A study published in the Journal of Internal Medicine found that people who drank tea had a lower risk of vascular disease compared to those who did not drink tea.
Researchers followed 485,934 adults in China for about nine years. During that time, 14,863 people developed cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, pulmonary heart, or peripheral artery disease. People who regularly drank tea had an 11% lower risk of these conditions. The lowest risk was seen in those who drank about 6 to 8 cups per week.
Black tea was more consistently linked to a lower risk of vascular disease than green tea. Drinking tea at a moderate strength was tied to the lowest risk. However, drinking tea that was “burning hot” was linked to a higher risk of vascular disease.
“Joint analyses showed that tea consumption, smoking status and physical activity were collectively associated with vascular risk, with the favorable combination of habitual tea consumption, noncurrent smoking and high physical activity associated with the lowest risk,” the authors wrote.