A Japanese study, which was published in the journal Nutrition Research, showed that catechin-rich beverages have potential use in the prevention of diabetes and cardiovascular disease. This finding was based on the ability of catechins to reduce abdominal weight and improve metabolic syndrome in obese and overweight individuals.

• Metabolic syndrome contributes to the development of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and some brain disorders. People who suffer from this health problem experience at least two of the following conditions: abnormal lipid metabolism, abnormal glucose metabolism, and high blood pressure.
• The accumulation of body fats in the abdominal region, especially around the organs, is a major factor of metabolic syndrome.
• Catechins are polyphenols commonly found in green tea that are known for their potent effects against oxidative stress, diabetes, and atherosclerosis.
• Previous reports have shown that reductions in total and visceral fat can reduce the risk of metabolic syndrome. However, it is still unclear whether reductions in fats due to green tea catechin intake will also reduce metabolic syndrome risk.
• In this study, the researchers determined the effects of green tea catechin intake on abdominal fat and metabolic syndrome. To do this, they conducted a pooled analysis of data from six human trials involving obese and overweight individuals.
• The results showed that drinking beverages with 540 to 588 mg of green tea catechins per day leads to significant improvements in abdominal fat, body weight, body mass index, waist circumference, and blood pressure. Moreover, catechins were shown to improve the symptoms of metabolic syndrome.

Overall, the results of this study show that drinking catechin beverages can improve metabolic syndrome and abdominal fat, which suggest that they can also reduce the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

The full text of the study is available at this link.

Read more news articles on the health benefits of catechins by visiting NaturalHealth.news.

Journal Reference:

Hibi M, Takase H, Iwasaki M, Osaki N, Katsuragi Y. EFFICACY OF TEA CATECHIN-RICH BEVERAGES TO REDUCE ABDOMINAL ADIPOSITY AND METABOLIC SYNDROME RISKS IN OBESE AND OVERWEIGHT SUBJECTS: A POOLED ANALYSIS OF 6 HUMAN TRIALS. Nutrition Research. July 2018;55. DOI: 10.1016/j.nutres.2018.03.012