Drinking Back Keep your Heart Health

Results of the newest study showed that five servings of black tea per day reduced LDL ("bad") cholesterol by 11.1 percent and total cholesterol (TC) by 6.5 percent in mildly hypercholesterolemic adult study participants. The study is the first of its kind to examine the effect of black tea on blood lipids while all other components of the diet were kept constant. After three weeks, the researchers examined participants' lipid profiles, including total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, as well as two emerging biomarkers for cardiovascular health which some scientists argue could provide more in-depth measures of individual cardiovascular disease risk than LDL and TC alone: Apolipoprotein B (ApoB) and Lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)].
Levels of ApoB decreased by 5 percent and levels of Lp(a) fell by 16.4 percent. ApoB concentrations reflect the number of LDL "particles" in the arteries, providing a more specific measure of LDL cholesterol levels. Lp(a) are lipoprotein particles that contain a particular protein which could potentially interfere with the body's ability to dissolve blood clots. Some scientists believe that a reduction in Lp(a) levels suggests a benefit to cardiovascular health. This reduction in Lp(a) could be important because most standard cholesterol treatments have little effect on this lipoprotein. This is an emerging biomarker which may become an important risk factor not reflected in LDL or TC measures, because of the role blood clots play in the risk of stroke and myocardial infarction