Associations between Green Tea Consumption and Coffee Consumption and the Prevalence of Coronary Artery Disease.

ABSTRACT

Green tea and coffee contain various bioactive compounds (e.g., polyphenols), and their consumption has been proposed to decrease the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Here, we investigated the associations between the consumption of green tea and that of coffee and the prevalence of coronary artery disease (CAD) in Japanese patients. The study group was 612 patients who underwent coronary angiography at Tokyo Medical Center between July 2008 and February 2017. CAD was confirmed in 388 of the patients one-vessel disease (1-VD, n=166); two-vessel disease (2-VD, n=112); three-vessel disease (3-VD, n=110). Myocardial infarction (MI) was found in 138 patients. After adjustment for well-known atherosclerotic risk factors and other dietary habits, greater green tea consumption was significantly inversely associated with CAD prevalence (p for trend=0.044), and the patients who drank >3 cups/d had a lower prevalence of CAD compared to those who drank <1 cup/d (odds ratio [OR] 0.54, 95% CI 0.30-0.98). Greater green tea consumption (>3 cups/d) was also associated with a decreased prevalence of 3-VD (OR 0.49, 95% CI 0.24-0.98, p-trend=0.047) and MI (OR 0.51, 95% CI 0.27-0.97, p-trend=0.037). In contrast, coffee consumption was not associated with CAD or MI. In subgroup analyses, the inverse association between green tea consumption and CAD or MI was found in the high intake groups of vegetables or fruits but not in the low intake groups of vegetables or fruits. These results suggest a beneficial effect of green tea consumption, especially with a diet rich in vegetables and fruits, against coronary atherosclerosis in Japanese.