How tea affects blood pressure

For many people, tea is not just a drink, but a complete way to relax and enjoy the moment even in the heat of business. But is this method suitable for everyone? How often can people who suffer from, for example, high or low blood pressure drink tea? Let’s figure it out.

Tea and blood pressure

Tea contains many biologically active substances that have completely different effects on the human body. It is also directly related to blood pressure, stable levels of which are extremely important for a healthy body. Interestingly, this drink can have completely different effects. That is, tea can both increase and decrease blood pressure, and even normalize it. The effect depends on the variety chosen for use, its strength, the required temperature, the amount drunk and even the frequency of use.

Tea that lowers blood pressure

Hypertension is a very common disease. It is characterized by pressure exceeding 120/80 mmHg. The causes can be completely different, from addictions to stress. More importantly, hypertension can lead to heart, kidney and other diseases. Therefore, it is important to control your blood pressure and take measures to reduce it.

And it’s very easy to do – just include green tea in your diet. It contains flavonoids – antioxidants that protect cells and improve vascular elasticity.

Also, a joint study published in the journal Cellular Physiology and Biochemistry by scientists from the University of California Irvine and the University of Copenhagen showed that tea contains catechin-type elements – epicatechin gallate and epigallocatechin-3-gallate, which activate the KCNQ5 protein in the walls of blood vessels, due to which the walls of blood vessels relax .

Thus, green tea helps reduce blood flow resistance and reduce stress on the heart. Green tea also has a beneficial effect on metabolism, reducing cholesterol and glucose levels in the blood – risk factors for hypertension. It has a diuretic effect, which helps remove excess fluid from the body and reduce the volume of circulating blood.

To achieve this effect of green tea, you need to drink it regularly – at least 3-4 cups a day. In this case, you should follow the brewing rules and, preferably, not use any additives. It is better to drink it 30-60 minutes before meals or 1-2 hours after meals.

Tea that increases blood pressure

Hypotension, blood pressure below normal values (100/60 mmHg), is often accompanied by weakness, fatigue, dizziness, nausea, fainting and other symptoms. Therefore, it is necessary to maintain your blood pressure within optimal limits.

You can safely increase your blood pressure with black tea. It contains caffeine, which stimulates the central nervous system and cardiovascular system. Caffeine increases vascular tone and enhances the contractility of the heart. Thus, black tea helps increase blood pressure by increasing cardiac output and blood flow resistance.

It also contains tannins – tannins that have a binding effect on the mucous membranes of the stomach and intestines. This helps reduce the production of gastric juice and increase stomach acidity. Thanks to this, irritation of the stomach receptors is reduced, and the reflex mechanism of lowering pressure is turned off.

To achieve this effect of black tea, you need to drink it regularly – at least 3-4 cups a day. In this case, you should follow the brewing rules and not use additives. It is better to drink it 15-30 minutes before meals or during meals.

To summarize, tea can have completely different effects on blood pressure. And for it to work for the benefit of the body, you need to drink it correctly, before doing so, preferably in consultation with your doctor.