Green tea extract
Common name
N/A
ID
HD0033
Scientific name of the plant
Camellia sinensis (L.) Kuntze
Anatomical part for use
leaf
Human use
Fatigue & weakness
Summary
Green tea is a type of tea that is made from Camellia sinensis leaves and buds that have not undergone the same withering and oxidation process used to make oolong teas and black teas. Green tea originated in China, but its production and manufacture has spread to other countries in East Asia.
Several varieties of green tea exist, which differ substantially based on the variety of C. sinensis used, growing conditions, horticultural methods, production processing, and time of harvest. Although there has been considerable research on the possible health effects of consuming green tea regularly, there is little evidence that drinking green tea has any effects on health. (Source: Wiki)
Evidence Level
Level 4 (Individual reports repeated observed over 5 years among different countries)
Hepatotoxicity reports in literature
- Fulminant hepatitis during self-medication with hydroalcoholic extract of green tea : (Source)
- Hepatotoxicity associated with supplements containing Chinese green tea (Camellia sinensis) : (Source)
- Acute hepatitis associated with the use of green tea infusions : (Source)
- Hepatotoxicity due to extracts of Chinese green tea (Camellia sinensis): a growing concern : (Source)
- Acute liver failure induced by green tea extracts: case report and review of the literature : (Source)
- Serious adverse liver reactions associated with herbal weight-loss supplements : (Source)
- A case of hepatotoxicity caused by green tea : (Source)
- [Toxic hepatitis by consumption Herbalife products a case report] : (Source)
- Jaundice as a misadventure of a green tea (camellia sinensis) lover : a case report : (Source)
- Hepatitis caused by Lotus-f3? : (Source)
- Acute hepatitis after treatment for hair loss with oral green tea extracts (Camellia Sinensis) : (Source)
- Hydroxycut(®) (herbal weight loss supplement) induced hepatotoxicity: a case report and review of literature : (Source)
- Acute liver injury induced by weight-loss herbal supplements : (Source)
- Acute liver failure caused by 'fat burners' and dietary supplements: a case report and literature review : (Source)
- Green tea extract: a potential cause of acute liver failure : (Source)
- Concentrated green tea extract induces severe acute hepatitis in a 63-year-old woman--a case report with pharmaceutical analysis : (Source)
- A Case of Acute Severe Hepatotoxicity and Mild Constriction of Common Bile Duct Associated With Ingestion of Green Tea Extract: A Clinical Challenge : (Source)
Hepatotoxicity Description
Drinking green tea has not been associated with liver injury or serum aminotransferase elevations; indeed, cross sectional studies suggest that regular use of green tea is associated with lower serum
ALT
and
AST
values. Nevertheless, case series and a systematic review by the United States Pharmacopeia have raised the issue of the potential for GTE to cause hepatotoxicity. In a large prospective study of GTE in postmenopausal woman at risk for breast cancer, GTE was associated with ALT elevations in 6.7% of patients compared to 0.7% of controls. In these studies, clinically apparent liver injury was not observed, but the extract was quickly discontinued in patients with ALT elevations. Restarting GTE in a proportion of patients was followed by rapid recurrence of ALT elevations that resolved again with stopping.
The prevalence of green tea extract induced acute liver injury with symptoms or jaundice is not known, but is undoubtedly low in comparison to the wide scale use of these products. Nevertheless, more than 100 instances of clinically apparent liver injury attributed to GTE have been reported in the literature. Liver injury typically arises within 1 to 6 months of starting the product but longer and shorter latencies (particularly with reexposure) have been reported. The majority of cases present with an acute hepatitis-like syndrome and a markedly hepatocellular pattern of serum enzyme elevations. Most patients recover rapidly upon stopping the extract or HDS, although fatal instances of acute liver failure have been described. Biopsy findings show necrosis, inflammation, and eosinophils in a pattern resembling acute hepatitis. Immunoallergic and autoimmune features are usually absent or minimal. A small number of similar cases have also been described after drinking green tea “infusions” rather than taking oral preparations of extracts of green tea.
The most prominent regulatory action against green tea containing products concerned Exolise, a weight loss product which was withdrawn from Spain and France in 2003. Also, green tea is an ingredient in many over-the-counter weight loss agents with names such as Hydroxycut, Dexatrim, Slimquick, Slimcut Fat Burner, The Right Approach, Mega Green Tea and Green Tea Fat Burner, among others, which have been implicated in causing rare instances of clinically apparent acute liver injury. (Source: LiverTox)
Common name
N/A
ID
HD0033
Scientific name of the plant
Camellia sinensis (L.) Kuntze
Anatomical part for use
leaf
Human use
Fatigue & weakness
Summary
Green tea is a type of tea that is made from Camellia sinensis leaves and buds that have not undergone the same withering and oxidation process used to make oolong teas and black teas. Green tea originated in China, but its production and manufacture has spread to other countries in East Asia. Several varieties of green tea exist, which differ substantially based on the variety of C. sinensis used, growing conditions, horticultural methods, production processing, and time of harvest. Although there has been considerable research on the possible health effects of consuming green tea regularly, there is little evidence that drinking green tea has any effects on health. (Source: Wiki)
Evidence Level
Level 4 (Individual reports repeated observed over 5 years among different countries)
Hepatotoxicity reports in literature
- Fulminant hepatitis during self-medication with hydroalcoholic extract of green tea : (Source)
- Hepatotoxicity associated with supplements containing Chinese green tea (Camellia sinensis) : (Source)
- Acute hepatitis associated with the use of green tea infusions : (Source)
- Hepatotoxicity due to extracts of Chinese green tea (Camellia sinensis): a growing concern : (Source)
- Acute liver failure induced by green tea extracts: case report and review of the literature : (Source)
- Serious adverse liver reactions associated with herbal weight-loss supplements : (Source)
- A case of hepatotoxicity caused by green tea : (Source)
- [Toxic hepatitis by consumption Herbalife products a case report] : (Source)
- Jaundice as a misadventure of a green tea (camellia sinensis) lover : a case report : (Source)
- Hepatitis caused by Lotus-f3? : (Source)
- Acute hepatitis after treatment for hair loss with oral green tea extracts (Camellia Sinensis) : (Source)
- Hydroxycut(®) (herbal weight loss supplement) induced hepatotoxicity: a case report and review of literature : (Source)
- Acute liver injury induced by weight-loss herbal supplements : (Source)
- Acute liver failure caused by 'fat burners' and dietary supplements: a case report and literature review : (Source)
- Green tea extract: a potential cause of acute liver failure : (Source)
- Concentrated green tea extract induces severe acute hepatitis in a 63-year-old woman--a case report with pharmaceutical analysis : (Source)
- A Case of Acute Severe Hepatotoxicity and Mild Constriction of Common Bile Duct Associated With Ingestion of Green Tea Extract: A Clinical Challenge : (Source)
Hepatotoxicity Description
Drinking green tea has not been associated with liver injury or serum aminotransferase elevations; indeed, cross sectional studies suggest that regular use of green tea is associated with lower serum ALT and AST values. Nevertheless, case series and a systematic review by the United States Pharmacopeia have raised the issue of the potential for GTE to cause hepatotoxicity. In a large prospective study of GTE in postmenopausal woman at risk for breast cancer, GTE was associated with ALT elevations in 6.7% of patients compared to 0.7% of controls. In these studies, clinically apparent liver injury was not observed, but the extract was quickly discontinued in patients with ALT elevations. Restarting GTE in a proportion of patients was followed by rapid recurrence of ALT elevations that resolved again with stopping. The prevalence of green tea extract induced acute liver injury with symptoms or jaundice is not known, but is undoubtedly low in comparison to the wide scale use of these products. Nevertheless, more than 100 instances of clinically apparent liver injury attributed to GTE have been reported in the literature. Liver injury typically arises within 1 to 6 months of starting the product but longer and shorter latencies (particularly with reexposure) have been reported. The majority of cases present with an acute hepatitis-like syndrome and a markedly hepatocellular pattern of serum enzyme elevations. Most patients recover rapidly upon stopping the extract or HDS, although fatal instances of acute liver failure have been described. Biopsy findings show necrosis, inflammation, and eosinophils in a pattern resembling acute hepatitis. Immunoallergic and autoimmune features are usually absent or minimal. A small number of similar cases have also been described after drinking green tea “infusions” rather than taking oral preparations of extracts of green tea. The most prominent regulatory action against green tea containing products concerned Exolise, a weight loss product which was withdrawn from Spain and France in 2003. Also, green tea is an ingredient in many over-the-counter weight loss agents with names such as Hydroxycut, Dexatrim, Slimquick, Slimcut Fat Burner, The Right Approach, Mega Green Tea and Green Tea Fat Burner, among others, which have been implicated in causing rare instances of clinically apparent acute liver injury. (Source: LiverTox)