Green tea may fight eye diseases

HONG KONG, Feb. 22 (UPI) -- Chinese researchers say green tea may help fight glaucoma and other eye diseases.

The study, published in the American Chemical Society's Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, finds the "catechins" in green tea -- responsible for much of its strong anti-oxidant effect -- pass from the stomach and gastrointestinal tract into the tissues of the eye and raise the possibility drinking green tea may help prevent eye diseases.

Chi Pui Pang of The Chinese University of Hong Kong and colleagues analyzed the eye tissues of laboratory rats that drank green tea. They found the retina absorbed the highest levels of the catchin gallocatechin, while the aqueous humor tended to absorb another known as epigallocatechin.

The effects of green tea catechins in reducing harmful oxidative stress in the eye lasted for up to 20 hours, the study says.

"Our results indicate that green tea consumption could benefit the eye against oxidative stress," the study authors say in a statement.