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Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) represents a significant global health challenge with limited therapeutic options. Tea consumption has emerged as a promising preventive and therapeutic strategy, yet a systematic and integrative understanding of its mechanisms is lacking. This review employs a novel tripartite approach-combining bibliometric analysis, network pharmacology, and an in-depth literature review-to comprehensively elucidate the multi-faceted role of tea in combating NAFLD. The bibliometric analysis identifies 'inflammation,' 'steatosis,' 'insulin resistance,' and 'gut microbiota' as the core research hotspots. Network pharmacology predicts that tea's active constituents target key proteins (e.g., VEGFA, CDK1) to regulate pivotal pathways like P53 and cancer signalling. We further synthesise evidence on how specific components, such as EGCG and yellow tea polysaccharides, modulate pathways including NF-κB and FXR to alleviate oxidative stress, inflammation, and hepatic steatosis. A central mechanistic insight elucidated in this review revolves around the gut-liver axis. We emphasise that despite their low systemic bioavailability, tea polyphenols exert potent prebiotic-like effects. They are metabolised by the gut microbiota into smaller, more bioavailable phenolic acids and other metabolites that retain or even enhance bioactivity. Furthermore, tea polyphenols, polysaccharides, caffeine, and theanine collectively modulate microbial community structure, enhance the production of beneficial metabolites such as short-chain fatty acids, and reinforce intestinal barrier function, thereby collectively ameliorating the progression of NAFLD. This consolidated mechanistic framework not only provides a comprehensive understanding of tea's anti-NAFLD effects but also highlights the significant potential for developing targeted, tea-based nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals. Moreover, it establishes a scientific basis for guiding scientifically informed tea consumption practices for the management of NAFLD.
Ren et al. (Mon,) studied this question.