Effects of chronic consumption of green tea on weight and body fat distribution of Wistar rats evaluated by computed tomography¹

Abstract

Purpose:

To evaluate the effects of chronic consumption of green tea on body weight and distribution of visceral fat by Computed tomography in female Wistar rats.

Methods:

Wistar rats were divided into control group (n = 5), which received water and feed ad libitum, and green tea group (n = 8), in which water has been replaced by green tea. The animals were weighed weekly and Computed Tomography was used at the beginning (1^st week) and end (18^th week) of the experiment for evaluating the distribution of visceral fat. The animals were followed for 18 weeks.

Results:

There was no significant difference in body weight between the groups. However, there was significant difference in visceral fat area. The green tea group had less visceral fat area at the end of the experiment, 3.67 ± 1.2 cm², while the control group showed an area of 6.25 ± 2.2 cm (p = 0.00).

Conclusions:

Chronic consumption of green tea leads to decreased visceral adipose tissue area.

Key words:
Tea; Metabolism; Abdominal Fat; Tomography; Rats