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The patient in your office is a 44-year-old male on no medications with no medical problems. He is extremely anxious about the test results you just reported to him. The last thing you need at the end of an exhausting week is one of the "worried well." But maybe you can help.
The patient’s blood sugar is 119. He exercises daily, has a "walking workstation" in his office, and has a BMI of 23.5. You are diplomatic and compassionate as you give your speech about impaired fasting glucose. He tells you he does not want to take any medications and wonders what he can do to reduce his blood glucose level.
Liu and colleagues conducted and recently published a systematic review evaluating the effect of green tea on glucose control and insulin sensitivity. Included studies were randomized controlled trials evaluating the effects of green tea and green tea extract on glucose control and insulin sensitivity. Investigators identified 17 trials comprising a total of 1,133 subjects. Green tea consumption significantly reduced the fasting glucose and hemoglobin A1c concentrations by –1.62 (P less than .01) and –0.30% (P less than .01), respectively.
Green tea, or Camellia sinensis, is a rich source of flavonols. Catechins are the predominant form of flavanols. The most abundant and most studied catechin in green tea is epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). EGCG is the most pharmacologically active compound in green tea with the largest beneficial health effects. EGCG has been observed to decrease fat mass, decrease endothelial cell dysfunction, improve insulin sensitivity, decrease cholesterol absorption, and improve nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
So how much green tea should somebody consume to reduce blood sugars? Another meta-analysis of 324,141 participants and 11,400 incident cases of type 2 diabetes suggested that individuals who drank about 4 cups of tea per day had a 20% lower risk of type 2 diabetes compared with those who drank less or none.
Green tea is an acquired taste. But you feel confident that this patient will quickly acquire it. As you dismiss the patient, you walk toward the microwave to heat up another cup of green tea.
Dr. Ebbert is professor of medicine, a general internist, and a diplomate of the American Board of Addiction Medicine who works at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. The opinions expressed are those of the author.
The patient in your office is a 44-year-old male on no medications with no medical problems. He is extremely anxious about the test results you just reported to him. The last thing you need at the end of an exhausting week is one of the "worried well." But maybe you can help.
The patient’s blood sugar is 119. He exercises daily, has a "walking workstation" in his office, and has a BMI of 23.5. You are diplomatic and compassionate as you give your speech about impaired fasting glucose. He tells you he does not want to take any medications and wonders what he can do to reduce his blood glucose level.
Liu and colleagues conducted and recently published a systematic review evaluating the effect of green tea on glucose control and insulin sensitivity. Included studies were randomized controlled trials evaluating the effects of green tea and green tea extract on glucose control and insulin sensitivity. Investigators identified 17 trials comprising a total of 1,133 subjects. Green tea consumption significantly reduced the fasting glucose and hemoglobin A1c concentrations by –1.62 (P less than .01) and –0.30% (P less than .01), respectively.
Green tea, or Camellia sinensis, is a rich source of flavonols. Catechins are the predominant form of flavanols. The most abundant and most studied catechin in green tea is epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). EGCG is the most pharmacologically active compound in green tea with the largest beneficial health effects. EGCG has been observed to decrease fat mass, decrease endothelial cell dysfunction, improve insulin sensitivity, decrease cholesterol absorption, and improve nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
So how much green tea should somebody consume to reduce blood sugars? Another meta-analysis of 324,141 participants and 11,400 incident cases of type 2 diabetes suggested that individuals who drank about 4 cups of tea per day had a 20% lower risk of type 2 diabetes compared with those who drank less or none.
Green tea is an acquired taste. But you feel confident that this patient will quickly acquire it. As you dismiss the patient, you walk toward the microwave to heat up another cup of green tea.
Dr. Ebbert is professor of medicine, a general internist, and a diplomate of the American Board of Addiction Medicine who works at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. The opinions expressed are those of the author.
The patient in your office is a 44-year-old male on no medications with no medical problems. He is extremely anxious about the test results you just reported to him. The last thing you need at the end of an exhausting week is one of the "worried well." But maybe you can help.
The patient’s blood sugar is 119. He exercises daily, has a "walking workstation" in his office, and has a BMI of 23.5. You are diplomatic and compassionate as you give your speech about impaired fasting glucose. He tells you he does not want to take any medications and wonders what he can do to reduce his blood glucose level.
Liu and colleagues conducted and recently published a systematic review evaluating the effect of green tea on glucose control and insulin sensitivity. Included studies were randomized controlled trials evaluating the effects of green tea and green tea extract on glucose control and insulin sensitivity. Investigators identified 17 trials comprising a total of 1,133 subjects. Green tea consumption significantly reduced the fasting glucose and hemoglobin A1c concentrations by –1.62 (P less than .01) and –0.30% (P less than .01), respectively.
Green tea, or Camellia sinensis, is a rich source of flavonols. Catechins are the predominant form of flavanols. The most abundant and most studied catechin in green tea is epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). EGCG is the most pharmacologically active compound in green tea with the largest beneficial health effects. EGCG has been observed to decrease fat mass, decrease endothelial cell dysfunction, improve insulin sensitivity, decrease cholesterol absorption, and improve nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
So how much green tea should somebody consume to reduce blood sugars? Another meta-analysis of 324,141 participants and 11,400 incident cases of type 2 diabetes suggested that individuals who drank about 4 cups of tea per day had a 20% lower risk of type 2 diabetes compared with those who drank less or none.
Green tea is an acquired taste. But you feel confident that this patient will quickly acquire it. As you dismiss the patient, you walk toward the microwave to heat up another cup of green tea.
Dr. Ebbert is professor of medicine, a general internist, and a diplomate of the American Board of Addiction Medicine who works at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. The opinions expressed are those of the author.
