Drinking green tea better than taking supplements Life Desk

If you are planning to take supplements based on green tea extracts as a measure to

lose weight, think again. Researchers have warned that the supplements could result

in harmful side effects including liver toxicity.Drinking green tea, instead of taking

the supplements, could help you enjoy the benefits associated with the beverage

while avoiding the risk of liver toxicity, they pointed out.Also, drinking green tea in

the weeks before taking supplements likely reduces risk of side effects, the findings

showed.”Drinking green tea rather than taking supplements will allow you to realise the

benefits and avoid the risk of liver toxicity,” explained Josh Lambert, associate professor

of food science at College of Agricultural Sciences, Pennsylvania State University.Tea is

rich in catechins, polyphenols that are natural antioxidants. A number of animal studies

have shown the preventive effects of green tea polyphenols against obesity.For the new

study, the researchers gave mice high doses of the green tea polyphenol epigallocatechin-

3-gallate (EGCG).The dosage was equivalent to the amount of the polyphenol found

in some dietary supplements taken by humans.Dietary pretreatment with the green tea

polyphenol protects mice from liver toxicity caused by subsequent high oral doses of

the same compound, the findings showed.”We believe this study indicates that those

who are chronic green tea consumers would be less sensitive to potential liver toxicity

from green-tea-based dietary supplements,” Lambert noted.He, however, added that the

beneficial effects that people have reported as being associated with green tea are the

result of dietary consumption rather than the use of supplements.-TOI