Can Tea Prevent Alzheimer's Disease?

One of the most frightening health concerns facingteas equal for this purpose.
the aging is Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimer's disease isOne study reported by the UK Tea Council showed
a progressive brain disorder that gradually destroys adrinking tea to be an effective way to prevent and
person's memory and ability to learn, reason, makeeven treat Alzheimer's. The study concluded that the
judgments, communicate and carry out daily activities.anti-oxidants had a neuro protective effect on some
As Alzheimer's progresses, victims sometimesof the brain chemicals that become toxic to brain
experience changes in personality and behavior, suchcells during Alzheimer's.
as anxiety, suspiciousness or agitation. In addition,While far more research is required, this is promising
some patients have hallucinations or delusions.news. If tea can protect the brain, it may show
Doctors don't fully understand what causespotential in both prevention and treatment of
Alzheimer's, though much research is ongoing. OnceAlzheimer's. In terms of protection, it is theorized
diagnosed, the disease may progress very slowly orthat drinking tea may have the ability to prevent
very quickly. The first functions to be affected arebrain chemicals from turning toxic and killing brain cells.
memory and thinking, but as the disease progresses,As far as treatment goes, tea's ability to protect
cells die in other parts of the brain, too.brain cells from toxic chemicals may slow the
Eventually the patient requires complete care. Thoughprogression of Alzheimer's. It is far too soon to
most Alzheimer's patients die from other healthpredict if tea's anti-oxidants may someday lead to a
issues, Alzheimer's itself can be fatal, once enoughcure for Alzheimer's, but the news does represent
brain function is lost.some hope in the face of a disease whose cure has
As with most serious illnesses, research focuses oneluded us so far.
two areas; prevention and treatment. Today, thoughGreen Tea and Aging
there is no cure for the disease, there areIn addition to the research noted above, it's
treatments available that can improve cognitiveimportant to consider the overall effect of green tea
function, at least for some period of time. In termson the aging process. Green tea has been shown to
of prevention, since little is known about what causesslow down the aging process and protect our bodies
the disease, we also don't know a lot about how tofrom many different types of disease, including
prevent it.cardiovascular disease.
However, we are learning the benefit of theWhy is this important in the fight against Alzheimer's?
anti-oxidants in tea in both the prevention andWhile scientists don't have a full understanding of the
treatment of Alzheimer's. In the past few years, lotscauses of Alzheimer's disease, they do have some
of research has shown tea's anti-oxidants to beunderstanding of at least some of the risk factors
powerful fighters of aging and disease. Green tea, infor this disease. Two important risk factors for
particular, has been shown to prevent heart diseaseAlzheimer's are:
and several forms of cancer.Age - The greatest known risk factor for Alzheimer's
Anti-oxidants are important because they fight freeis increasing age. Few people contract the disease
radicals in our bodies. Free radicals are created as weunder the age of 65. The risk for developing
process the food we eat into energy. Free radicalsAlzheimer's doubles every five years over the age of
have the capacity to damage our cells and our DNA65. After age 85, the risk of Alzheimer's is nearly
if we don't keep them in check. Anti-oxidants rid our50%.
bodies of the free radicals, protecting it from theHeart Health - Any disease that decreases the health
damage they can cause.of the heart decreases the health of the brain.
Fruits and vegetables are full of anti-oxidants, as areCardiovascular problems such as high blood pressure
coffee, dark chocolate and red wine. In addition, teaand atherosclerosis have been shown to be linked to
is a great source of anti-oxidants. For prevention andthe development of Alzheimer's. This is thought to
treatment of most diseases, green tea has beenbecause the damage to the arteries and veins
found to be more protective than black tea, becausecaused by these conditions reduces the amount and
the anti-oxidants in green tea are in a more naturalquality of blood flow to the brain.
state than those in black tea. This is because blackSince we know that green tea helps prevent heart
tea is fermented during processing while green tea isdisease and premature aging, it stands to reason that
not.adding green tea to your diet can also, in the long
However, in the research surrounding Alzheimer'srun, prevent Alzheimer's. While we can't actually
there seems to be no difference between usingprevent ourselves from getting older, we can
black tea and green tea, because the particularminimize the damage of aging by filling our bodies
anti-oxidant most effective against Alzheimer's is notwith anti-oxidants like those found in green tea.
altered by the fermentation process, making both