Trends in Food Science & Technology 17 (2006) 64–71
Review
Novel uses of
catechins in foods
Yusuf Yilmaz
Department of Food Engineering, Pamukkale Uni-
versity, Çamlık 20017, Denizli, Turkey (Tel.: C90
258 212 5532; fax: C90 258 212 5538.; e-mail:
yusufy@pamukkale.edu.tr)
Catechins are flavanols present in a variety of foods such
as wine, tea, fruits and chocolate. Catechin, epicatechin
and gallates of epicatechin are major catechins with
dietary importance for human health. In recent years,
catechins have been used as natural antioxidant in oils
and fats against lipid oxidation, supplement for animal
feeds both to improve animal health and to protect
animal products, an antimicrobial agent in foodstuffs and
a health functional ingredient in various foods and dietary
supplements. This review outlines the novel uses of
catechins in foods.
Introduction
Flavonoids are secondary metabolites of plants, which
are derived from the condensation reaction of a cinnamic
acid with three malonyl-CoA groups (Bloor, 2001). They
are generally categorized as phenolics or polyphenols
because of their chemical structure (Fig. 1). Over 4000
flavonoids have been identified. Although flavonoids are
responsible for the color of fruits and vegetables,
colorless flavonoids are also present in nature. The
classification of flavonoids varies based on the level of
oxidation in the structure of ring (14 classes according to
Seigler, 1995); however, major dietary flavonoids are
often classified under six groups (Peterson & Dwyer,
1998) shown in Table 1. Catechins belong to the group
of flavonoids called flavan-3-ols.
Some of the polyphenolics are known to have
potential antioxidant activities. Many herbal medicines
used to treat vascular, viral, gastrointestinal, microbial
and inflammatory diseases may contain plant polyphenols
(Haslam, 1989). Their medicinal properties make them a
potential group of compounds beneficial to human health.
While the average daily dietary intake of flavonoids in
0924-2244/$ - see front matter q 2005 Published by Elsevier Ltd.
doi:10.1016/j.tifs.2005.10.005
the US may be only a few 100 mg, approximately half of
the daily flavonol and flavone intake in the Netherlands
comes from tea (Hollman & Katan, 1999). Dietary intake
&
of flavonoids is usually underestimated because of the
difficulty in measuring the amount of all flavonoids
present in the consumed foods. Peterson & Dwyer (1998)
reported that daily intake of flavonoids could range from
23 to 1000 mg/day. Chocolate contributes 20% of the
daily catechin intake in the Dutch population, and tea
contributes 55% (Arts, Hollman, & Kromhout, 1999).
Mediterranean diets, which are rich in wines and fresh
fruits and vegetables, were found high in catechins
(Auger et al., 2004). In Mediterranean diets, Auger et al.,
(2004) estimated the maximum daily intake of catechins
and procyanidins around 100 mg for a person who
consumes red wine moderately.
Health beneficial properties of catechins have been
reported widely in the literature (see Higdon and Frei,
2003 for more information). In recent years, catechins
have been increasingly used as a natural ingredient in
foodstuffs and feedstuffs for various purposes. The aim of
this paper is to review the novel uses of catechins in foods
or feeds.
Major catechins in foods
Catechins are flavanols, which are also called proantho-
cyanidins or flavan-3-ols. This group of flavonoids includes
major catechins such as catechin, epicatechin, epicatechin
gallate (ECG), and epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG)
(Fig. 2). Catechins are naturally present in fruits, vegetables,
tea and wine. Red wine, green, black and oolong teas, fruits
like plum, apples, peach, strawberry and cherry, and beans
and grains like broad bean, lentil and cocoa are rich in
catechins. It is also a monomer that forms dimeric, trimeric
and oligomeric proanthocyanidins of grape berries includ-
ing their skins and seeds.
Tea, aqueous infusion of dried leaves of the plant
Camellia sinensis L. (family Theaceae), contains catechins
as well as caffeine, amino acids, carbohydrates, protein,
chlorophyll, volatile compounds, fluoride, minerals, and
other undefined compounds (Graham, 1992). Total catechin
contents of green and black tea are 420 and 250 mg/L,
respectively (Auger et al., 2004). Catechins degrade during
fermentation process of black tea, and its degradation
depends on the fermentation temperature (Obanda, Owuor,
 Y. Yilmaz / Trends in Food Science & Technology 17 (2006) 64–71 65

Fig. 1. Basic monomeric structure of flavonoids.

& Mang’oka, 2001). Peterson et al. (2005) calculated that

fermentation of green tea significantly lowers the total
catechin content of tea from about 14 to 4% (w/w dry basis).
Catechins constitute 60–90% of total flavonoids in green tea
while 6–24% of total flavonoids are catechins in black tea
(Higdon & Frei, 2003). Tea waste can be also considered as
a valuable material due to its left over bioactive
components, including catechin, epicatechin, epigallocate-
chin (EGC), EGCG and ECG (Nwuha, Nakajima, Tong, &
Ichikawa, 1999). Chocolate is also rich in catechins and
procyanidins (Wollgast & Anklam, 2000a,b), and the
amount of catechins in chocolate could be four times higher
than tea (Arts et al., 1999).
Fig. 2. Chemical structure of major catechins found in tea.
Catechin
Catechin, a monomeric flavanol (Fig. 2), is reported to
have hydroxyl (Moini, Guo, & Packer, 2002), peroxyl at carbons 3 0 and 4 0 and a hydroxyl group at carbon 3 on the
(Scott, Butler, Halliwell, & Aruoma, 1993), superoxide C-ring (Fig. 2). Epicatechin is able to scavenge hydroxyl
(Bors & Michel, 1999) and DPPH (1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl- radicals (Moini et al., 2002), peroxyl radicals (Liu, Ma,
hydrazyl) (Fukumoto & Mazza, 2000) radical scavenging Zhou, Yang, & Liu, 2000), superoxide radicals (Bors &
activities. Moreover, it can chelate iron (Morel et al., 1993). Michel, 1999), and DPPH radicals (Fukumoto & Mazza,
Nakao, Takio, and Ono (1998) found that ECG, epicatechin 2000). Peroxyl radical scavenging activity of epicatechin
and catechin have a peroxyl radical scavenging activity ten could be ten times higher than L-ascorbate or b-carotene
times higher than L-ascorbate and b-carotene when tested on (Nakao et al., 1998).
bacteria. Nanjo et al. (1996) reported that DPPH radical
scavenging activity of catechin and epicatechin is less than Gallates of epicatechin
EGC, ECG, and EGCG. Black tea contains mainly gallates of epicatechin. In
black tea, green tea and oolong tea, epicatechin, EGC,
Epicatechin EGCG and ECG are present, but not catechin (Khokhar,
Epicatechin is another monomeric flavanol found Venema, Hollman, Dekker, & Jonge, 1997). ECG and
naturally in vegetables, fruits, wine and tea. Epicatechin EGCG are considered the main catechins found in black tea
along with catechin are present in apples, and their (Obanda et al., 2001).
concentration depends on fruit development and ripening EGC differs from epicatechin in that it has a trihydroxyl
(Awad, Jager, van der Plas, & van der Krol, 2001). group at carbons 3 0 , 4 0 , and 5 0 on the B-ring (Fig. 2). ECG
Epicatechin has an ortho-dihydroxyl group in the B-ring differs from epicatechin in its gallate moiety esterified at

Table 1. Major dietary flavonoids and examples

Flavonoid Examples
Anthocyanidins Delphinidin, cyanidin, petunidin, peonidin, and malvidin
Flavonols Quercetin, kaempferol, and quercetagetin
Flavanols Catechin, epicatechin, epicatechin gallate, and epigallocatechin-3-gallate
Isoflavonoids Isoflavones (e.g. genistein, diadzein, formononetin, and biochanin A), and coumestans (e.g. coumestrol)
Flavones Rutin, apigenin, luteolein, and chrysin
Flavonones Myricetin, hesperidin, naringin, and naringenin
66 Y. Yilmaz / Trends in Food Science & Technology 17 (2006) 64–71
carbon 3 of the C-ring. However, EGCG has both
trihydroxyl groups at carbons 3 0 , 4 0 , and 5 0 on the B-ring
and a gallate moiety esterified at carbon 3 on the C-ring.
EGCG is the most abundant catechin in the leaves of green,
oolong, and black teas (Graham, 1992). EGCG contents of
green and oolong teas range typically from 127 to 550 mg/
L, while black teas may contain up to 300 mg/L (Balentine
& Paetau-Robinson, 2000).
Novel uses of catechins in foods
Antioxidant in oils and fats
The major sources of catechins used in foods come from
mostly different types of tea since it is highly available
throughout the world and a relatively inexpensive source of
catechins with a plant origin. In the literature, there are
numerous studies on the in vitro antioxidative activity of tea
catechins against various radicals such as hydroxyl, super-
oxide, peroxyl and DPPH (Atoui, Mansouri, Boskou, &
Kefalas, 2005; Tang, Kerry, Sheehan, & Buckley, 2002).
Radical scavenging activities of major tea catechins like
catechin, epicatechin and gallates of epicatechin have been
presented in the previous section of this paper. This section
focuses on the exploitation of tea catechins’ antioxidant
activity in food matrices such as meats, poultries, fish and
vegetable oils.
Red meats and poultry are usually susceptible to lipid
oxidation due to their high fat content. Fat contents of
meats depend on several factors such as the type, gender,
and age of animals, and the type of animal tissue. There
are a few studies on the use of tea catechins, natural
antioxidants, to prolong the shelf life of different meat
types by inhibiting lipid oxidation. In a study by Tang,
Kerry, Sheehan, Buckley, and Morrissey (2001a), the
addition of tea catechins at a level of 300 mg/kg was
shown to inhibit lipid oxidation significantly in red meat
and poultry patties; however, concentrations of tea
catechins higher than 300 mg/kg were needed for the
inhibition of lipid oxidation in samples with high levels of
highly unsaturated lipids like fish. McCarthy, Kerry,
Kerry, Lynch, and Buckley (2001a,b) indicated that tea
catechins along with rosemary and sage at levels less than
0.5% could be used as natural antioxidants to reduce lipid
oxidation in raw and cooked pork patties produced from
frozen pork meat. Tea catechins were found the most
effective antioxidant against lipid oxidation of cooked
pork patties among ginseng, mustard, rosemary, sage,
butylated hydroxyanisole/butylated hydroxytoluene (BHA/
BHT) and vitamin E. In a recent study, Mitsumoto,
O’Grady, Kerry, and Buckley (2005) successfully used tea
catechins (200–400 ppm) to inhibit lipid oxidation in
cooked or raw beef patties. However, discoloration in
cooked beef and chicken patties was also observed at
these concentrations of tea catechins. The authors reported
that inhibitory effect of tea catechins against lipid
oxidation in raw beef was higher than sodium ascorbate
(vitamin C) acid at the same concentration. Direct
addition of 1000 ppm tea catechins to M. longissimus
dorsi steaks was found to improve the color and lipid
stability of beef patties significantly (Kerry, 2005).
Fish is even more susceptible to lipid oxidation than
red meats and poultry because fats in fish tissues are
composed of highly unsaturated fatty acids like arachi-
donic acid. The blue sprat, small herring processed like a
sardine, is mostly consumed locally because it deteriorates
very rapidly after catching. Using hot water extracts of
different teas including green, oolong and black teas, Seto,
Lin, Endo, and Fujimoto (2005) found that extracts of teas
inhibited the oxidation of blue sprat tissues, and this
inhibition was positively correlated with the total
catechins contents of tea extracts. They also found that
green and oolong teas were effective for the suppression
of lipid peroxidation in dark meat and skin of blue sprat.
O’Sullivan, Mayr, Shaw, Murphy, and Kerry (2005)
reported that tea catechins inhibited the lipid oxidation
of cod liver oil and white Pollack liver oil better than
black clove oil, white clove oil, mustard, carvacol or
vitamin E. Studying the antioxidant activity of ground
green tea, tea extracts and pure tea catechins in a white
muscle of mackerel cooked at 75 8C and stored at 4 8C for
a week, He and Shahidi (1997) reported that ground green
tea, tea extracts and tea catechins such as epicatechin,
EGC, ECG, and EGCG can be used as an antioxidative
agent in a fish meat model system instead of artificial
antioxidants such as a-tocopherol, BHT, BHA, or tertiary
butyl hydroquinone (TBHQ).
Lipid oxidation of animal fats is likely to occur during
extended periods of storage at refrigeration temperatures.
Tea catechins, natural compounds with antioxidant
activity, have a potential to be utilized in muscle foods
for the inhibition of lipid oxidation during storage.
Investigating the effect of tea catechins on the lipid
oxidation in red meat, poultry and fish muscles stored at
4 8C for 10 days, Tang, Sheehan, Buckley, Morrissey,
and Kerry (2001) found significant reduction in lipid
oxidation when 300 ppm tea catechins were added to
muscle meats. Moreover, the antioxidative activity of tea
catechins was higher than that of a-tocopherol at the
same concentration. In a study, Shahidi and Alexander
(1998) found that green tea catechins such as epicatechin,
EGC, ECG and EGCG (200 ppm) inhibited the oxidation
of meat lipids better than a-tocopherol, and gallates
of catechins were more effective than monomer
epicatechin in controlling lipid oxidation in a meat
model system.
Tea catechins are able to scavenge DPPH radicals
(Atoui et al., 2005; Tang, Kerry, Sheehan, Buckley, &
Morrissey, 2001b) and chelate Fe2C (Tang et al., 2002),
i.e. they are potential antioxidants. Catechin, one of the
major tea catechins, increases the stability of peanut oil
most significantly compared to rosemary, tocopherol,
phospholipids and ascorbyl palmitate (Chu & Hsu,
 Y. Yilmaz / Trends in Food Science & Technology 17 (2006) 64–71
1999). Jasmine tea extracts containing epicatechin, EGCG,
EGC, and ECG can be a better antioxidant than BHT in
canola oil (Chen & Chan, 1996). In an oil matrix, stability
of catechins could be problematic; however, catechins
from tea extracts were found thermally more stable than
BHT (Chen & Chan, 1996). Studying the antioxidant
activity of aqueous green tea extracts on ‘refined,
bleached, and deodorized seal blubber oil and menhaden
oil’, Wanasundara and Shahidi (1998) found that
chlorophyll in green tea extracts was responsible for
pro-oxidative activity on these oil samples because
dechlorophyllized tea extracts (O200 ppm) in both oils
exhibited antioxidant activity. In conclusion, tea catechins
could be used as a novel potential ingredient in vegetable
oils and food products of oils for the inhibition of
oxidation in lipids; however, precaution is needed because
of the presence of pro-oxidative constituents of tea.
Further investigations should focus on the consumer
acceptability of oils and oil products with catechins.
Studies on the antimutagenic activity of tea poly-
phenols are likely to accelerate the utilization of tea
extracts in foods as a functional ingredient. In a study by
Gupta, Chaudhuri, Seth, Ganguly, and Giri (2002), black
tea and its phenolics theaflavins and thearubigins were
shown to have significant in vitro anti-mutagenic activity.
It could be speculated that antimutagenic activities of tea
extracts together with their antioxidant activities are likely
to encourage the exploitation of tea catechins as a
functional ingredient in a variety of foods.
Supplement for animal feeds
Animal feeds can be considered important carriers for
health functional compounds like vitamins A and E. These
compounds could be retained in animal tissues and
transferred into animal products such as meat, eggs and
milk. Supplementation of animal feeds with functional
ingredients serves three major benefits; improved animal
health through the supplementation of feedstuffs with
nutrients, excellent protective effect on animal products,
and indirect dietary supplementation of foodstuffs with
nutritional compounds.
The effect of high or low tannin contents of chicken
feeds on growth and mineral absorption was investigated
by Hassan, Elzubeir, and El Tinay (2003), and the
authors found that although tannin addition did not alter
mortality, high tannin supplementation of feeds reduced
the absorption of minerals such as calcium, magnesium,
iron, potassium, sodium, and phosphorous. Studying the
effect of dietary polyphenols on growth and oxidative
stress in chickens, Eid, Ohtsuka, and Hayashi (2003)
reported that dietary polyphenols can reduce growth
inhibition, hyperlipidemia (excess levels of fats in the
blood) and oxidative stress in broiler chickens. Yamane,
Tsuchida, Gotou, Takahashi, and Takeda (1998) claimed
that fowl egg quality could be improved by the addition
of tea polyphenols to feedstuffs.
67
Supplements for feedstuff could be natural or artificial.
For instance, flavonoids can be used as a natural
alternative antioxidant agent to vitamin E. Feeding
chickens with a diet containing 300 mg tea catechins/kg
feed could be as effective as 200 mg a-tocopheryl
acetate/kg feed in the protection of frozen chicken meat
against long-term oxidation up to 9 months (Tang et al.,
2001b). Tea catechin addition has also a protective effect
on added a-tocopheryl acetate in frozen chicken meat
stored for a year (Tang et al., 2001b). Feeding chickens
with a diet containing tea catechins at a concentration
higher than 200 mg/kg reduces lipid oxidation in chicken
meat, liver and heart (Tang, Kerry, Sheehan, Buckley, &
Morrissey, 2000). Supplementation of feeds with tea
catechins at various concentrations from 50 to 300 mg/kg
has been reported to inhibit the lipid oxidation of chicken
breast and thigh meat stored at K20 8C for a long time.
Supplementing pig diet with a-tocopheryl acetate or
green tea catechins was able to reduce lipid oxidation in
Longissimus dorsi muscle meat packed aerobically or in
modified atmosphere (40% CO 2: 60% O 2) while
exhibiting insignificant effect on color stability during
storage at 4 8C for 10 days (Mason et al., 2005). On the
other hand, supplementation of cattle diet with 1 g tea
catechins/animal/day failed to have any positive effect on
the color and lipid stability of M. longissimus dorsi
steaks stored aerobically or in modified atmosphere
packaging (30% CO2: 70% O2) while direct addition of
1000 ppm tea catechins to steaks improved the color and
lipid stability of patties significantly (Kerry, 2005). In
conclusion, studies indicate that tea catechins exhibit
in vivo antioxidative activity, and addition of tea
catechins to feedstuff has a protective effect on meat
quality of chicken and pork. However, supplementing
cattle diet with tea catechins fails to improve meat
quality. Differences in effectiveness may arise from
several factors such as differences in digestive systems
(ruminant versus monogastric) and inclusion dose or
form of tea catechins used in feedstuff (Kerry, 2005).
Therefore, more research is needed to determine the
inclusion level effect of tea catechins in feed supplements
on lipid oxidation of beefsteaks or the form of tea
catechins used in animal feeds as a dietary supplement.
Antimicrobial agent
Antimicrobial agents can be naturally present in foods,
or added to foods to retard the growth of spoilage
microorganisms or kill pathogens. There are a number of
studies carried out to determine the antimicrobial
effectiveness of phenolic antioxidants in foods. For
example, tannins, polymers of flavanols, have been
reported to inhibit the growth of Aeromonas, Bacillus,
Clostridium botulinum, C. perfringens, Enterobacter,
Klebsiella, Proteus, Pseudomonas, Shigella, Staphylococ-
cus aureus, Streptococcus, and Vibrio (Chung, Wei, &
Johnson, 1998). The antibacterial activity of EGCG on
68 Y. Yilmaz / Trends in Food Science & Technology 17 (2006) 64–71

various strains of Stapylococcus and Gram-negative rods
including Escherichia coli, K. pneumoniae, and Salmo-
nella typhi were determined by Yoda, Hu, Zhao, and
Shimamura (2004). In this study, EGCG inhibited the
growth of Staphylococcus strains at 50–100 mg/mL;
however, concentrations higher than 800 mg/mL were
required for the inhibition of Gram-negative rods. The
authors explained this difference with the type of cell
wall components since the antibacterial activity of EGCG
could be altered by the presence of peptone and protein
but not amino acids. Amarowicz, Pegg, and Bautista
(2000) showed that proanthocyanidins, epicatechin, EGC
and EGCG fractions of green tea extract and green tea
extract itself have antibacterial activity against E. coli
K12 although the final concentrations of those constitu-
ents of green tea extract were not reported.
Tea catechins have been also tested for the antibacter-
ial activity against Helicobacter pylori, ulcer-causing
bacterium. Studying the inhibitory effect of tea catechins,
EGCG and epicatechin, Yee and Koo (2000) found that
both catechins inhibited the growth of H. pylori; however,
EGCG exhibited better inhibitory activity against H.
pylori than epicatechin. Yanagawa, Yamamoto, Hara,
and Shimamura (2003) tested anti-Helicobacter pylori
activity of several catechins including catechin, epicate-
chin, EGC, ECG and EGCG, and their results indicated
that only EGCG and ECG exhibit antibacterial activity
against H. pylori at 100 mg/mL concentration level. In a
patent, chewing gum containing tea polyphenols is
claimed to prevent viral infections against influenza and
to inhibit dissemination of this virus (Hara & Nakayama,
2001) (Table 2). These studies indicate that tea catechins
contain antimicrobial constituents, and the antimicrobial
activity of catechins depends on several factors such as
type of catechins, concentration of catechins, and type of
microorganisms. In conclusion, antimicrobial activity of
catechins has been and is likely to be exploited for the
purpose of novel applications in food research.
Functional food
Functional foods are considered as foods with a
physiological purpose in the body. Sanders (1998)

Table 2. Patents related to tea catechins and/or their use in foods (issued by US Patent and Trademark Office)

Date/number Inventor(s) Title Claim/explanation

1989/4,840, Hara, Y., and Suzuki, Y. Method of treating hypertension A method for treating hypertension is claimed, and
966 this method utilizes tea polyphenols including
epigallocatechin gallate, free theaflavin, theaflavin
monogallates A and B, and theaflavin digallate to
maintain or lower blood pressure in humans.
1993/5,204, Hara, Y., and Hattori, M. Method of preventing the for- Dental plaque, a film of mucus and bacteria
089 mation or aggravation of dental deposited on the teeth that encourages the
plaque and method for reducing development of dental caries, can be prevented by
cariogenesis an agent composed of a tea polyphenol or
polyphenols such as catechin, epicatechin, gal-
lates of epicatechin, theaflavins and isomers of
these compounds.
1998/5,766, Yamane, T., Tsuchida, T., Gotou, Method of improving quality of Fowl egg quality can be improved by the
595 H., Takahashi, D., Takeda, H. eggs by feeding tea polyphenol supplementation of feedstuffs with tea polyphe-
nols. Eggs produced by this method are claimed to
have ‘a reduced crude fat content, a reduced
peroxide content, an enhanced Haugh Unit value,
an enhanced degree of transparency of egg white,
an enhanced foam-forming ability and a pure
white color in fom and egg white when the eggs
are cooked’.
2001/6,248, Hara, Y., and Nakayama, M. Chewing gum and production of A chewing gum composed of either ‘at least
346 the same 0.03 wt% of at least one tea polyphenol’ without
any organic acid or ‘at least 0.01 wt% of at least
one tea polyphenol’ with one organic acid is
claimed to prevent viral infections against influ-
enza and to inhibit the spreading of this virus.
2001/6,268, Ekanayake, A., Bunger, J.R., Moh- Grean tea extract subjected to Treating green tea extracts first with cation
009 lenkamp, Jr., M.J. cation exchange treatment and exchange resin removes metal cations in the
nonofiltration to improve clarity extract, and nanofiltration of the extract at a
and color temperature ranging from about 37 to 60 8C
through a membrane produces a permeate of
green tea extract. Clarified green tea extracts could
be added to various beverages and are claimed to
mask undesired aftertaste properties of aspartame
in diet beverages.
 Y. Yilmaz / Trends in Food Science & Technology 17 (2006) 64–71
defined a functional food as “a food or food ingredient
that provides a health benefit beyond satisfying
traditional nutritional requirement”. The definition
implies that functional foods possess physiological effects
that improve human health. Consumer interests towards
functional foods have recently increased sharply because
of increased consumer awareness on the relationship
between health and nutrition, aging population, more
media coverage on diet-disease interactions, high medical
cost, and increased consumer desire to prevent diseases
rather than cure (Goldberg, 1999; Sanders, 1998).
Plants have been an important part of animal and
human diets due to their functionality in the body. Plant
derived foods provide energy for metabolic activities,
provide precursors for protein synthesis, supply micro-
nutrients for the life like vitamins, essential fatty acids,
and minerals. Moreover, phenolic constituents of plants
are known to have nutritional functions as well as
medicinal. Most of these constituents are secondary
metabolites (Walton, Rhodes, Michael, & Parr, 1999)
and are also called phytochemicals that can be considered
as functional foods since the intake of these substances
improves health by reducing the risk for numerous
diseases. Components of garlic, ginkgo biloba, soybean,
tea, grapes and many other fruits and vegetables are
phytochemicals with dietary importance for humans. Tea,
rich in catechins, is considered to be a functional food for
the improvement of oral health (Wu & Wei, 2002). There
are several patents related with tea polyphenols, especially
catechins (Table 2). Chewing gum containing tea
polyphenols could be used against influenza infections
(Hara & Nakayama, 2001). A substance containing tea
polyphenols such as catechin, epicatechin, gallates of
epicatechin, theaflavin and its monogallates is claimed to
prevent the formation of dental plaque (Hara & Hattori,
1993). Tea polyphenols such as ECG, free theaflavins,
theaflavins monogallate A, theaflavins monogallate B and
theaflavins digallate can also be used to treat hypertension
(Hara & Suzuki, 1989).
Stability and the interaction with food constituents
should also be taken into consideration for commercial
applications of tea polyphenols as a functional ingredient.
Green tea catechins are unstable at high temperatures and
pH values, and their stability is poor when stored at room
temperature for a long time (Su, Leung, Huang, & Zhen,
2003). Degradation of EGCG and EGC in sodium
phosphate buffer (pH 7.4) is complete after 6 h of
incubation, and a third of epicatechin and ECG degrade
under similar conditions (Su et al., 2003). Investigating
the effect of various nutrients including catechin on the
formation of resistant starch, Escarpa, Gonzales, Morales,
and Saura-Calixtro (1997) found that catechin reduced the
formation of resistant starch, and showed no influence on
the digestibility of starch.
The use of green tea extracts in foods such as cereals,
cakes, biscuits dairy products, instant noodles,
69
confectionery, ice cream and fried snacks gives ‘a
healthier appeal to the consumer’; therefore, the market-
ing potential for these foods can be improved by the
presence of catechins (Wang, Provan, & Helliwell, 2000).
Mostly, the antioxidative activity of catechins makes
them a potential candidate as a functional ingredient for
foods and beverages.
Conclusions
Catechins are flavanols present naturally in wine, tea,
fruits and chocolate, and this group of flavonoids includes
major catechins such as catechin, epicatechin and gallates of
epicatechin. Catechins are considered as natural antiox-
idants because of their radical scavenging properties.
Catechins can be used in foodstuffs and feedstuffs for
various purposes, for example, to retard lipid oxidation in
oils, fats and animal tissues, to create a value added food
products through supplementation with catechins and to
improve the quality of foodstuffs by acting as a functional
ingredient.
Catechins are able to inhibit lipid oxidation in red meat,
poultry and fish (He & Shahidi, 1997; McCarthy et al.,
2001a,b; Tang et al., 2001a, 2001). However, the inhibition
of lipid oxidation in meats is usually dose-dependent. For
the effective inhibition of lipid oxidation in red meat,
poultry, and fish by tea catechins, concentrations higher than
0.3% are usually required. Catechins, especially catechin
and epicatechin, can be also used in peanut oil (Chu & Hsu,
1999) or canola oil (Chen & Chan, 1996) as a natural
antioxidant.
In animal feed studies, tea catechins were found to be
useful for the protection of chicken meat and its products
against lipid oxidation (Tang et al., 2000, 2001b) as well
as for the improvement of animal health (Eid et al.,
2003). Dose or form of tea catechins used in beef cattle
diet may influence the color and lipid stability of M.
longissimus dorsi steaks (Kerry, 2005). In addition to the
studies on the protective effect of catechins against
oxidation, the antimicrobial activity of catechins has been
also investigated in various studies. Although EGCG
inhibits the growth of Staphylococcus strains at 50–
100 mg/mL, higher concentrations (800 mg/mL) are
required for the inhibition of Gram-negative rods (Yoda
et al., 2004). Epicatechin and EGCG have been shown to
have antibacterial activity against E. coli K12 (Amar-
owicz et al., 2000) and H. pylori (Yanagawa et al., 2003;
Yee & Koo, 2000). These studies indicate that catechins
have a potential for novel applications in food research
and this potential is partly due to their antimicrobial
activity.
Catechins include a group of health functional com-
pounds, especially catechin, epicatechin and gallates of
epicatechin, which are major tea catechins. Foods or
supplements containing polyphenols could be used to
prevent the dissemination of influenza infections (Hara &
70 Y. Yilmaz / Trends in Food Science & Technology 17 (2006) 64–71
Nakayama, 2001), to prevent the formation of dental plaque
(Hara & Hattori, 1993) or to treat hypertension (Hara &
Suzuki, 1989). In conclusion, there has been a potential for
the novel uses of catechins in foodstuffs and feedstuffs, and
this potential is likely to grow steadily in the future because
catechins contain health beneficial constituents, protect fats,
lipids and animal tissues against oxidation, and improve
animal health.
Acknowledgements
The author would like to thank Dr Joseph P. Kerry,
Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, University
College Cork, Cork, Ireland, for his valuable comments and
recommendations for the original manuscript.
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