Emerging evidence of health benefits of tea to combat COVID-19
The study is being undertaken in collaboration with TeaBoard of India through ICMR.
Researchers from Taiwan and China have found that ina laboratory study SARS Cov-2 could be inhibited by compoundsthat are abundant in teas, CL Shreedharan, Chairman, UPASI TeaCommittee, said in a statement here.
Numerous black tea polyphenols especially those ofTheaflavins-1, Theaflavins-2 and Theaflavins-3 were found toinhibit the SARS Cov-2 replication.
In black tea, Theaflavins-3 was the most abundant(1.05 per cent).
Results suggest that Theaflavins might be goodstarting point for the design of more active inhibitors forSARS-CoV-2 and these compounds are abundant in the extract ofblack tea produced from the seedling populations belonging toCamellia L SP as well as the cultivars developed by the UPASITea Research Institute, he said.
In another recent study, a research group fromIndonesia and Thailand studied the secondary metabolitessecreted by plants in tropical regions that can be developedas medicines.
They investigated a number of compounds for theirpotential to inhibit COVID-19.
Conclusion of the study was that along with severalcompounds catechin, and epicatechin-gallate sourced from Tea(Camellia sinensis) were also the most recommended compoundsthat may act as potential inhibitors of COVID-19.
The UPASI chairman said it was proved that drinkingthree to four cups of black tea in a day is associated withlower risk of myocardial infarction and reduced risk ofstroke.
According to him, it was also proved that drinkingblack tea, which has Theaflavins content, three times a dayhad a positive impact on reducing the degree of growth ofcancerous cells including breast cancer, skin cancer andprostrate cancer.