Green Tea Nutrients May Prevent Glaucoma

Glaucoma is a disease in which the optic nerve is damaged, leading to progressive, irreversible loss of vision. New research suggests that drinking green tea regularly may prevent glaucoma.

Glaucoma is one of the leading causes of blindness in the U.S., according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). It comes like a silent thief, gradually stealing sight and usually providing no warning symptoms in the early stages. But as the disease progresses, damage to the optic nerve grows worse and side vision can gradually fail until there's only tunnel vision left, and then no vision at all. Treatment with drugs and surgery may slow down the eyesight deterioration but there's no cure. However, new research provides evidence there's a natural way to prevent glaucoma from developing in the first place -- drink green tea regularly.

A study just published in the American Chemical Society's Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry concludes that phytochemicals found in green tea actually penetrate deeply into tissues of the eyes. This is the first report to document how the lens, retina and other parts of the eye absorb the powerful antioxidants and disease-fighting substances found in green tea and it strongly raises the possibility that green tea can prevent glaucoma as well as other eye diseases and conditions. Read more