Can Drinking Coffee Or Tea Lower Stroke Risk?

Coffee and tea are 2 of the popular beverages around the world. But coffee and most kinds of tea contains caffeine, of which its health effects have remained controversial.

Some studies reported that caffeine is bad for the health. For instance, studies indicated that consuming more than 500 to 600 mg of caffeine a day may lead to insomnia, nervousness, restlessness, irritability, an upset stomach, a fast heartbeat and even muscle tremors. Yet there are favorable health reports on caffeine. A study showed that people who drank 3 to 5 cups of coffee a day were less likely to have a buildup of calcium in the vessels that bring blood to the heart muscle. That could mean a lower chance of heart disease. Research also indicated that coffee and green tea might help prevent breast and prostate cancers, while all kinds of tea may protect one against the kinds of cancer that affect the ovaries and stomach.

On March 14, 2013, a paper published in ‘American Heart Association's journal Stroke’ reported that a cup of coffee or 4 cups of green tea a day may reduce the risk of stroke by 20 percent.

Japanese researchers looked at the drinking habits of 82,369 Japanese adults aged between 45 and 74 over a 13-year period. These participants were free from cardiovascular disease or cancer in 1995 and 1998. Over the course of study, they kept track of hospital records, death certificates and data about deaths from heart disease and stroke. 

During an average of 13 years of follow-up, they found that those who had at least 1 cup of coffee a day lowered their risk for stroke about 20 percent. And, compared to those who rarely drank green tea, people who drank 2 to 3 cups a day had a 14 percent lower risk of stroke and people who drank at least 4 cups lowered their risk by 20 percent. 

Risk for a type of stroke called a hemorrhagic stroke was cut by 32 percent among those who drank a cup of coffee or 2 cups of green tea daily. Hemorrhagic stroke, which accounts for about 13 percent of stroke, is a condition in which a blood vessel in the brain bursts and blood floods part of the brain. 

The researchers claimed that both drinks helped protect from the risk of heart attacks. Their findings also suggested regularly drinking both coffee and green tea could provide the greatest benefit possibly due to an interaction effect for each other.

All the results were arrived after taking into account of factors like age, sex, smoking, alcohol, weight, diet and exercise. In the study, green tea drinkers were more likely to exercise than non-drinkers. 

While it is unclear how green tea affects stroke risk, researchers suspected that green tea contains catechins that may provide some protection to blood vessels. Several chemicals in coffee are believed to offer a boost to health, including caffeine and chlorogenic acid, which researchers suggest could help cut stroke risks by lowering the chances of developing Type-2 diabetes.