Green tea may prevent arthritis says Sheffield scientist
Drinking green tea may help keep arthritis at bay, according to research carried out by a Sheffield scientist.
Dr David Buttle, Reader in Matrix Biology at the University of Sheffield, has found that compounds in green tea called EGCG and ECG can block the enzyme that destroys cartilage.
Cartilage destruction is one of the major factors in the progression of osteoarthritis, a common, degenerative form of arthritis that results in stiff, painful joints in more than two million people in the UK.
Dr Buttle believes that drinking green tea, for so long associated with good health, could play a part in preventing the development of osteoarthritis.
Based at the university's Division of Genomic Medicine, he has carried out laboratory-based tests on EGCG in research partly funded by the Arthritis Research Campaign, whose national headquarters is in Chesterfield.
"If you have fairly severe joint damage it may be too late to do anything about it, but if you spend decades of your life drinking green tea in the end it may be beneficial," said Dr Buttle. "Green tea should be drunk as a prophylactic, to prevent disease."
Further research is needed to assess the impact of the green tea compounds in humans, but the potential health benefits could be of prospective interest to nutriceutical companies (which manufacture health food products) to develop a concentrated supplement. Already Sheffield University has taken out a patent for the use of EGCG in osteoarthritis, and Sheffield University Ltd, their commercial company, is seeking industrial partners to develop products. Dr Buttle also believes green tea could also have clinical implications for the other major type of joint disease, rheumatoid arthritis.
Green tea was first discovered in China nearly 5,000 years ago and its health-promoting properties have long been recognised. It contains compounds called catechins, of which EGCG is one, which are associated with alleviating conditions such as stroke, cardiovascular disease, and even cancer. Its consumption has also been linked to the prevention of coronary heart disease and is currently the subject of a clinical trial in the US.
Dr Buttle has published his findings in various peer-reviewed journals, and his latest research paper has been submitted to the European Journal of Biochemistry.
