Green Tea Ingredients

The main green tea ingredients are caffeine (formerly called theine), tannin (flavonols), theophylline, theobromine, fat, wax, saponins, essential oils, polyphenols particularly catechins, carotene, vitamin C, vitamins A, B1, B12, and P, flouride, iron, magnesium, calcium, strontium, copper, nickel, and zinc.

It also has trace elements such as molybdenum and phosphorus, as well as 300 additional substances.

It is important to know that the quantitative proportions of these active green tea ingredients vary according to the area of cultivation (altitude, climatic region) and the growth stage of the leaf.

As far as caffeine content, the younger leaves and buds have greatest caffeine content. Older leaves, however, have correspondingly larger amounts of tannin.

Antioxidants are important nutrition to have in your body because they are powerful weapons against cancer, heart disease, stroke, aging, diabetes, and many other serious conditions. Polyphenols, the main ingredients of green tea are powerful antioxidants that fight against cancer. According to research and extensive studies, polyphenols can actually stop some forms of cancer in their tracks by preventing cancer cells from turning into tumors.

There are many types of polyphenols but the strongest and most powerful of all and which are unique to green tea are the catechins.

Catechins were discovered in 1970 when a study was made in Shizuoka, Japan. It has been discovered that people living in Shizuoka Prefecture has much lower rates of cancer.

These same ingredients in green tea was proven to have the ability to interfere with both the initiation and promotion stages of cancer.

For more clarification, polyphenols have five major types: gallocatechin (GC), epicatehcin (EC), epigallocatechin (EGC), epicatechin gallate (ECg), and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG).

Many scientists now agree that EGCG has the highest level and broadest spectrum of cancer-fighting activity.