matcha and diabetes

About 10 percent of all people in the world have diabetes! [1]

When you have diabetes, life is all about regulating blood sugar to stay healthy. And while many have to turn to medication and insulin injections, there's evidence that drinking matcha could make diabetes management easier.

Several studies have pointed to green tea/matcha as a potentially effective way to control diabetes and even improve insulin sensitivity. It is believed that catechins in tea — also responsible for its anti-cancer and heart health benefits — may be to blame.

How does diabetes work?

When you eat foods with carbohydrates, they are converted to sugar and digested as such. In response, the pancreas releases insulin to help cells take up glucose, which is used for fuel. However, if you have diabetes, the process is hindered.

People with type 2 diabetes have cells that are desensitized to insulin, known as insulin resistance. This, combined with the fact that the pancreas often doesn't release enough insulin, makes it difficult to control blood sugar levels.

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease; The cells in the pancreas that produce insulin are attacked and killed by the body's immune system and simply don't produce any insulin at all.

Matcha and diabetes prevention

There is evidence that matcha can reduce the risk of developing diabetes. According to a study in Japan, people who drank six or more cups of green tea a day were 33 percent less likely to develop type 2 diabetes than people who drank just one cup a week.

Another study found that people who drank matcha/green tea consistently over a 10-year period had smaller waist sizes and lower body fat levels, showing that the tea may play a role in reducing obesity risk.

Matcha and diabetes management

But the benefits of tea don't stop at prevention. For people who have already been diagnosed with diabetes, matcha may help control blood sugar levels.

According to a comprehensive study, matcha/green tea consumption is associated with reduced fasting glucose and A1C levels, as well as reduced fasting insulin levels, which are an indicator of diabetic health. While not all studies have shown these positive results, matcha has been shown to be beneficial in other ways.

The Pacific College of Oriental Medicine suggests that the antioxidant activity of polyphenols and polysaccharides is responsible for these benefits. The same antioxidants are credited with anti-cancer, cholesterol-lowering, and blood pressure management benefits.

CREDENTIALS:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168822719312306#:~:text=20%E2%80%9379%20years.-,Results,%2Dincome%20countries%20(4.0%25).
https://diabetes.org/about-us/statistics/about-diabetes?loc=db-slabnav
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10509743/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15640470/
https://www.pacificcollege.edu/news/blog/2014/07/26/green-tea-type-ii-diabetes
https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/type-2-diabetes/#:~:text=Type%202%20diabetes%20is%20a,your%20eyes%2C%20heart%20and%20nerves.
https://www.diabetes.org.uk/diabetes-the-basics/differences-between-type-1-and-type-2-diabetes
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3689013/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12972679/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23803878/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12428980/