Green Tea and Cardiovascular Health
Monday September 21, 2009
A large study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association shows that regular drinkers of green tea in Japan enjoy a reduced risk of cardiovascular mortality, and a reduced risk of stroke. Read about green tea and cardiovascular health here.
Comments
Isn’t white tea [tips of tea bush] even better?
what is green tea? from where it is extracted or collected?
I have had chest pain with exertion since 2002. Stress test showed some abnormalities, cardiac cath was clear, was given Cardizem 240xl.Helped, Dx. wth coronary artery spasms, then symptoms gradually got worse, saw dr. May, stress test was fine, given indur, now take 60 bid, worked great at first, now symptoms returning. Saw Dr. today and they basically said its in my head and can stop meds. What should I do, I know what I am feeling. chest pressure, tightness, pain that radiates to elbows,sob. Symptoms go away when I stop what I’m doing. I want to run, but symptoms start after I’m only run 50 to 100 ft. The cardiologist says I can run, and won’t drop dead. Should I stop the cardizem and indur? Just suck it up, and push myself? Have any oponions or suggestions. The dr. also said he would do a heart cath if I wanted it done, but didn’t think it would show anything. Please help.
Go for all the tests you can! How can exercise-induced chest pain be mentally induced? Doesn’t make sense. Mikki
How big was a cup in this study? If it was those tiny little Japanese teacups it may explain why I am not dead yet.
Shouldn’t those taking Warfarin/Coumadin be aware that there is Vitamin K in green tea and drink with caution? Drinking a lot of it in a day would affect your INR.
Well, I found a previous study done in Japan and they used those tiny little teacups–3.4oz and my bet is that this answers my own question since I am going to assume that studies in Japan would use the same measurement to be able to draw valid comparisons. In America that would amount to a tiny bit over two eight ounce cups of tea a day. That is a relief, given that the health nazis say I should also be drinking a quart of water a day,,,and then there are those seven thousand glasses of daily red wine for the resveratrol. I may be immortal, but I’ll also be drunk as the proverbial skunk.
Working Link to FDA’s Explanation of Denial of Request for Health Claim of Green Tea in CVD:
http://www.fda.gov/Food/LabelingNutrition/LabelClaims/QualifiedHealthClaims/ucm073207.htm
I’m suspicious of studies like this, because we really don’t know of all other cultural factors that may account for the cardiovascular benefit of green tea. For example, Japanese also eat very little red meat, more soy products, more fish, and are not obese compared to North Americans, which also likely means less diabetes and hypertension which are related to heart disease.
As a heart attack survivor and a 2008 graduate of the “WomenHeart Science & Leadership Symposium for Women With Heart Disease” at Mayo Clinic, I’ve become obsessed with learning as much as I can about women’s #1 killer. We can produce ‘research’ that claims just about anything we’d like it to claim. As Mark Twain said: “There are lies, damn lies – and then there are statistics!”
Researchers could probably show that married women with twins who eat pickles on Tuesdays while doing yoga have a lower risk of heart disease if those are the parameters set up in their study methodology.
As a heart attack survivor, I’ve also been dismayed by the snake oil salesmen out there who prey on vulnerable and desperate heart patients with the latest surefire cardiac cure – from acai berries to miracle vitamins and diets.
Just wait – we’ll soon see a rash of new green tea-based products promising to prevent heart disease.
What we do know for sure (until the next big fuss over the next big “cure”) is that what actually helps to prevent heart disease is regular physical activity, a heart-smart eating plan like the Mediterranean Diet, not smoking, and keeping blood pressure and chronic stress well managed.
There is no miracle drug or tea out there, folks.
Carolyn Thomas
http://www.myheartsisters.org
and
http://www.ethicalnag.org