Green Tea and EGCg Reduce Number of NNK-Induced Lung Tumors
Study description: The researchers investigated the abilities of green tea, EGCg, and
caffeine to inhibit the spread of lung cancer.
Type of study: Animal
Study methods: One hundred forty lab
animals were divided into 7 groups. Some were exposed to NNK, a potent carcinogen found in cigarette smoke; some were not. Some received green tea
while others did not. Here's what each group of animals received,
in addition to a standardized diet:
- NNK plus water
- NNK plus green tea
- NNK plus EGCg-water
- NNK plus caffeine-water
- green tea only
- EGCg-water only
- caffeine-water only
What happened: After the 18-week treatment
period, the animals were sacrificed and the number of lung tumors were counted.
Compared to plain water, green tea inhibited the NNK-induced
lung tumors by approximately 45%, while EGCg-water reduced the number of tumors by
30%. This suggests that most of the cancer-protective effect of green tea
stemmed from EGCg.
Citation: Chung FL, Schwartz J, Herzog CR, et
al. Tea and cancer prevention: Studies in animals and humans. The Journal of
Nutrition 2003;133 (10):3268S-3274S. (Click here to read PubMed study
abstract.)
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