Men who drink several cups of tea a day for decades have a higher risk of prostate cancer, researchers in Scotland say. 

Dr. Kashif Shafique of the Institute of Health & Wellbeing at the University of Glasgow and colleagues found those who drank more than seven cups of tea per day for years had a 50 percent higher risk of developing prostate cancer compared with non-tea drinkers or those drinking less than four cups per day.

“Most previous research has shown either no relationship with prostate cancer for black tea or some preventive effect of green tea,” Shafique, the study leader, said in a statement. 

“We don‘t know whether tea itself is a risk factor or if tea drinkers are generally healthier and live to an older age when prostate cancer is more common anyway.”

Shafique and colleagues used data from a study began in Scotland in 1970 that gathered data from more than 6,016 male volunteers -- ages 21-75 years -- who were asked to complete a questionnaire about their usual consumption of tea, coffee, alcohol, smoking habits and general health. 

About one-quarter of the men were heavy tea drinkers and of these, 6.4 percent developed prostate cancer during a follow-up of up to 37 years. 

“We found that heavy tea drinkers were more likely not to be overweight, be non-alcohol-drinkers and have healthy cholesterol levels,” Shafique said. 

The findings were published in the journal Nutrition and Cancer.

(UPI)


<관련 한글 기사>

홍차, 녹차와 ’전립선암’의 상관관계?

습관처럼 홍차를 하루에 수 잔씩 마시는 남성은 전립선암에 걸릴 확률이 더 높다는 연구 결과가 나왔다.

스코트랜드의 카쉬프 샤피크 박사와 연구팀에 따르면 홍사를 몇 년동안 하루에 7잔 이상 마시던 남성들은 4잔 이하로 마시던 남성들에 비해 전립선 암에 걸릴 확률이 50퍼센트나 더 높은 것으로 나타났다.

그러나 녹차의 경우 약간의 예방효과가 있다고 박사는 덧붙였다. 

샤피크 박사와 연구팀은 스코트랜드에서 1970년에 연구를 시작했고 21세-75세 사이의 6,016명의 남성 자원자들로부터 데이터를 추출했다.

하지만 홍차를 많이 마시는 사람들은 비만에 걸릴 확률이 낮았고, 술을 덜 마시는 경향이 있었으며 콜레스테롤 수치도 건강한 편으로 나타났다.

(코리아헤럴드)