Drinking tea associated with longer lifespan

Drinking tea at least three times a week is linked with a longer and healthier life, according to a new study published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.

The observational study included 100,902 participants of the China-PAR project with no history of heart attack, stroke, or cancer. Participants were classified into two groups, habitual tea drinkers who drank tea three or more times a week and never or non-habitual tea drinkers who drank tea less than three times a week. Researchers also controlled for several health and behavioral characteristics, including education, smoking, alcohol consumption, blood pressure and body mass index.

The scientists followed up with study participants for a median of 7.3 years. Researchers found that habitual tea consumption was associated with more healthy years of life and longer life expectancy.

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 percent lower risk of incident heart disease and stroke, 22 percent lower risk of fatal heart disease and stroke, and 15 percent decreased risk of all-cause death.

The potential influence of changes in tea drinking behavior were analyzed 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 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, according to the study.

In a sub analysis by type of tea, 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. However, no significant associations were observed for black tea.

The authors concluded that randomized trials are warranted to confirm the findings and provide evidence for dietary guidelines and lifestyle recommendations.