"Now have a cup of TEA old boy"

FROM THE BOOK "FOREVER YOUNG" by Dr. Perricone

Seeing Blue and Going Green: Nutrigenomics in Action

The nutrients and other substances discussed in this chapter
provide benefits that far exceed their function as antioxidants.
Green, black, and white tea (Camellia sinensis), cocoa, and
blueberries all contain special catechins (with active
pharmacophores) that have significant effects on gene expression.

Tea has many benefits and is well known for both its anticancer
and its antioxidant properties. Other positive effects include:

The amino acid called theonine, a natural relaxant that won't
make you drowsy

The ability to increase metabolism, resulting in the burning of
body fat

The ability to suppress the absorption of fat

High levels of antioxidants that act as anti-inflammatories and
are protective for the skin and brain, and all your organs The
ability to improve glucose tolerance in diabetic mice, an effect
that may help prevent type 2 diabetes

High levels of an important polyphenol antioxidant,
epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), which is believed to be
responsible for much of green tea's promise in the prevention of
cardiovascular disease, obesity, Alzheimer's disease, cancer,
periodontal disease, and dental cavities

Topical application of low-dose green tea extract may help
protect against UV damage, without the common side effects

What I find so exciting about substances like EGCG and related
catechins is their ability to bind to the signaling molecules
that either block or activate transcription factors. In other
words, the EGCG found in tea can inhibit the activation of NF-kB,
thereby blocking all of the pro-inflammatory cytokines normally
generated when it is activated. The EGCG may also bind to the
protective transcription factor NRF2, upregulating many of our
antioxidant defense systems.

Beyond Antioxidants

Although the antioxidant activity of many of these substances may
have a minor role in their protection against cancer, heart
disease, Alzheimer's disease, and wrinkles, it is not the main
reason for their outstanding antiaging, chemoprotective
properties. Their mild pro-oxidant effects are the real heroes,
because they activate protective transcription factors such as
NRF2 as they inhibit damaging transcription factors such as
NF-kB.
For example, we have known for years that blueberries improved
memory and protected the skin, but it was not until the discovery
of nutrigenomics that I learned their elusive mechanism of
action, which can be attributed to the presence of the catechins.
As with all of the substances discussed in this chapter, this
mechanism of action exceeds their status as antioxidants. Their
pro-oxidant activity results in the production of more than
fifteen or twenty cell-protective enzymes that are produced by
the activation of the genes controlled by transcription factors.
At the same time, the molecules that we thought were just
antioxidants bind to and turn off transcription factors that are
known to upregulate more than a hundred inflammation-generating
genes, resulting in damage to all of our organ systems. For
example, when activated, ageaccelerating transcription factors
produce a host of pro-inflammatory cytokines that can drive the
formation of cancer. At the same time, the cell's ability to turn
on apoptosis (programmed cell death) is turned off. In other
words, age-accelerating transcription factors prevent cancer
cells from self-destruction. When the activation of these
transcription factors is blocked, all of their cancer-promoting
properties are turned off and apoptosis, which results in the
self-destruction of the cancer cells, is turned on. All of the
substances you will read about in this chapter have the ability
to deactivate age-accelerating transcription factors and to
activate the protective transcription factor.

Catechins such as EGCG act like Michael acceptor pharmacophores,
controlling gene expression by binding with the thiols in these
transcription factors. Once again, the nutrigenomic aspect of
dietary substances proves to be the mechanism of action that far
exceeds their antioxidant capabilities. Scientists still do not
understand the significance of the sulfur-binding capability of
EGCG and the other catechins, which allows them to control the
very powerful transcription factors for good or ill.

WRINKLE BLOCKER

The EGCG in tea prevents the activation of collagen-digesting
enzymes known as matrix metalloproteinase. This is a critical
function because these enzymes are responsible for wrinkling of
the skin.
....................

"SO YES OLD BOY WILL YOU NOT HAVE A CUP OF TEA?" - SAID WITH AN
ENGLISH ACCENT!!

I THINK I WILL AND PASS SOME BLUEBERRY PIE!
......