A ‘Tazza Te’ Can Be A Weapon Against Malta’s Biggest Killer: Heart Disease
One out of every five deaths in Malta was due to heart disease, though one study shows that the health of one’s heart can be improved by way of a warm cuppa, at least every other day.
In fact, habitual tea consumption was associated with more healthy years of life and longer life expectancy.
Great news, particularly for our ‘Te’ fit-tazza‘-drinking community. Even if such a revelation may mean severing ties with the accompanying pastizzi.
The study, published by the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology studied over 100,000 Chinese adults, and for a great deal of time too. Over seven years, to be exact.
When compared with people who drank fewer than three cups of tea per week, those who drank more were found to have a 20% lower risk of heart attack, or heart-related problems, and an overall 22% lower risk of dying from heart disease.
Why is this so?
The research team couldn’t really pinpoint the mechanism. But the authors tell us that these benefits are attributed to compounds in tea, called polyphenols.
As to whether there is a magic amount? The more, the better…
“Polyphenols are not stored in the body long-term. Thus, frequent tea intake over an extended period may be necessary [to protect the heart]” states Dongfeng Gu, the study’s lead author.
Does the type of tea matter?
Unfortunately, yes. As much as we Maltese love our black tea, green tea outclassed it outright. So much so, that drinking green tea was linked with even lower risks for stroke, fatal heart diseases, and early death.
Green tea has more polyphenols than our traditional black tea. But there is another problem.
“Black tea is fully fermented and during this process, polyphenols are oxidized into pigments and may lose their antioxidant effects.”
It may not be the ‘be all, end all’ when it comes to living longer, but cutting out the less healthful drinks in favour of the odd cup of tea can help you, particularly if you opt for green tea. So be sure to take advantage of cold climes and rainy days by sipping on the good stuff.
Tag a tea drinker!