Your daily cup of tea can cut the risk of incurable eye disease, say experts
A DAILY cup of tea lowers the risk of the incurable eye disease glaucoma by 74 per cent, a study has found.
Scientists believe the healthy antioxidants in a refreshing brew may play a “protective role” in the condition.
They say further research should be carried out to establish the importance of their findings.
Glaucoma is caused when pressure is raised in the eye which damages the optic nerve and increasingly causes sight loss.
New treatments, including improved eye drops and surgical techniques to reduce pressure in the eye, are being researched but the damage cannot be reversed.
In England, about 480,000 people have chronic open-angle glaucoma, the most common of four types of the condition.
Scientists from the University of California looked at the data of around 10,000 people who took part in the 2005-2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey in the US.
In this particular year, the survey included eye tests for glaucoma. Among the 1,678 participants who had full eye test results, 84 had developed the condition.
They were asked how often and how much they had drunk of caffeinated and decaffeinated drinks, including soft drinks and iced tea, over the previous 12 months. It emerged that people who drank hot tea every day had a lower glaucoma risk.
Decaffeinated tea, iced tea, decaffeinated and caffeinated coffee, and soft drinks do not appear to affect the condition. After taking account of potentially influential factors, such as diabetes and smoking, hot teadrinkers were 74 per cent less likely to have the disease.
Lead researcher Professor Anne L Coleman said: “Individuals who consumed hot tea daily had reduced odds of having a diagnosis of glaucoma.
“Interestingly, this association was not observed with the consumption of iced tea or decaffeinated hot tea.
“Tea contains phytochemicals and flavonoids, which have been observed to have anti-inflammatory, anti-carcinogenic, antioxidant and neuroprotective properties associated with the prevention of cardiovascular disease, cancer and diabetes.”
She said further research was necessary, adding: “Antioxidants may play a protective role in glaucoma.”
The survey also did not ask about factors like cup size, tea type, or the length of brewing time – all of which may have had an influence.
The study was published in the British Journal of Ophthalmology.