Green tea for sleep apnoea

Compounds found in green tea may help avoid neurological damage associated with the breathing disorder sleep apnoea. Sleep apnoea is a sleep disorder characterised by pauses in breathing during sleep, with obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) being the most common type in which the throat is sucked closed during sleep. The immediate symptoms include chronic loud snoring and gasping, as well as daytime sleepiness. Left untreated, OSA can eventually have widespread effects in the body, being linked to high blood pressure, and the intermittent dips in oxygen to the brain may also lead to memory and learning difficulties. Researchers in America studied whether green tea containing catechin polyphenols could help shield the brain from oxygen deprivation. Catechin polyphenols are antioxidants, and help neutralise cell-damaging particles called oxygen free radicals. Free radicals are normal byproducts of metabolism, but in excess they lead to a state known as oxidative stress. The researchers found that rats exposed to periodic bouts of oxygen deprivation over 14 days, showed signs of oxidative stress in the brain. However, this did not happen if rats had been given water containing green tea polyphenols. Compared with rats given plain water, these animals performed better on a standard test of learning and memory - a water maze designed to encourage the animals to remember the location of an escape platform. It's thought that the oxygen deprivation of OSA leads to oxidative stress, and that this, at least in part, explains the cognitive problems seen in some people with the sleep disorder. A regular cup of green tea could be beneficial for OSA patients along with standard treatment. However, definitive proof that green tea would help OSA patients needs a trial in human patients.