Tea drinkers live longer
Drinking tea at least three times a week is linked with a longer and healthier life, according to a new study.
“Habitual tea consumption is associated with lower risks of cardiovascular disease and all-cause death,” said first author Dr Xinyan Wang. “The favourable health effects are the most robust for green tea and for long-term habitual tea drinkers.”
The analysis included 100,902 participants with no history of heart attack, stroke, or cancer.
Participants were classified into two groups: habitual tea drinkers (three or more times a week) and never or non-habitual tea drinkers (less than three times a week) and followed-up for a median of 7.3 years.
Habitual tea consumption was associated with more healthy years of life and longer life expectancy.
For example, the analyses estimated that 50-year-old habitual tea drinkers would develop coronary heart disease and stroke 1.41 years later and live 1.26 years longer than those who never or seldom drank tea.
Compared with never or non-habitual tea drinkers, habitual tea consumers had a 20 per cent lower risk of incident heart disease and stroke, 22 per cent lower risk of fatal heart disease and stroke, and 15 per cent decreased risk of all-cause death.
The potential influence of changes in tea drinking behaviour were analysed in a subset of 14,081 participants with assessments at two time points. The average duration between the two surveys was 8.2 years, and the median follow-up after the second survey was 5.3 years.
Habitual tea drinkers who maintained their habit in both surveys had a 39 per cent lower risk of incident heart disease and stroke, 56 per cent lower risk of fatal heart disease and stroke, and 29 per cent decreased risk of all-cause death compared to consistent never or non-habitual tea drinkers.
In a subanalysis by type of tea, drinking green tea was linked with approximately 25 per cent lower risks for incident heart disease and stroke, fatal heart disease and stroke, and all-cause death. However, no significant associations were observed for black tea.
Are you a tea drinker? How much tea do you drink?
There's no denying the health benefits of both black and green tea.. packed with antioxidants.
Green tea however, is a little ahead because black tea loses some of its antioxidants in the fermentation process.
I rarely drink tea but my father did and it didn't help him to live a long life. Heartily sick of articles that tell us we might live an extra year if we do such and such. It's all fear based thinking...none of us knows when we will die or why so just enjoy each day, eating and drinking what pleases you. WE ARE ALL GOING TO DIE, AS WE SHOULD ON THIS MERRY-GO -ROUND OF LIFE, SO ACCEPT THAT FACT AND ENJOY THE TIME YOU HAVE LEFT.
Signed,
a coffee drinker :)