Has MRSA met its match in a cup of tea?

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Guide to Good Health - # 161

 

Has MRSA met its match in a cup of tea?

 

Green tea is well-known for its powerful antioxidants and the dozens of

health benefits that come along with them. But Egyptian scientists were

" stunned " to discover that green tea increased the effectiveness of

certain antibiotics by as much as 99.99%...even when pitted against

antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria.

 

The 12-month, in vitro study was

conducted by a research team lead by Dr. Mervat Kassem, of the Faculty

of Pharmacy at Alexandria University in Egypt.

 

The results show that green tea boosted the performance of several

antibiotics used in the treatment of 28 different disease-causing

bacteria -- including several strains of Staphylococcus.

For example, 20 percent of previously drug-resistant bacteria were

killed when green tea was combined with cephalosporin. This is great

news because Cephalosporin is a widely used antibiotic - however many

strains of bacteria have developed immunity against it.

 

Green tea was also shown to effectively support the antibiotics

tetracycline, cefuroxime and it helped prevent the production of

beta-lactamases-substances produced by bacteria allowing them to develop

resistance to antibiotics.

 

Not only does this show new hope for fighting off previously resistant

strains of bacteria, but it may allow doctors to cut down on the amount

of antibiotics prescribed.

 

Naturally, additional green tea studies are on the horizon. And Dr.

Kassem's team plans to look at other herbs, like thyme and marjoram, to

see if they have similar effects as well.

 

The 12-month study is currently under peer review, but is scheduled to

be published in the European Journal of Clinical Microbiology and

Infectious Diseases.

 

Until next time,

Allan Spreen, M.D.