Patients often ask me about the health value of herbal medicines and other alternative therapies. Green Tea seems to be increasingly in vogue for its health properties. It is often a main component of many supplements for weight loss, is employed by many fad diets, and is reported to have tons of health benefits.   Not surprisingly, it has been used for 50 centuries by people in China and Beaverton.  Even pirates, in an effort to center their spirits, were known to take a swig before a big pillage.  And of course, your hip and health-conscious ZCPs drink it.  ZoomCare Physicians have been drinking green tea for nearly 5,000 years.  I had some this morning but found myself eerily peaceful and calm, and had to turn on the radio to drown out the zen.

So what does the evidence actually show?  After all, your ZCP is a fanatic for evidence-based medicine.  Well, we know that Green Tea has gobs and gobs of anti-oxidants.  As you may know, antioxidants are cool because they pick up free radicals in the body.  Think of free radicals like termites that ravage the wood of your house.  Now think of the antioxidants like the Terminex guy who kills all the termites, and then gets his hammer and replaces your wood, and fixes a leaky roof, and builds you a deck.  Do antioxidants really do all that?  Yes.

But does the evidence prove that Green Tea works?  Well, er, no, not exactly.  It depends how much you follow the strict definition of "prove".  I mean, has anybody ever REALLY proved yet that the earth is round?

There are a ton of studies that show green tea MIGHT help prevent heart disease, a handful of cancers, diabetes, Parkinsons, and also MIGHT help with weight loss-- but none of these research studies actually prove anything.  That's because they are "epidemiological studies".  The problem with these studies is that it's impossible to say if the people who drink green tea might be healthier because of the tea or because those are the same people who eat lots of vegetables, exercise, and take great care of themselves in other ways.  The same thing happened recently with Vitamin E.  In theory and based on epidemiological studies, Vitamin E should fight cancer and heart disease and a lot of other problems, but once further research was done, even large doses of Vitamin E weren't helpful (except for a certain eye problem) and are more likely to be harmful.  Our thinking about estrogen supplements was changed in the same way after well-controlled studies.

Until further research is done, there is just not enough evidence to show that green tea actually improves any health outcomes.  But we can still drink it. I drink it because it makes me feel awesome.  By the way, as as far as we know, green tea is very safe, though it is a caffeinated beverage so drink it with the usual care if you are sensitive to caffeine.

Come by ZoomCare for a hot cup of green tea, and a big dose of Health Care on Demand.

To review studies published in the prestigious Journal of the American Medical Association and Cancer, follow the links below:

Green Tea Consumption and Mortality Due to Cardiovascular Disease, Cancer, and All Causes in Japan

About Green Tea

You may have noticed that when you left ZoomCare you received a receipt. When was the last time you received a receipt when you left the doctor's office? As far as we know, no other doctor's office in the U.S. gives you a receipt. Why not, and why should you care?

We believe you should care because employers and insurers are increasingly asking you to pay out-of pocket for more of your health care. As this trend continues, you will want to understand your costs. For this reason we designed ZoomWare, our own software system, to calculate your costs and produce a receipt before you leave ZoomCare.


This is harder than it seems because of the way health insurance works today. You see, each insurer pays each doctor a different price for thousands of possible services which are adjusted for many things like complexity of your visit and whether you are a new or return patient. Just try calling up a medical office and asking for a price. Most offices don't even settle on how they will bill the insurer until long after you have left the office. At ZoomCare we do all this before you leave.

We are nearing completion of a ZoomWare upgrade which will show you an even more precise breakdown of your costs. We're passionate about this. We hope you find it valuable. We do know it is the right thing to do and we believe that over time this will benefit you. We'd really appreciate your feedback both on the concept of a ZoomReceipt and its specific design and information. Please drop us a note at our email addresses below.

On a different note, did you see the article published in the New York Times on March 21, 2007 by Gardner Harris and Janet Roberts, "Doctors' Ties to Drug Makers Are Put on Close View"?  It was the second-most emailed article that day by New York Times readers. The article reviews the history and current practice of pharmaceutical (drug) industry compensation to physicians. To promote their products, drug companies host educational programs, fund research projects, sponsor speakers, as well as provide samples, gifts and meals.  As Max H. Bazerman, a professor at Harvard Business School says, "When honest human beings have a vested stake in seeing the world in a particular way, they're incapable of objectivity and independence. A doctor who represents a pharmaceutical company will tend to see the data in a slightly more positive light and as a result will overprescribe that company's drugs."  For this reason ZoomCare does not accept any compensation from the pharmaceutical industry. Pharmaceutical industry representatives are not permitted to solicit ZoomCare physicians, associates or managers. ZoomCare does not accept free samples from pharmaceutical companies even though they may be popular. Pharmaceuticals are obviously a critical tool in your care and we strive to stay current with the latest treatments to ensure you receive the highest quality care. We believe this is best done by review of independent peer-reviewed research without any influence of sales people or financial incentives.

We wish you the best of health,

David Sanders, MD and Albert DiPiero, MD, MPH

dsanders@zoomcare.com adipiero@zoomcare.com

ZoomCare Founders