Trivia: The surprising secret of Japanese tea that strengthens immunity

This time, I will talk about the relationship between Japanese tea and immunity. 

Sencha and matcha are related to immunity. Its ingredient is theanine. 

Theanine is a type of protein that is produced by absorbing nitrogen from the roots and promotes the growth of tea plants. Theanine reaches the tea leaves from the roots through the stems. I will leave the secret story of tea with a lot of theanine to another occasion, and this time I will talk only about the relationship with immunity.

When theanine is ingested via sencha or matcha, immune cells produce glutathione. Some vegetables, such as broccoli and asparagus, contain glutathione, but glutathione is not absorbed even if you eat it as it is or drink it as a supplement. Theanine significantly increases glutathione production.

The first good thing that glutathione is produced is to increase lymphocytes and protect and activate immune cells.

 B cells such as missiles that attack the virus pinpointly as typical immune cells, and T cells of the ground war that suppress the proliferation of virus-infected cell groups in an emergency situation There are such immune cells and NK cells like police that work 24 hours a day in normal times to destroy cancer cells and confront foreign enemies such as bacteria and viruses. A healthy person gives birth to 1 trillion new cells a day, but by all means, about 5,000 cancer cells are produced as defective products. It's a tiny number that has no bad effect on just one day, but if you leave it alone, it will increase like a double game. It is NK cells that destroy these cancer cells. In addition, NK cells also deal with external attacks such as viruses that are not very strong enemies.

These NK cells are very important in daily life, but the amount in body fluctuate between high level and low. 

When it is low, it is easy to catch a cold, and the resistance is reduced, which may cause death in some cases. Young people have many and decrease with age. However, even young people quickly decrease due to inescapable tension and stress (eg exams). Glutathione has the effect of activating and recovering these NK cells, which in itself also activates military killer T cells that oppose the virus's foreign enemies.

Another benefit of glutathione production is that it repairs cell damage caused by reactive oxygen because it is an antioxidant. It is thought to be effective as a whitening agent and to remove the dust of active oxygen that causes Alzheimer's disease.

Teas rich in theanine are high-grade sencha such as Ichibancha and high-grade matcha, and are not cheap teas. Since theanine is a protein and a substance with umami, tea with strong umami has long been regarded as a luxury item. However, recent scientific research has revealed that theanine is not only delicious, but also a superfood that produces large amounts of glutathione, boosts immunity, and removes active oxygen.

Here is one dessert that ZENJIRO recommends.

"Yogurt with matcha".

Fermented foods increase intestinal immunity, that is, useful bacteria, improve the intestinal environment, and activate immune cells. Serve with plain yogurt topped with matcha.

Not only is the slight bitterness of matcha compatible with yogurt, but both are the best combination to boost immunity.

This is the recommended matcha

"ZENJIRO Matcha Shizuoka 50g". It is the highest-ranked product among the organic matcha produced in Shizuoka, and the bright green is beautiful. Since it is a fine ceremonial grade particle, it can be used for tea ceremony practice, drinks such as latte, cakes, sweets, ice cream, etc.