheimers disease.
While research has shown the effects of green tea on beta-amyloids, one of the most notable studies used MRI technology to actually view its effect. Participants in the study were given either a green tea or a placebo beverage, and their brain activity was then monitored using an MRI machine. Those who received the green tea drink had a notable increase in brain activity, and researchers also found a dose-response in the participants, meaning brain activity increased as more green tea was consumed.
Don’t Miss: Alzheimer’s Care For Veterans