The potential protective effect of green, black, red and white tea infusions against adverse effect of cadmium and lead during chronic exposure - A rat model study

•Rats were exposed to low doses of Cd and Pb in the form of feed.•Tea was administered ad libitum in the form of aqueous solutions.•Tea infusions reduced the degree of accumulation of Cd and Pb in organs of rats.•Administering of tea infusions increased the activity of antioxidant enzymes in organs of rats.•The best results were reported for white and green tea.

The protective effect of green (GT), black (BT), red (RT) and white (WT) tea infusions on the lungs, brains, hearts, livers and kidneys of adult Wistar rats exposed to Cd (7 mg/kg) and Pb (50 m/kg) was studied. The degree of reduction in the absorption of Cd and Pb in the organs compared to control group and the activity of SOD, CAT and GPx as well as GSH level was evaluated. It was determined that tea significant reduced the accumulation of Cd in the tissues. A significant reduction in the accumulation of Pb was recorded in the brain (WT), liver (GT, WT) and kidneys (BT, GT, RT, WT). A significant increase was observed in the activity of SOD, CAT and GPx in the organs of all rats from tea groups. It was found that the results obtained in rats receiving black, red and white tea were overall not worse than those recorded for rats receiving green tea. The obtained results suggest that drinking tea could be an effective method of reducing the adverse effect of environmental Cd and Pb pollution on the human body.