Drinking tea daily may be more than a pleasant social ritual - it might provide health benefits for older people with diabetes.
In a study of Taiwan residents, those who drank oolong tea daily for 30 days showed a significant drop in their blood sugar levels, said Dr. Shafer, medical director of UTHCT’s Center for Diabetes Care. He read about the study’s results in a 2003 issue of a major U.S. diabetes journal and was intrigued.

“Twenty participants were enrolled in the study. They drank one-and-a-half quarts of oolong tea a day. The tea lowered their blood sugar as much as any medication did,” he said. However, none were obese, which could affect the study’s outcome. Obesity is one risk factor for diabetes.

“Chemicals called polyphenols found in oolong tea, but not in black or green tea, apparently act to lower blood sugar levels, though how these chemicals work is not understood,” Dr. Shafer said.

“Oolong tea seems to have more of these chemicals that affect blood sugar. We don’t know if they increase the insulin levels or make the cells more sensitive to insulin,” Dr. Shafer said.