Drinking tea keeps blood pressure down

People who drink green tea and oolong tea are less likely to develop high blood pressure than non-drinkers, according to a recent study. The risk of hypertension, which can lead to heart disease and stroke, declines when more green or oolong tea is consumed regularly.Researchers from the National Cheng Kung University in Tainan, Taiwan, found that some varieties of tea contain 4,000 chemical compounds, including flavonoids that help protect against heart attacks, strokes and kidney failure. None of the 1,500 participants suffered from hypertension at the start of the study, and those who drank between 120 and 599 millilitres (4 to 20 fluid ounces) of tea per day for at least a year prior had a 46 percent lower risk of developing high blood pressure than non-drinkers. Drinking 600 millilitres of tea or more a day lowered the risk of hypertension by 65 percent, the study indicated. Few of the participants drank black tea. About 40 percent of the study subjects were regular tea drinkers, and they were more likely to be younger men who smoked more, drank more alcohol and ate fewer vegetables.