Black leaf tea lowers high blood pressure and cuts risk of heart disease

A new study shows that drinking 8 cups of tea a day lowers high blood pressure and cuts the risk of heart disease.

The health benefits of green tea are already widely known- its high level of antioxidants are thought to aid weight loss, prevent glaucoma and reduce the risk of cancer.

Black leaf tea like Early Grey reduces the risk of high blood pressure and heart disease

And now researchers at the University of Western Australia have found that black leaf tea, such as Earl Grey or English Breakfast, reduces blood pressure.

Volunteers with normal to high blood pressure were given 3 drinks a day containing 429 milligrams of the plant chemicals polyphenols. This is the equivalent of 8 and a half teas a day. The second group of volunteers were given a tea-flavoured placebo.

The results, published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, show that after 6 months the blood pressure of the tea drinking group had fallen by between 2 and 3 mmHg.

A blood pressure fluctuating with the heartbeat between 112 and 63 mmHg is considered healthy, while a reading fluctuating between 140 and 90 is deemed high.

Researchers say that if the experiment was repeated by the general population, the number of people with high blood pressure would be cut by 10 per cent, and the risk of heart disease would fall by up to 10 per cent.

Dr Jonathan Hodgson who led the study said: “Our study has demonstrated for the first time to our knowledge that long-term regular consumption of black tea can result in significantly lower blood pressures in individuals with normal to high-normal range blood pressure.”

Previous studies suggest adding milk does not affect the body’s ability to absorb polyphenols.

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