Black tea increases testosterone levels in male rats

[michael barry]

1: J Ethnopharmacol. 2008 Aug 13;118(3):373-7. Epub 2008 May 4. Links
Effect of black tea brew of Camellia sinensis on sexual competence of male rats.Ratnasooriya WD, Fernando TS.
Department of Zoology, University of Colombo, Colombo 03, Sri Lanka. wdr@zoology.cmb.ac.lk

AIM: In Sri Lankan traditional medicine black tea brew (BTB) of Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze (Theaceae) is claimed to have male sexual stimulant activity. As this claim is not scientifically tested and proven, this study was undertaken to evaluate the effects of BTB on male sexual competence. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Different doses of BTB made from Sri Lankan high grown dust grade no 1 tea (84, 167 and 501 mg/ml) or water were orally administered to separate groups of rats (n=9 per group) and 3h later their sexual behaviour were monitored (for 15 min) using receptive females. RESULTS: The overall results showed that BTB possesses marked aphrodisiac activity (in terms of prolongation of latency of ejaculation shortening of mount- and intromission latencies and elevation of serum testosterone level). The aphrodisiac action had a rapid onset and appears to be mediated via inhibition of anxiety and elevation of serum testosterone level. Further, this aphrodisiac action was not associated with impairment of other sexual parameters like libido, sexual motivation, sexual arousal, sexual vigour or penile erection. BTB was also nontoxic (in terms of overt signs, liver and renal toxicity). CONCLUSIONS: It is concluded that BTB can function as a quick acting, safe, oral aphrodisiac which may also be useful in certain forms of sexual inadequacies such as premature ejaculation and impaired libido and other sexual functions.
PMID: 18565706 [PubMed - in process]




Black tea reduces serum DHT in male MICE by 72% on average. There were 16 mice in each group, so this is the AVERAGE reduction in serum DHT for 16 mice (means this is no "fluke"),
http://jn.nutrition.org/content/vol133/ ... 69002.jpeg



Black tea also drastically shrunk prostate tumors in mice and lowered PSA levels in those mice also:
http://jn.nutrition.org/content/vol133/ ... 69001.jpeg

 

[michael barry]

Im suprised no one finds this interesting. Its just one more piece of evidence pointing towards black tea inhibiting alpha five reductase like finasteride. Two experiments in mice and now rats sort of point to this. The mice experiement showed that drinking black tea instead of water inhibited 72% of serum DHT on average in 16 mice. Thats impressive. It increased serum testosterone by 34% in them on average----which is about what finasteride does. The fact that black tea raises Testosterone in rats points to it inhibiting alpha five reductase in those animals also. That is interesting.

Black tea decreases cortisol levels (the stress hormone) and that is certainly a good thing.

Only mice, rats, apes, and humans (and I think one other animal) has both alpha five reductase type one and type two enzymes, so mice and rats are good indicators in what a alpha five antagonist should do in us. The authors of the mice experiement openly mentioned that black tea might have therapuetic uses in DHT-related disorders (prostate and hair, etc). Its a good sign anyway.

 

[alkulk]

I think in mice scientists can make almost everything happen...
So I read those studies with the usual reserve
But thanks for posting anyway!

 

[abcdefg]

Yes lets keep in mind the huge importance of the immune system when we talk about rat or animal studies. There immune system is probably vastly different and male pattern baldness is from what we know very rooted in the immune system response. Its funny how little we really understand on the immune system and male pattern baldness yet its the most important aspect arguably.

 

[harold]

If anyone read the study its not actually talking about hair growth at all its about the effect of black tea on serum testosterone possibly mediated by an inhibition of 5 alpha reductase inhibition. No need to invoke immune systems or what have you (whether or not they play any significant role in male pattern baldness).
hh

 

[michael barry]

Harold,


This is what the authors of the mice study said in the "discussion" section about black tea:


"b] In this study, black tea reduced serum levels of DHT (Fig. 2 D), suggesting that black tea may have bioactive components that inhibit the conversion of testosterone to DHT, presumably via inhibition of 5-reductase in this SCID-LNCaP animal model. It is unclear whether black tea theaflavins, EGCG and/or other components are responsible for this function in vivo. [/b]"


There were 4 groups of mice studied in this experiment. There were 16 mice in each group. The 72% reduction was an AVERAGE of 16 mice. So whatever black tea does to so drammatically reduce serum DHT in mice isn't a fluke result. It does it consistently. Black tea was the only thing the little creatures were given to drink. The excellent PSA scores, the shrunken prostate, the lower serum DHT, the elevated testosterone (34% on average) all look like the results one would expect if they gave finasteride to the same mice. One would assume that black tea must inhibit type 2 alpha reductase to get these outcomes.

 

[squeegee]

f***! Black tea is really damn good... I am going to buy some tonight..

 

[harold]

Yeah sorry MB I was trying to back up what you were saying in that (from memory at least) it seemed that other posters were dismissing the results based on the fact that they occurred in mice and seemed to assume it was a study trying to grow hair in mice. Guess I had been reading too many negative posts at hairsite or something cos reading it again they were very mild responses. But yeah that "anyone read the study" comment wasn't directed at yourself.
hh

 

[the Last Fight]

Im sippn on some right now, i can feel my serum DHT being reduced as i drink ..

 

[BlahBlah12]

this might be a stupid question, but is it safe for your hair to have a testosterone increase from black tea or propecia?

can plain old testosterone by itself cause negative effects on hair growth even if DHT levels are decreased?

 

[recboi]

I've always been a green tea drinker, which the study isn'ta bout, but I've always lived in London before, and people in the UK drink a LOT of black tea, and I've never seen so much hairloss in my life.

 

[michael barry]

I've always been a green tea drinker, which the study isn'ta bout, but I've always lived in London before, and people in the UK drink a LOT of black tea, and I've never seen so much hairloss in my life.

believe you me, Ive thought about this.......................I suppose the only way to test it is for someone to start drinking two tall glasses of home brewed black tea a day and get their serum DHT levels measured......

 

[CCS]

1. How do we know it is 5a1 and not 5ar2 or a mix getting blocked?
2. Why have the english been going bald for centuries? Because they don't drink enough tea?
3. What about caffine addiction and damage? What if it is the caffine causing the blocking?
4. MB once posted that green tea does not block 5ar topically.
5. This would be cheaper than proscar. I'm looking for a topical 5ar2 blocker, but it seems we only have topical 5ar1 blockers.
6. The DHT is a lot worse than testosterone, and some of that testosterone is turned into follicular estrogen, which is good.
7. How fresh must the tea be? You will be brewing a lot. Worth the hassle? Maybe their intestines absorb it better than ours. A lot of anti-oxidants are not absorbed by our intestines, or are broken down immediately by our liver. Do a hormone test before you switch from propecia. Even then, it might just be 5ar1 being blocked, and you'd never know until your hair was gone.

 

[the Last Fight]

Maybe the terribel diet and the amount of alchohol outwieghs the benefits of the tea

 

[n0142248]

In england we tend to take our tea with milk which lowers the teas health benefits considerably.

Did anyway actually stick with drinking black tea?

 

[waynakyo]

people are skeptic for many good reasons. For thousands of years people have eaten, drank, rubbed on their hands all kind of natural foods/herbs/plants/ and what have you.
It would be quite surprising to say the least that a such a common herb would have significant benefits for hair. but again this intuition could be wrong.

the study is indeed interesting.

 

[mordraug]

Sorry for digging out such an old thread, but I noticed something... When I think of family from my mom's side, all man I remember are bald, for example in case of my Uncle is about NW5/6. But, my grandpa (who have died 2 years ago. ) was an exception. At the age of 70 had only like NW2/3, sure, hair were thin, but It's nothing strange for 70yo man. And what I remember when I think about him, is that he have been drinking lots of strong home-brewed black tea. He used to pour boiling water into cup with leaf tea, and leave it for an hour or two, than drink. It might be just some coincidence, maybe he had some unusual for my family genes(his brother also was bald). But I think I'm gona give it a shot.
I will also drink green tea as well, and will see if any good will come out of it.

 

[abcdefg]

Here is the thing. We have no idea how much black tea you need to drink but its probably a ton and then you basically are taking a less proven and possibly less effective version of finasteride anyways so why not just take finasteride which is proven to work instead?
I think also there is something to be said about lowering or at least not raising testosterone levels since we know higher levels of testosterone does cause hair loss

 

[mordraug]

Well.. It's just what you have told. Unlike finasteride black tea does rise testosterone. In fact i thought that DHT is what causes hair loss, not testosterone.
Now, I'm drinking about 3-4 cups of really strong black tea daily, for about 4 days. I didn't notice much less hair lost every head wash, but... It feels like my skin produces now MUCH less sebum.

 

[mordraug]

I feel like amount of hair I lose everyday decrased a bit... might be just placebo effect though... I drink about 7 cups of different tea daily.