A 12-week study with women found that green tea catechins1 are able to improve skin characteristics, including elasticity, roughness, scaling, density, and water content. Additionally, less UV radiation damage was seen in the group that supplemented with green tea catechins.
It is well known that various types of antioxidant compounds tend to accumulate in your skin, protecting it from the sun’s UV radiation. Lycopene, the carotene compound in tomatoes, is one example, as is the tocotrienol form of vitamin E. Previous studies indicate that green tea helps protect the skin, and this particular study provides clear evidence of this fact in humans.
The study also showed that green tea boosted oxygen flow to the skin, which peaked 30 minutes after ingestion. Any time skin circulation is improved, skin health is also improved, which was certainly the case in this study.
The dose of green tea used in this study was 1,402 mg of total catechins. Catechins are the active polyphenol in green tea and are standardized in dietary supplement capsules. A capsule containing pure high-quality green tea will have around 400 mg of active catechins. Therefore, you would need three to four capsules per day to reach the dose tested in this study.


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