Consumption of Tea Products Lowers
Cholesterol Levels
Daily use of capsules containing flavonoids
found in green and black tea appears to produce
a significant drop in total and LDL cholesterol
levels, according to a report published in the
June 23rd issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.
Flavonoid use has been shown to lower cholesterol
levels in animal studies. There is also evidence
from epidemiologic studies that tea consumption
can lower such levels and protect against myocardial
infarction. Still, the current study is the first
human trial to show a cholesterol-lowering effect
for tea products.
Lead author Dr. David J. Maron, from Vanderbilt
University in Nashville, Tennessee, said that
he expected, if anything, a very slight cholesterol-lowering
effect. But what we saw was a 16% reduction in
LDL cholesterol.
The findings are based on a study of 240 subjects
with mild to moderate hypercholesterolemia who
were randomized to receive a daily capsule containing
theaflavins and catechins or placebo for 12 weeks.
All of the subjects were on a low-fat diet.
Treatment with the tea extracts was tied to a
11.3% and 16.4% drop in total and LDL cholesterol
levels, respectively, compared with baseline values
(p = 0.01 for both). Tea extract use was also
associated with a nonsignificant rise in HDL cholesterol
levels and triglyceride levels. No significant
change in any of these levels was noted in the
placebo group.
The incidence of adverse events was comparable
in each group and no serious adverse events occurred
in either group, the researchers point out.
"Based on these results, we recommend larger
and longer-term randomized controlled trials to
confirm our findings in a more diverse population
and to study the effect of this extract on other
risk factors for atherosclerosis," the authors
conclude.
Arch Intern Med 2003;163:1448-1453
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