ECGC Nutrients Support Healthy Pregnancy

Article by Don Goldberg

It's not always smooth sailing during pregnancy. Problems can arise. Some women, for example, can develop elevated blood sugar during pregnancy, a condition called gestational diabetes. Chances are higher for women who are obese, have high blood pressure, or are over age 30, among other factors. The condition may allow the baby to grow too large and may lead to complications after birth.

In a recent study, 326 women in the third trimester of pregnancy with gestational diabetes took a placebo or 500 mg of epigallocatechin-gallate (EGCG) per day through birth.

What is EGCG?
EGCG is the main active ingredient in green tea. Green tea is rich in phyto antioxidants, or polyphenols, or catechins. The main catechin is EGCG. For comparison purposes, green tea-containing beverages used in clinical research have been standardized to contain about 400 mg of total catechins per cup, or 302 mg of EGCG per cup.  

Compared to placebo, women who had taken EGCG were more likely to give birth to normal-weight babies-less than 8 lbs. 13 oz. The women and their babies were also more likely to have normal blood sugar levels. Newborns were also less likely to have respiratory distress, have a more normal heart rate, better muscle tone and reflexes, and healthy skin color.

(Reference: Journal of Human Nutrition & Dietetics; March, 2017, Published Online)

Supplements of ECGC are available at Willner Chemists, from several companies (NOW, Bluebonnet, DaVinci Labs, etc). The pharmacists and nutritionists at Willner will be happy to assist you.


EGCG for Moms and Babies

Various green tea products and extracts have been examined in clinical trials. Green tea, green tea beverages, and green tea extracts are typically standardized polyphenol of total catechin content. The commonly used dose of green tea, which is about 3 cups per day, provides 240-480 mg of polyphenols (53867). Green teas used in clinical research have been standardized to contain 178-823 mg of total catechins per cup (53994,53995,90156,90168,90174,90184). Green tea-containing beverages used in clinical research have been standardized to contain about 400 mg of total catechins per cup of green tea beverage (53987,54030), or 302 mg of EGCG per cup (90175).

Supplements containing green tea extract have been standardized to contain about 400-450 mg of total catechins per capsule (53994,53995,54035,54039).