Green Tea Reduces Death Due to Cardiovascular Disease
Heather at Lively Women has been touting the health benefits of green tea for a while so I thought I’d jump on the bandwagon too. My favorite tea is Chinese oolong which is apparently somewhere between green and black in oxidation.
In the latest study from JAMA, green tea reduced the risk of death from heart attacks and stroke but, surprisingly, did not have the same effect on death from cancer.
Tea contains natural compounds called flavonoids that have antioxidant properties. Antioxidants neutralize damaging molecules that are believed to help cause heart disease, cancer and other diseases. Because green tea is less processed than black tea, it contains more of these beneficial antioxidants.
Drink up! But don’t forget that tea has caffeine too. One tea bag has about 1/4 the caffeine of a 5 oz. cup of coffee but because it’s not as harsh, it goes down easier so I always lose track. A few cups of oolong before bed is not such a great idea.
Chicago Sun-Times, September 13, 2006
Photo credit: Rob Ireton
Technorati Tags: green tea, tea, oolong, diet, food, heart, heart disease, disease, illness, health, cardiovascular disease, cvd
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POSTED IN: Hearty Diet
3 opinions for Green Tea Reduces Death Due to Cardiovascular Disease
Amélie
Sep 13, 2006 at 4:59 pm
But green tea has less caffeine than black tea, doesn’t it? You can find decaffeinated green tea, even. Then the only problem with drinking a cup of tea at night is that you need to use the toilet a few hours afterwards ;)
Hsien-Hsien Lei, PhD
Sep 14, 2006 at 1:36 pm
Amélie: The best oolong isn’t decaf. hehe
Heather
Sep 15, 2006 at 9:02 am
I wonder if that’s one reason why Asian countries have such a lower rate of heart disease than Americans — well, that and the fact that we still think French fries are a vegetable. (They are, aren’t they?) :)
I had insomnia so bad when I taught English in Japan. I finally made the connection that it’s because my students gave me tea every time I visited their home. That added up to 5 or 6 cups of tea a day. I was wired — which made me productive during the day and a basket case at 3 am.
Question — I thought green tea contains more caffeine than regular tea. What do you think?
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