Open AccessGreen tea in medicine: a brief overview
Author(s) -
Abhishek Singh Nayyar,
Madhusmita Das,
Bharat Deosarkar,
Soniya Bharat Deosarkar,
Abhishek Karan,
P E T A L Sinha,
Swati Paraye
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
international journal of dental research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2310-2993
DOI - 10.14419/ijdr.v5i2.7752
Subject(s) - camellia sinensis , traditional medicine , caffeine , green tea , polyphenol , antimicrobial , antioxidant , free radical scavenger , chemistry , biology , medicine , food science , botany , biochemistry , microbiology and biotechnology , endocrinology
Over the past decades, focused interest in drugs obtained from medicinal plants has markedly increased. Since times immemorial, tea has traditionally been the most popular and widely consumed beverages in the world obtained from the extracts of leaves of the plant Camellia sinensis by the process of oxidation. It is the oldest non-alcoholic beverage containing caffeine. Among the varieties of tea manufactured, green tea is considered of utmost significance since it exerts antimicrobial, anti-cancer, antioxidant, anti-collagenase, anti-diabetic, anti-obesity and anti-hypertensive activities due to rich content of polyphenol, namely catechins, which prevent the pathogenesis of numerous disease processes and play a pivotal role as a scavenger of free radical generation. The present review discusses the botanical description, photo-chemical constituents and biological activity of green tea with clinical relevance in the various fields of medicine.