Could drinking tea every day reduce type 2 diabetes risk?

Long story short: the dark teas seem to lower blood sugar levels. My brother ordered some for himself and had some sent to me. I've already started drinking it. It might be an easy way to make a dent in blood sugar levels. WTH, I drink tea all day long anyway, so why not switch to a dark tea and maybe get this benefit?

The dark teas that were effective are:

Qingzhuan brick tea
Kangzhuan brick tea
Liubao tea
Ripen Pu-erh tea

This is the first time I've used tea that came in a "brick." All you do is scrape some leaves off the cake and brew them in hot water.

Following are pics of what the Ripen Pu-erh tea looks like:


It comes in a round cake about six" in diameter. It is wrapped in paper and put in a box (right side of photo).


This is the cake. Scrape off the amount of tea leaves needed for a cup or pot of tea. I think this is going to last a long time.


I brew small cups like this throughout the day and drink it all day long. The instructions tell you that you can get up to six steeps from a teaspoon or two of tea, but I only have gotten four so far.

Link to article in Medical News Today.

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The researchers looked for any association between the frequency and type of tea consumption and the excretion of glucose in the urine, which they assessed using the morning spot urine glucose-to-creatine ratio (UGCR)Trusted Source. They also measured insulin resistance and recorded glycaemic status (a history of type 2 diabetes, current use of antidiabetic medications, or an abnormal 75g oral glucose tolerance test).

They found that people who drank tea every day excreted more glucose in their urine and had reduced insulin resistance. They also had a 15% lower risk for prediabetes, and a 28% reduced risk for type 2 diabetes compared with those who never drank tea.

Greater benefit from dark tea: The effects were greater in people who drank dark tea, a type of tea that uniquely has a fermentation process involving microorganisms.

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For some time, tea has been thought beneficial to health, and scientific research is starting to back up those claimsTrusted Source. Polyphenols, which are found in black and green tea, have been shown to have anti-aging properties, cardiovascular benefits, and may even help protect against some cancers.

This latest study suggests that lowering diabetes risk could be added to that list.

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