Tea is one of the most consumed beverages globally. Previous studies have shown an association between tea consumption and lower mortality risk in populations where Green Tea is the most commonly consumed type. However, the association between Tea drinking and mortality risk in populations primarily consuming Black Tea remains uncertain.

On August 30, 2025, a research team led by Maki Inoue-Choi from the National Cancer Institute at the U.S. National Institutes of Health published a study titled “Tea Consumption and All-Cause and Cause-Specific Mortality in the UK Biobank” in the Annals of Internal Medicine (IF=52). This prospective study, analyzing data from nearly 500,000 individuals in the UK Biobank, found that drinking black tea may be associated with a reduced risk of death. Compared to those who did not drink tea, individuals drinking two or more cups daily had a 9% to 13% lower mortality risk. Additionally, mortality rates for cardiovascular disease, ischemic heart disease, and stroke decreased with increasing tea intake.

Tea is one of the most frequently consumed beverages in the UK and worldwide, but it remains unclear whether tea intake is related to overall mortality or mortality from common causes. As an extract from the leaves of the tea plant, tea contains high concentrations of flavonoids and other antioxidants with beneficial properties. Since tea also contains caffeine, concerns have been raised about high caffeine intake, particularly in individuals genetically predisposed to impaired caffeine metabolism. The extraction of flavonoids and other bioactive compounds from tea leaves varies depending on water temperature and steeping time, and the use of additives such as milk can alter the concentration of bioactive compounds; these differences may affect the relationship between tea consumption and mortality. However, no studies have evaluated whether the association between tea consumption and mortality differs due to genetic variations in caffeine metabolism, tea temperature, or the use of additives. Researchers from the National Institutes of Health conducted a prospective study using data from the UK Biobank, involving 498,043 men and women who completed baseline questionnaires between 2006 and 2010. Of these, 85% reported regularly drinking tea, with 89% reporting they drank black tea. Compared to non-tea drinkers, participants who drank two or more cups of tea daily had a 9% to 13% lower mortality risk.

Dose-response relationship between tea consumption and all-cause mortality (Image source: Annals of Internal Medicine)

During a median follow-up period of 11.2 years, the hazard ratios (95% CI) for participants drinking 1 or fewer, 2 to 3, 4 to 5, 6 to 7, 8 to 9, and 10 or more cups of tea daily compared to non-drinkers were 0.95 (95% CI, 0.91 to 1.00), 0.87 (CI, 0.84 to 0.91), 0.88 (CI, 0.84 to 0.91), 0.88 (CI, 0.84 to 0.92), 0.91 (CI, 0.86 to 0.97), and 0.89 (CI, 0.84 to 0.95), respectively. There was a negative correlation with mortality from all cardiovascular diseases, ischemic heart disease, and stroke. Results were similar regardless of whether participants also drank coffee or had genetic variations affecting caffeine metabolism.

Cumulative mortality curves adjusted for tea intake (Image source: Annals of Internal Medicine)

In 24-hour dietary recall questionnaires completed by 210,058 participants, 74% and 13% of tea drinkers reported adding milk and sugar, respectively. The researchers found a dose-response negative correlation between tea drinking and all-cause mortality among those who added milk to their tea, but not among those who did not add milk. Higher tea consumption was associated with lower mortality risk, regardless of whether sugar was added. There was little difference in mortality risk across different tea-drinking temperatures. Similar but slightly stronger associations were observed when excluding coffee and other non-tea hot beverage drinkers.

In summary, higher tea intake was associated with lower mortality risk among those drinking two or more cups daily, regardless of genetic variations in caffeine metabolism. These findings suggest that even higher levels of tea consumption can be part of a healthy diet.

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