Soya – the healthy choice

New research now shows that adding cow’s milk to your daily cuppa destroys its ability to protect against heart disease. The research, published in the European Heart Journal found that tea significantly improves the ability of arteries to relax and expand to keep blood pressure healthy. However, when cow’s milk is added, milk proteins called caseins block this effect. Lead researcher Professor Verena Stangl suggests that this might explain the lack of beneficial effects of tea on the risk of heart disease in the UK where as many as 98 per cent of tea-drinkers add cow’s milk to their tea. Although the German research group did not investigate the effects of soya milk, they have told Viva!Health that they are planning to do so and Professor Stangl predicts “…it is likely that soya milk is a healthier option”.

The worldwide consumption of tea is second only to water; so the beneficial effects of tea represent an extremely important public health issue. These findings may also have implications in cancer as some research suggests that tea may possess tumour-fighting properties.

_{Lorenz et al., 2007. Addition of milk prevents vascular protective effects of tea. European Heart Journal. 28 (2) 219-223.}