Presented during the one-day symposium, “Chemistry and Flavor of Hispanic Foods,” on Tuesday, March 15, at the 229th national meeting of the American Chemical Society, the world’s largest scientific society:
Maté tea: Energy booster, cancer fighter — Widely consumed in South America and growing in popularity in the U.S., maté (mah-TAY) tea is made from the dried leaves of an herbal plant (Ilex paraguariensis) and known for its energy-boosting properties. Now researchers at the University of Illinois may have found another reason to sip the potent brew (aka Yerba maté), considered Argentina’s national drink. They analyzed 25 different types of maté and found that the tea contains higher levels of antioxidants than green tea and, based on cell studies, may help prevent oral cancer. A paper on this research appears in the current print issue of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, a peer-reviewed ACS journal.
Polyphenols are naturally-occurring metabolites in tea that have been associated with several health benefits. The objective of this study was to determine the phenolic content, antioxidant capacity and human anti-topoisomerase I and II activities of herbal teas ardisia (Ardisia compressa), mate (Ilex paraguariensis) and roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa L). Total polyphenols were measured by Folin-Ciocalteau assay, using chlorogenic (CH), gallic (GA) and protocatechuic acids as standards. HPLC, MS and NMR were used to characterize phenolic compounds. Total polyphenols in various ardisia species ranged from 20-86 mg GA/g and revealed the presence of epicatechin gallate, proanthocyanidin dimers, kaempferol, naringenin isomer and ardisin derivatives. Mate tea products contained caffeoyl derivatives (204-364 mg eq. CH/g), significantly different depending on origin (p < 0.001). Protocatechuic acid (33-60 mg/g) and anthocyanins were present in roselle tea products. Mate tea presented the highest antioxidant capacity (13.1 nmol TE/?g). There was correlation between polyphenol content, antioxidant capacity and human topoisomerase inhibition.
Very interesting article! Just added it to our site :
http://www.mymateworld.com/yerba_mate_cancer_fighter.htm
We love to spread the word about this ancient and marvelous drink which has so many health benefits.
Happy New Year!
Alejandro
Posted by: Alejandro | Wednesday, January 10, 2007 at 11:20 AM