食品加工および技術ジャーナル

概要

Nutraceutical Properties of the Green Tea Polyphenols

Mudasir Ahmad, Waqas N Baba, Umar Shah, Asir Gani, Adil Gani and Masoodi FA

Green tea is manufactured from the leaves of the plant Camellia sinensis and has been regarded to possess anti-cancer, anti-obesity, anti-atherosclerotic, antidiabetic and antimicrobial effects. The main bioactive components present in green tea are polysaccharides, flavonoids, vitamins B, catechin compounds, fluoride and etc. Among them catechin compounds have been proven to have a variety of physiological functions. Due to the popularity of the health benefits of tea catechins, new products have been developed with tea as an active ingredient such as ready-to-drink (RTD) tea beverages, confections, ice creams, cereal bars and pet foods. This review summarizes several lines of evidence to indicate the health-promoting properties of green tea and their potential to be used in development of foods with added nutraceutical value.