Is green tea good for prostate health? Yes, green tea is definitely the beverage to put on your menu every day. Hot or cold, in a smoothie, or as a supplement, green tea’s antioxidants can greatly benefit prostate health. Those benefits include boosting the immune system, helping manage symptoms of prostatitis, fighting prostate cancer, reducing levels of dihydrotestosterone (DHT), and assisting in the prevention of an enlarged prostate.
Potent antioxidant substances called catechins in green tea are believed to be responsible for these benefits. Among the most powerful of the catechins is epigallocatechin gallate, or EGCG. Examples of the powers of green tea may be seen in a number of studies.
Depending on the study, it’s been shown that men who drink three or more cups per day of green tea have a reduced risk of prostate cancer or a reduced risk of advanced prostate cancer when compared with men who drink less than one cup daily. Catechins in green tea also have been shown to benefit chronic prostatitis in rat models.
In a 2016 study from the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), 93 men who were scheduled to undergo radical prostatectomy were assigned to one of three groups: consumption of six cups daily of green tea, black tea, or water in the days before their surgery. The investigators observed evidence of a systemic antioxidant effect among the men who drank the green tea but not the black tea or water, which was associated with a significant decrease in prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels.
Green tea is available as a beverage or in prostate health supplements. Talk to your doctor before using green tea.
Read more in our Prostate Cancer Health Center.
Reference
Kurahashi N et al. Green tea consumption and prostate cancer risk in Japanese men: a prospective study. American Journal of Epidemiology 2008 Jan 1; 167(1): 71-77
