Tea Epigenesis
Tea triggers genetic expression.
Epigenesis refers to the molecular processes that turn individual genes on and off. These are triggered by food, drinks, pollution, exercise, stress, and other aspects of “life experience.”
A 2017 European-wide study centered at Uppsala University in Sweden reports striking occurrences of epigenesis associated with tea drinking. This line of research challenges assumptions that gene structures are relatively stable. It suggests that pharmaceuticals may be designed to target “silencing detrimental genes.”
There is a clear pattern among women in the 3,000 subjects, but this was entirely absent in men and for the coffee drinkers. Tea consumption led to changes in gene expression in women’s bodies in 28 gene regions known to be associated with cancer and estrogen metabolism.
The results suggest an alternative path for research on tea and health from the main focus today on the role of polyphenol antioxidants. These have been assumed to have the same impact on women and men and those in coffee, tea, and fruit as equivalent. Even though tea and coffee are both rich in anti-oxidants, epigenesis was not found in any coffee drinkers.The results highlight a potential role for tea ingredients to be used in pharmaceuticals targeted to cancer and estrogen metabolism. Additional research is needed to determine whether tea can truly bestow epigenetic health benefits. However, this study brings us closer to understanding the impact one of the most common beverages could have on improving our well-being.