The Anti-Obesity Potential of Green Tea: The Effect on Leptin and Adiponectin

Abstract

Green tea has been consumed for thousands of years, and has been known to have many medicinal properties such as, anti-cancerous, anti-atherogenic, anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial. With the increasing emergence of cardiovascular disease (CVD), and its major risk factor, obesity, there has been increasing interest in green tea as a potential anti-obesity therapy. Evidence has demonstrated that green tea decreases body weight. However it remains unclear through which pathway and mechanism green tea exerts its anti-obesity properties. The metabolic adipose tissue hormones, adipocytokines, leptin and adiponectin have been studied extensively as a potential target for green tea and its main catechin, epigallacatechin gallate (EGCG). It has been demonstrated that green tea consumption decreases leptin levels which may directly decrease body weight through increasing energy expenditure and fat oxidation. Furthermore, ingestion of green tea or its catechins has been associated with increased adiponectin levels which may indirectly reduce body weight through insulin sensitivity.