While green tea offers a variety of health benefits, it has been shown to have a positive effect on our brains as well.
In a survey of about 1,000 men and women aged 70-96, people who drank two or more cups of green tea a day were less than half as likely to show cognitive impairment as those who drank three or fewer cups a week.
(Study by Shinichi Kuriyama 2006)
The study found no difference between those who drank 2-3 cups of green tea a day and those who drank 4 or more cups a day.
The researchers conclude that drinking two or more cups of green tea a day may provide benefits.
Other experiments in mice have shown that the catechins in tea had an effect on brain tissue atrophy, reduced the decline in learning and memory ability, and inhibited DNA damage due to brain cell participation. (Study by Keiko Umino 2006)
In the U.S., the effects of catechins on Alzheimer’s disease have recently been studied, and there have been reports that catechins have been shown to be effective in experiments on mice. (日本茶のすべてがわかる本p139)
