Tea Consumption Is Inversely Associated With Carotid Plaques in Women

• Published in: Arteriosclerosis, thrombosis, and vascular biology Vol. 28; no. 2; pp. 353 - 359
• Main Authors: Debette, Stéphanie, Courbon, Dominique, Leone, Nathalie, Gariépy, Jérôme, Tzourio, Christophe, Dartigues, Jean-François, Barberger-Gateau, Pascale, Ritchie, Karen, Alpérovitch, Annick, Amouyel, Philippe, Ducimetière, Pierre, Zureik, Mahmoud
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Philadelphia, PA American Heart Association, Inc 01.02.2008; Hagerstown, MD Lippincott
• Subjects: Aged; Atherosclerosis (general aspects, experimental research); Biological and medical sciences; Blood and lymphatic vessels; Cardiology. Vascular system; Carotid Artery Diseases - diagnostic imaging; Carotid Artery Diseases - epidemiology; Carotid Artery, Common - diagnostic imaging; Carotid Artery, Common - drug effects; Carotid Artery, Common - pathology; Diseases of the peripheral vessels. Diseases of the vena cava. Miscellaneous; Feeding Behavior; Female; France - epidemiology; Humans; Interviews as Topic; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Neurosurgery; Nutrition Surveys; Prospective Studies; Sex Factors; Skull, brain, vascular surgery; Surgery (general aspects). Transplantations, organ and tissue grafts. Graft diseases; Tea; Tunica Intima - diagnostic imaging; Tunica Intima - drug effects; Tunica Intima - pathology; Tunica Media - diagnostic imaging; Tunica Media - drug effects; Tunica Media - pathology; Ultrasonography; Vascular disease; Human; Tea; intima-media thickness; plaque; Blood vessel; Carotid; Atherosclerosis; Cardiovascular disease; carotid arteries; Circulatory system; Artery
• ISSN: 1079-5642; 1524-4636
• DOI: 10.1161/ATVBAHA.107.151928

OBJECTIVE—The aim of this study was to assess the relationship of tea consumption with common carotid artery intima-media thickness (CCA-IMT) and carotid plaques. METHODS AND RESULTS—The study was performed on 6597 subjects aged ≥65 years, recruited in the French population for the Three-City Study. Atherosclerotic plaques in the extracranial carotid arteries and CCA-IMT were measured using a standardized protocol. Results were tested for replication in another, younger, French population sample (EVA-Study, 1123 subjects). In the Three-City Study, increasing daily tea consumption was associated with a lower prevalence of carotid plaques in women44.0%, 42.5%, and 33.7% in women drinking no tea, 1 to 2 cups/d, and ≥3 cups/d (P=0.0001). This association was independent of age, center, major vascular risk factors, educational level, and dietary habits (adjOR=0.68[95%CI:0.54 to 0.86] for women drinking ≥3 cups/d compared with none). There was no association of tea consumption with carotid plaques in men, or CCA-IMT in both genders. In the EVA-Study, carotid plaque frequency was 18.8%, 18.5%, and 8.9% in women drinking no tea, 1 to 2 cups/d, and ≥3 cups/d (P=0.08). CONCLUSION—In a large sample of elderly community subjects we showed for the first time that carotid plaques were less frequent with increasing tea consumption in women.