Tea tea good for the heart…

Drinking tea associated with lower risk of heart disease

Tea is the most popular drink in the world after water and with good reason – it provides a range of natural health benefits, largely due to its flavonoid content.

A new scientific review just published in ‘Nutrition Bulletin’ [1] by independent nutritionists, Dr Carrie Ruxton and Dr Pamela Mason, has found that drinking three or more cups of tea a day is associated with a significant reduction in the risk of heart disease.

The review, which focused on black tea, reviewed 40 papers, most of which reported significant associations between regular black tea consumption and less heart disease. According to Ruxton & Mason, in the groups consuming the most tea, heart disease risk was 30-57% lower compared with groups who drank little or no tea. Their review found evidence of a reduced risk of various risk factors such as arterial stiffness and inflammation.Regular black tea consumption was also associated with reduced risk of stroke.

Commenting on this latest research, author and Tea Advisory Panel member, Dr Ruxton notes: “Mechanistically, these beneficial findings are thought to be due to positive factors in black tea such as flavonoids and theanine, which may help to control blood pressure by regulate nitric oxide production and inhibiting platelet Our review also found evidence of a link between black tea consumption and a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes when 1-5 cups of tea were consumed daily, depending on the study under investigation.”[2]

We’ve always known the ‘humble cuppa’ was actually rather mighty…time to put the kettle on.

[1] Ruxton CHS, Mason P. Is black tea consumption associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes? Nutrition Bulletin 2011; DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-3010.2011. 01937.
[2] http://www.nutrition-communications.com/news_detail.php?news_id=262#_ftn1

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