Tea Good for Heart Disease

The evidence is building: Several cups of tea daily can help your high cholesterol and even cut the damage caused by smoking — and possibly prevent cancer and heart disease.

The evidence is building: Several cups of tea daily can help your high cholesterol and even cut the damage caused by smoking — and possibly prevent cancer and heart disease. In studies, tea drinking has been shown effective in lowering high cholesterol and in cancer prevention. But researchers are still trying to figure out how. Likely, it is because the polyphenols in tea are strong antioxidants capable of “mopping up” DNA-damaging free radicals in the bloodstream. Two studies in this month’s Journal of Nutrition look at tea’s health effects — finding evidence that tea works, although exactly how is still a mystery. The studies were presented at the Third International Scientific Symposium on Tea and Human Health, held today in New York City. Black Tea and High Cholesterol One study looks at the effects of black tea on total and LDL “bad” cholesterol in adults who had mildly high cholesterol levels. Each was on a carefully controlled diet; each was asked to drink five servings of black tea daily for three weeks. In the study’s second phase, they switched to a placebo non-caffeinated beverage prepared to match the tea in color and taste. In the third phase, caffeine was added to the placebo, enough to equal that in tea. Black tea reduced total cholesterol by 4% and LDL cholesterol by 8% compared with the effects of a placebo drink with no caffeine. When compared with a placebo with caffeine, total cholesterol was reduced by 7% and LDL cholesterol by 11% in participants consuming black tea. The drop in cholesterol from 4% and 7% in those who consumed black tea means a decreased risk from heart disease, since a 1% decrease in cholesterol translates into about a 2% decrease in heart disease. This could translate into an 8% to 13% decreased risk of heart disease, writes lead researcher Michael J. Davies, PhD, with the Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center, a division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. “The inclusion of tea in a diet moderately low in fat reduces total and LDL cholesterol by significant amounts, and may, therefore, reduce risk of heart disease,” he writes. However, tea did not affect the patients’ antioxidant levels, Davies writes. It’s possible that tea limits cholesterol absorption in the intestine.(Source: Hakim, I. Journal of Nutrition, Oct. 2003; pp 3303S-3309S. Davies, M. Journal of Nutrition, Oct. 2003; pp 3298S-3302S: WebMD Health News)