The first cup of tea in the morning can often be a lifesaver.
Research now shows that this ritual is good for your health, reducing the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 28 percent.
Experts believe that tea has powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects that improve insulin sensitivity.
The effects were especially strong with dark tea, an ancient tea that involves microbial fermentation in the production process.
The first cup of tea in the morning can often be a lifesaver. Research now shows that this ritual is good for your health – reducing the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 28 percent
Researchers from the University of Adelaide in Australia and Southeast University in China looked at the daily tea drinking habits of 1,923 adults from China.
Participants included non-habitual tea drinkers as well as people with a history of drinking only one type of tea.
They were asked about the frequency with which they drank tea – ranging from never, occasionally to often and every day, and about the type of tea, such as green, black, dark or other tea.
These were then analyzed against test results of the amount of sugar in the urine, insulin resistance and glycemic status, defined as a history of type 2 diabetes, current use of antidiabetic drugs or an abnormal 75 g oral glucose tolerance test.
Drinking tea every day was associated with an increase in urinary glucose excretion and a reduction in insulin resistance, indicating a lower risk of pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes.
People with diabetes often suffer from renal reabsorption of glucose, meaning their kidneys retrieve more glucose, preventing it from being excreted through the urine and contributing to higher blood sugar levels.
Presenting their results at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) in Hamburg, Germany, researchers found that those who enjoy a cup of tea had a 15 percent lower risk of prediabetes and a 28 percent lower risk of type 2 diabetes. , compared to never tea drinkers.
Professor Tongzhi Wu from the University of Adelaide, and lead author, said: ‘Our findings indicate the protective effects of habitual tea drinking on blood sugar levels via increased urinary glucose excretion, improved insulin resistance and thus better blood sugar control.
‘These benefits were most pronounced among daily dark tea drinkers.’
Dark tea drinkers had a 53 percent lower risk of prediabetes and a 47 percent lower risk of type 2 diabetes, even after taking into account established risk factors such as body mass index (BMI), mean arterial blood pressure, fasting plasma glucose, cholesterol, alcohol consumption, smoking status, family history of diabetes, and regular exercise.
Researchers emphasized that the findings were observational and therefore could not prove a causal link, but that further studies hoped to do so.
Professor Zilin Sun from Southeast University said: ‘Our findings suggest that drinking dark tea daily has the potential to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes and its progression through better blood sugar control.
‘When you look at all the different biomarkers associated with regularly drinking dark tea, this could be a simple step that people can easily take to improve their diet and health.’