Green tea: A possibility in the therapeutic approach of inflammatory bowel diseases?: Green tea and inflammatory bowel diseases.

<bold>Objective: </bold>this review aimed to investigate the effects of green tea polyphenols (GTP) in Ulcerative colitis and Crohn´s Disease.<bold>Materials and Methods: </bold>The databases used were MEDLINE-and EMBASE (October 2009 to September 2018). Studies that reported the use of green tea and its effects on IBD were included.<bold>Results: </bold>Ten articles were included in this review.<bold>Discussion: </bold>GTP play a role in reducing TNF-α, Interleukin 1β (IL-1β), IL-6, IL-8, and 17; downregulate cyclooxygenase-mediated I kappa B kinase and transcription of NFκB. They regulate the pathways mediated by the Nuclear erythroid 2-related factor 2, mitogen-activated protein kinases, and signal transducer and the activator of transcription 1/3, and also minimize the lipid peroxidation. Furthermore, GTP can stimulate antioxidant enzymes. These actions reduce inflammatory and oxidant patterns in IBD resulting in improvement of the disease scores.<bold>Conclusions: </bold>We suggest that professionals and researchers take into account the use of GTP in further researches and in clinical practice in order to verify the real effects in humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]