A cheap and tasty drink most of us consume every day could slash the risk of fatal heart disease and stroke by 56 percent.
Fresh research found that a cup of tea could help make you healthier.
The best type of tea to drink is green tea, experts at the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, found.
But you don’t have to give up your daily cup of regular black tea – any regular cup of the hot stuff will help.
“Habitual tea consumption is associated with lower risks of cardiovascular disease and all-cause death,” said first author Dr. Xinyan Wang, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
“The favorable health effects are the most robust for green tea and for long-term habitual tea drinkers.”
Dr. Dongfeng Gu, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, added: “The protective effects of tea were most pronounced among the consistent habitual tea drinking group.
“Mechanism studies have suggested that the main bioactive compounds in tea, namely polyphenols, are not stored in the body long-term.
“Thus, frequent tea intake over an extended period may be necessary for the cardioprotective effect.”
The research followed 100,902 people with no history of heart attacks, strokes or cancer.
They were split into two groups – people who had tea three or more times a week and those who have less than that. The groups were studied for around 7.3 years.
The study was published today in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, a journal of the European Society of Cardiology
It found 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 rarely drank tea.
Compared with never or non-habitual tea drinkers, habitual tea consumers had a 20 percent lower risk of heart disease and stroke, 22 percent lower risk of fatal heart disease and stroke, and 15 percent decreased risk of all-cause death.
Hot habit
Habitual tea drinkers who kept up the habit had a 39 percent lower risk of incident heart disease and stroke, 56 percent lower risk of fatal heart disease and stroke, and 29 percent decreased risk of all-cause death compared to consistent never or non-habitual tea drinkers.
Drinking green tea was linked with approximately 25 percent lower risks for incident heart disease and stroke, fatal heart disease and stroke, and all-cause death.
Green tea is a rich source of polyphenols which protect against cardiovascular disease and its risk factors – including high blood pressure and dyslipidaemia.
Black tea is fully fermented and during this process, polyphenols are oxidized into pigments and may lose their antioxidant effects.
Also, black tea is often served with milk, which previous research has shown may counteract the favorable health effects of tea on vascular function.
This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced here with permission.