Last week I read in the Arizona Republic newspaper an article calling for cigarette smokers or ex-cigarette smokers to volunteer to participate in a study to investigate the impact of drinking green tea on the cell damage caused by smoking. I was very interested in participating since I am an ex-smoker. I also love green tea, and since I drink a cup or two of it every day anyway, I figured following the protocol would have little impact on my daily routine.
The article said that "the doctors conducting the study are testing whether green tea consumption by ex-smokers can be associated with decreased damage to fat, protein or genetic material to prevent lung cancer." Participants would be asked to drink green tea for six months, provide monthly urine samples and keep a daily log of their tea drinking and smoking througout the study. Even better, participants would gain the benefits of free health care, including dietary analyses, breathing tests and blood analyis reports. Wow, free health care, who can beat that? Sign me up today!
I quickly sent an e-mail to the study contact expressing my interest. I provided information I figured they would want: I am a former smoker. I quit smoking in November 1992. Prior to that I smoked for 13 years about 1 pack per day. I figured I was a pretty heavy smoker back then and would surely be eligible for the study.
The reply I recieved went something like this: Your smoking history indicates that you smoked
for less than 20 years; we are recruiting subjects who are or were heavy smokers. For example: smoking 1 1/2 pack per day for 14 years or more or 1 pack per day for 20 years or more. They asked me to provide more info. I did. The reply back said, "Based on your smoking history you are not eligible, we are looking for people who smoked 20 or more cigarettes per day with 30 or more years of smoking. Thanks for responding."
In other words, thanks but no thanks! Oh well, I am going to take comfort in the fact that the researchers already theorize that the antioxidant qualities in green tea may reduce the damage caused by smoking. I drink green tea every day, several times a day and have done so for many years. Perhaps by this point, I have already reversed a lot of the damage caused by my former habit. I will eagerly await the results of the study to confirm my healthful habit.
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8 comments:
Dee,
I just bought your cookbook and plan to do forty days of sugarless flourless living to see how it goes. I was wondering what you think about caffeine since you say you drink green tea every day. I am sensitive to caffeine and tannins so I drink red tea (rooibos) everyday and it is wonderful! Caffeine free, supposedly more antioxidants than green tea, etc...but my husband believes that green tea is good to have as well despite the caffeine. Do you drink a naturally decaf kind?
Congrats on your decision to do flourless and sugarless for 40 days. You will be amazed at how much better you feel. While I am against caffeine from coffee and soft drinks, I am going to agree with your husband on the caffeine in green tea. Because of other compounds, the caffeine in green tea functions in a special and balancing way. The caffeine in green tea is surrounded by tannic acid compounds, which inhibit it from surging all at once into our bloodstream. In a sense, the caffeine in green tea is time-released into our bloodstream. This time-release effect makes the stimulation gentle and quite pleasant. It also allows us to feel the effects of green tea for an extended period of time, and outlasts the effects experienced by from drinking coffee or cola. The effect of green tea makes us free of agitation and nervousness, and its blissful stimulation feels good to the senses. I drink China Jasmine green tea that I buy from an Asian market. It tastes so nice and sweet and makes me feel great!
Thank you so much, Dee. I have been very inspired by reading the intro in your cookbook and I am looking forward to this new approach to eating. My husband and I live in Dallas and would love to attend one of you weekend seminars but it is rather expensive for us to pay for lodging and travel too. Any chances you might be bringing your seminar to other cities? Is there another way we could get some of the info like portion control and eating plans that you give? I ordered your DVD so if the info is on there I will get it from that but just in case, I wanted to ask so I don't miss anything important as I start eating without flour or refined sugars. Thank you so much for helping so many people and for being such a great source of knowledge and such an inspiration.
It is very possible that I will be coming to the Dallas area sometime this summer. I know by then you'll be well on your way to a healthier you. As far as portion guidelines go, those won't be on my DVD. I give out the eating guidelines in my classes, however if you log on to my message board there is a post titled "Food Pyramid" where one member asked me if I have my own food guidelines. I posted the general guidelines in there. If you need other assistance, let me know and I'll do my best to help. Thanks for your messages and best of health to you.
Thank you, Dee. I actually did see the food pyramid the other day and printed it out. I do have some questions about it, though, but I will post them on the questions page as I registered yesterday. I am napowers. I do hope you come to Dallas.
HI - i have been listening to the diet science podcast, and just heard the podcast on the benefits of green tea. i do have one question, and i feel you are the best person to ask about this - my question is this: i get hives after eating or drinking anything with caffeine, sugar or artifical sugars in it - such as chocolate, coffee, soda or tea, candy, etc... am i able to drink green tea since the caffeine is released much slower into the system?
Wow! That's really interesting) You know so much about green tea benefits! Thank you. I have here some more general green tea information, so maybe you'll find that interesting:)
I also love green tea. When it's not for the lungs, it will definitely have good effect on other parts. You cannot go wrong with Green tea.
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