Effects of commonly used infusion method on catechin content and antioxidant capacities of pure green tea packaged in tea bags

To evaluate antioxidant capacities and total phenolic, flavonoid, and catechin contents of pure green tea packaged in tea bags, green tea bags of 10 commercial brands were purchased and analyzed. Considering commonly used infusion methods, green tea bags were extracted using 150 mL of spring water at 70ºC for 2 min. Ten brands of green tea showed a wide range of total phenolic content (46.3-93.9 mg gallic acid equivalents/g), total flavonoid content (10.3-21.7 mg catechin equivalents/g), and antioxidant capacities (88.8-175.6 mg and 87.9-183.5 mg vitamin C equivalents/g for DPPH and ABTS assays, respectively). Total catechin content of green tea ranged from 33.8-74.7 mg/g, which corresponded to 43.0-108.3 mg/150 mL of cup. Collectively, these results suggest that daily consumption of 3.8-12.5 cups of green tea packaged in tea bags meets the recommended daily intake of catechins in green tea extract as a health functional foods in Korea.