More Questions and Answers on Tea and Health

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Goodwin: What are your findings on tea and cancer?

Hakim: We studied squamous cell skin cancer. Subjects drank two cups of strong tea a day and had 30 to 40 percent reduction. We then studied the effect of green tea on decreased DNA damage in lung tissue amongst high-risk groups, like people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. We found a 30 percent decrease in DNA damage in high-risk populations when they drank four cups of green tea a day for four months in one study and six months in the other, with 158 to 168 people per group. It’s a good reliability. It’s seen with both genders, but it’s more significant amongst women.

Goodwin: There was a recent study linking tea and an increased incidence of throat cancer.

Hakim: Yes, there is a thermal effect on the throat (from very hot beverages). A reasonable temperature will prevent any thermal injury.

Goodwin: What is the ideal quantity of tea to consume daily?

Hakim: Two to four cups for a healthy person. You can go up to eight, but it’s not necessary unless there’s a motivation to do so.

Goodwin: Are there benefits to loose-leaf tea over other types?

Hakim: Most of the time, loose-leaf tea has a higher catechin level than bagged tea. There’s a usual variability of around 10 percent, but some of the bag teas have very low catechin levels and some bottled teas have a negligible amount.

You can read the remainder of this article on World Tea News.