Expert Opinion
Dr. Hisano is currently the director of "Hisano Maynds Tower Clinic" in Tokyo, Japan, and previously worked at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine (New York) and the Japan Green Clinic (Singapore).He takes a comprehensive, holistic care approach which combines healthy eating habits, exercise, early detection, early treatment and rehabilitation.
Green tea is widely known to have several health benefits. One of the health benefits of green tea that has received attention is its alleviation of hay fever and other allergies.
It is widely reported that diseases associated with adult lifestyle habits relate to SOD (superoxide dismutase). It has been discovered that the SOD in green tea aids in synergistically easing a patient’s suffering from many diseases.
The antioxidants contained in green tea help to prevent the development of cancer.
Green teas vary in terms of quality and production. Green teas treated with pesticides should be avoided, as the components of the soil can affect the green tea ingredients. Therefore, pesticide-free green tea is most desirable.
Green tea grown in pesticide-free, well-managed soil with micro-organisms contains more SOD and is richer in nutrients than pesticide-treated teas.
The active ingredients in green tea leaves can be destroyed when tea is made with hot or cold water. However, green tea tablets give you all the active ingredients, including those which would be lost if the tea was brewed in hot water.
It has been discovered that green tea tablets yield two substantial benefits for hay fever sufferers. One is that EGCG, vitamins and minerals contained in green tea transform into good bacteria in the body, improving the immune system. Second, EGCG suppresses the release of histamine, which is involved in many allergic reactions.
These two traits of green tea drastically reduce the symptoms associated with hay fever allergies.
One of the benefits of taking green tea tablets is the immediate effect. However, instant improvement in a patient’s whole physical condition is not guaranteed. It takes time for the effects of green tea to become evident. To ensure health improvement and change, patients need to continue taking green tea tablets and improve their lifestyle and diet.
An associate professor at Kyushu University in Japan, Professor Tachibana’s field of specialization is food function regulation technology, life science, and antibody engineering.
In 2002, Professor Tachibana and other researchers identified a compound in green tea that blocks a key cell receptor involved in producing an allergic response.
The botanical name for green tea is camellia sinensis and it contains several active ingredients such as flavonoids, polyphenois, catechins, and caffeine. Catechins such as epigallocatechin, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), and epicatechin gallate are potent antioxidants. By studying mast cells that release histamine, researchers found that EGCG blocks the IgE receptor (immunoglobin E), which plays a role in the allergic response of the body. (Tachibana H et al 2004; Fujimura Y et al 2004).
Michio Kushi was born in Japan and helped to introduce modern macrobiotics to the United States in the early 1950’s . He has lectured about philosophy, spiritual development, health, food and diseases at conferences and seminars all over the world.
I am pleased to introduce a treasure valued throughout the world, an heirloom that has been in the safekeeping of my Japanese ancestors for years- green tea.
Green tea first arrived in Japan some 800 years ago from China as an herbal medicine, so precious that you had to be sick before it could pass your lips. Yet, over the last two centuries it has become so available as a social beverage that we tend to overlook its real value. During the last half century, at a time when animal-based food products, dairy products, and synthetic chemicals had become widespread, data began to emerge showing that cultivated green tea neutralizes the harms of dietary excess.
How refreshing it is to learn of a pioneering ‘return to the roots’ project that seeks to revive the herbal medicinal potential of green teas and offer us a conscientiously cultivated organic product.
Organic green tea products, which conform to the macrobiotic sensibility that is the basis of traditional Japanese cuisine and diet, provide a marvelous tea that will delight thoughtful people everywhere. Tea leaves cultivated by organic methods can be used safely and with peace of mind.
Therefore, I recommend organic green tea in the hope that it will foster the health of the planet and bring a measure of tranquility to our world.
