New study proves that drinking tea reduces blood pressure, helps fight stress

THE WONDER DRUG CALLED TEA

New study proves that drinking tea reduces blood pressure, helps fight stress

Despite its caffeine content, a new study supports prior evidence that drinking tea not only reduces blood pressure, but also helps calm and combat anxiety.
Japanese researchers tested two compounds found in tea — L-theanine, the amino acid contained in tea leaves and caffeine — and their effect on the human body when it is under stress.
They enlisted 14 subjects who underwent three separate trials, in which they consumed L-theanine and a placebo, caffeine and a placebo, or a placebo only.

The subjects were then asked to complete mental activities under varying degrees of stress, such as solving arithmetic puzzles with their non-dominant hand submerged in a bucket of ice water.
A team from the University of Shizuoka found that L-theanine significantly inhibited the blood pressure (BP) increase in a high-response group, which consisted of subjects whose BP rose more than average while performing a mental task after taking a placebo.
In a separate study published earlier this year in the Archives of Internal Medicine, Australian researchers found that people who drank three cups of tea a day lowered their blood pressure levels by an average of two to three points.
Meanwhile, flavonoids in tea are thought to reduce body weight and abdominal fat. A Dutch population study also found that high tea consumption is associated with a reduced risk of death from heart disease.