The wonder brew! Tea cuts early death risk

IT’S calming, refreshing and often enjoyed at the same time as your favourite newspaper.

Now there’s another reason to drink tea – regular consumption could reduce the risk of an early death.

A study of almost 500,000 older Britons looked at their tea-drinking habits, and those who died over the next 14 years.

Those who drank two or more cups a day were up to 13 per cent less likely to die over that period, compared with nontea drinkers. Tea leaves contain plant compounds which experts believe may protect blood vessels, making death from heart problems and strokes less likely.

Researchers found adding milk or sugar to tea did not change the lower risk of early death among tea-drinkers.

Dr Maki Inoue-Choi, who led the study from the National Institutes of Health in the US, said: ‘This study is observational, and more research is needed, but it may provide reassurance for tea drinkers that this habit can be part of a healthy diet. Habitual tea drinkers were less likely to die early regardless of whether they added milk or sugar to tea, or how hot they drank it.’

The research, published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, looked at 498,043 people aged 40 to 69. Less than a fifth did not regularly drink tea.

The rest were put into categories ranging from those who had a cup or less a day to those who drank ten or more.

Any amount of tea, from two cups a day upwards, was linked to a lower risk of dying over the 14 years.

That reduction in risk ranged from 9 to 13 per cent, but was not different enough across categories to produce a magic number of cups of tea people should be advised to drink.