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Having a bit of memory trouble? A cup of Green Tea could help.

While green tea has long been touted as having numerous medicinal and curative properties, now research reveals that it may have memory boosting suppliants as well.

According to research published in Molecular Nutrition and Food, China's most famous drink affects the generation and regeneration of neural cells, providing benefits for memory and spatial learning.

Professor Yun Bai fro the Third Military Medical University of Chongqing China, writes in his notes:

"Green tea is a popular beverage across the world. There has been plenty of scientific attention on its use in helping prevent cardiovascular diseases, but now there is emerging evidence that its chemical properties may impact cellular mechanisms in the brain."

Bai and his team focused mainly on  the organic chemical EGCG, (epigallocatechin-3 gallate) a key property of green tea. While EGCG is a known anti-oxidant, the team believed it can also have a beneficial effect against age-related degenerative diseases.

"We proposed that EGCG can improve cognitive function by impacting the generation of neuron cells, a process known as neurogenesis," said Bai. "We focused our research on the hippocampus, the part of the brain which processes information from short-term to long-term memory."

In an experimental process,

" We ran tests on two groups of mice, one which had imbibed EGCG and a control group," said Bai. "First the mice were trained for three days to find a visible platform in their maze. Then they were trained for seven days to find a hidden platform."

The team found that the EGCG treated mice required less time to find the hidden platform. EGCC was found to boost the production of neural stem cells that can adapt or differentiate into different kinds of cells and enhances learning and memory by improving object recognition and spatial memory.