Effects and mechanisms of tea on obesity

Abstract

Obesity has become a global health concern. It increases the risk of several diseases, such as type 2 diabetes mellitus, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, and certain cancers, which threatens human health and increases social economic burden. As one of the most consumed beverages, tea contains various phytochemicals with potent bioactive properties and health-promoting effects, such as antioxidant, immune-regulation, cardiovascular protection and anticancer. Tea and its components are also considered as potential candidates for anti-obesity. Epidemiological studies indicate that regular consumption of tea is beneficial for reducing body fat. In addition, the experimental studies demonstrate that the potential anti-obesity mechanisms of tea are mainly involved in increasing energy expenditure and lipid catabolism, decreasing nutrient digestion and absorption as well as lipid synthesis, and regulating adipocytes, neuroendocrine system and gut microbiota. Moreover, most of clinical studies illustrate that the intake of green tea could reduce body weight and alleviate the obesity. In this review, we focus on the effect of tea and its components on obesity from epidemiological, experimental, and clinical studies, and discuss their potential mechanisms.

Keywords:

• Anti-obesity
• mechanism
• obesity
• tea
• weight loss

Author contributions

Conceptualization, X.-Y.X., R.-Y.G. and H.-B.L.; Writing, original draft preparation, X.-Y.X., C.-N.Z., B.-Y.L., G.-Y.T. and A.S.; Writing, review and editing, R.-Y. G., Y.-B.F. and H.-B.L.; Supervision, R.-Y.G., Y.-B.F. and H.-B.L.; Funding acquisition, R.-Y.G. and H.-B.L.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (No. 2018YFC1604405), China Central Public-Interest Scientific Institution Basal Research Fund (No. Y2020XK05), and the Key Project of Guangdong Provincial Science and Technology Program (No. 2014B020205002).