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Tea for Your Heart
Myron Gross, Ph.D., of the University of Minnesota, presented his findings as to the role tea plays on the platelets. Platelets are responsible for causing damage to the cells that line the inside of the blood vessels. Endothelial cells produce a number of factors that contribute to blood flow and prevent blood clots, inflammation and abnormal thickening of the vessel wall. When these are damaged by platelets, the results are heart attacks and stroke. Therefore, the goal for healthy blood vessels would be to control the function of the platelets. According to Gross's findings, this is how black tea provides its beneficial effects. In his study, 20 healthy participants drank six cups of black tea a day for four weeks. They also had dietary restrictions which prevented them from eating high quantities of food with compounds similar to those found in tea. Gross and colleagues found platelet aggregation, or the clumping of platelets that can cause damage, decreased by about 15 percent in those subjects drinking tea. Also, P-selectin, a marker of platelet activity, was reduced by 12 percent during the study period. While Gross says the effects are considered mild, they are significant and can be compared to the benefits received from taking aspirin. He suggests future studies are needed to determine the effect of dosing and whether the benefits remain over a longer period of time.
In an interview with Ivanhoe Health Correspondent Liz Rosenblum, Dr. Vita warned that these results should not be taken as a suggestion to stop taking medicine and drink tea. Instead, he says, just as the American Heart Association recommends a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, tea should also be included as part of a healthy diet based on the health benefits recently discovered. |
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Many studies have looked at the benefits of tea on the heart, yet few studies have looked at the mechanisms through which the tea acts. At the Annual Meeting of the American College of Cardiology, researchers looked at how tea helps the heart.
In a similar study, Joseph Vita, M.D., of Boston University, looked at the role of tea on endothelial function. His research found after drinking tea increases the ability of the blood vessels to dilate to allow blood to flow through easier. While he says the results are not significant enough that he would recommend drinking tea as a preventative treatment by itself, he says the results are worth making it a healthy addition to your lifestyle.