Heart Beat

Tea with a twist

If you drink tea only because you think it will protect you from heart disease, take it without milk. German researchers found that drinking black tea improved artery flexibility compared with drinking water, but they didn't see any improvement with tea plus milk. The researchers think that milk proteins inactivate catechins, antioxidants thought to account for tea's cardiovascular benefits.

The connection between tea and heart disease is still so slim, though, that it's probably best to think of tea as a beverage "" made however you like it "" not as a health drink.