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GREEN TEA AND DIABETES
Characterized by an excess of glucose in the
bloodstream, diabetes is a terrible disease that wreaks havoc on nearly
every part of the body. It's characterized by the inability to utilize
glucose (or “blood sugar”) properly. The glucose builds up in the
bloodstream and damages tissues and organs throughout the body.
Glucose is the body’s fuel
and travels through the bloodstream in search of hungry cells. But glucose
usually can’t just slide into a cell and feed it, no matter how
hungry that cell might be. The glucose needs to be “let in” by the hormone
insulin, which is produced by the pancreas. Insulin acts like a “key”
that fits into a special little “lock” on the cell membrane. Only then will the cell “unlock” and allow the
glucose to enter.
In diabetes, either not enough insulin is
manufactured by the body (type 1), or the insulin fails to “unlock” the
cell (type 2). Although their
causes are different, the results of both kinds of diabetes are the same:
the glucose simply floats on by, no matter how “hungry” the cells may
be, and glucose levels in the blood begin to rise. Over time, high
levels of blood glucose can devastate the body, causing heart disease,
stroke, kidney failure, nerve damage, gangrene (especially of the feet)
and blindness, among other things.
New human studies have shown that green tea may
help reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Animal studies show
that green tea can lower blood sugar in diabetic mice without altering
the
insulin levels, enhance glucose tolerance and protect insulin-producing
cells from the damage that may cause diabetes. And laboratory tests show that green tea can inhibit
amylase, an enzyme that breaks down starch into sugar, while improving
insulin secretion.
To learn more, click on these key studies:
HUMAN STUDIES
1) Green Tea and Coffee
Reduce Risk of Type 2 Diabetes
2) Extract of Black, Green and
Mulberry Teas Interferes With Carbohydrate Absorption
3) Tea Lowers Blood Sugar in
the Non-Obese
ANIMAL STUDIES
1) Green Tea Catechins Protects
Insulin-Producing Cells From Damage
2) Green Tea Lowers
Blood Sugar in Diabetic Mice
3) EGCg Enhances Glucose
Tolerance in Diabetic Rodents
LABORATORY STUDIES
- 1) Green Tea
Polyphenols Improve Insulin Secretion
2) EGCg
Fights
“Cell Suicide” Due to High Glucose Levels
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Nadine Taylor, M.S., R.D. presents
GreenTeaLibrary.com,
the most comprehensive collection of scientific information
describing the health benefits of green tea.
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