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Black tea could lower risk of Parkinson's disease

• Posted:14 March 2008
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Drinking black tea regularly could reduce the risk of developing Parkinson's disease, concluded a study¹.

Commenting on the study, Dr Ann Walker, a member of The Tea Advisory Panel (TAP) notes: "This was a large, prospective study, involving 63,257 Chinese men and women, aged 45 to 74, living in Singapore. Those who drank more than 23 cups of black tea each month were 71per cent less likely to contract the disease. As a result, this latest research study is great news for all UK ‘black tea’ drinkers. In the past there seems to have been more of a focus by scientists reviewing the health benefits of green tea."

"In the UK, one in 500 people, i.e., around 120,000 individuals have Parkinson's. About 10,000 people in the UK are diagnosed each year²."

Three case-control studies in the US3, Hong Kong⁴ and Singapore⁵ and a cohort study of male health professionals in the US⁶ have reported an inverse association between tea drinking and Parkinson's disease risk, but differences in benefit between black tea and green tea were not investigated in these studies."

Dr Walker continues: "The authors of these previous four studies attributed the protective effect of tea, at least in part, to its caffeine content. In the current study, however, the beneficial effect of black tea did not appear to be influenced by caffeine intake, indicating that ingredients other than caffeine are responsible for black tea's protective effects.

"A key difference between black tea and green tea lies in the types and amounts of flavonoids. Green teas contain more of the simple flavonoids called catechins. But when black tea is made, the catechins undergo oxidation resulting in the generation of more complex varieties, called thearubigins and theaflavins."

In conclusion Dr Walker notes: "The underlying mechanisms for this protective effect of black tea on Parkinson's disease remains unclear until further research is done. But drinking even one cup of black tea per day could help to reduce the risk of Parkinson's disease."

-ends-

The Tea Advisory Panel:
The Tea Advisory Panel is supported by an unrestricted educational grant from the UK TEA COUNCIL, the trade association for the UK tea industry. The Panel has been created to provide media with impartial information regarding the health benefits of tea. Panel members include nutritionists; dieticians and doctors. For further information please call 0207 8089756.

Note to editors:
For further information please contact:
Nicky Smith on 0207 808 9750
Caroline Lynch on 0207 808 9752

References:
¹. Tan LC, Koh WP, Yuan JM, Wang R, Au WL, Tan JH, et al. Differential Effects of Black versus Green Tea on Risk of Parkinson's Disease in the Singapore Chinese Health Study. Am J Epidemiol 2007.
². Parkinson's Disease Society. www.parkinsons.org.uk.
³. Checkoway H, Powers K, Smith-Weller T, Franklin GM, Longstreth WT, Jr., Swanson PD. Parkinson's disease risks associated with cigarette smoking, alcohol consumption, and caffeine intake. Am J Epidemiol 2002;155(8):732-8.
⁴. Chan DK, Woo J, Ho SC, Pang CP, Law LK, Ng PW, et al. Genetic and environmental risk factors for Parkinson's disease in a Chinese population. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry 1998;65(5):781-4.
⁵. Tan EK, Tan C, Fook-Chong SM, Lum SY, Chai A, Chung H, et al. Dose-dependent protective effect of coffee, tea, and smoking in Parkinson's disease: a study in ethnic Chinese. J Neurol Sci 2003;216(1):163-7.
⁶. Ascherio A, Zhang SM, Hernan MA, Kawachi I, Colditz GA, Speizer FE, et al. Prospective study of caffeine consumption and risk of Parkinson's disease in men and women. Ann Neurol 2001;50(1):56-63.

 

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