Tea consumption and mortality after acute myocardial infarction.

BACKGROUND Some studies have suggested that tea consumption may be associated with lower mortality among individuals with cardiovascular disease, but the effects of tea consumption on mortality after acute myocardial infarction are unknown. METHODS AND RESULTS As part of the Determinants of Myocardial Infarction Onset Study, we performed a prospective cohort study of 1900 patients hospitalized with a confirmed acute myocardial infarction between 1989 and 1994, with a median follow-up of 3.8 years. Trained interviewers assessed self-reported usual weekly caffeinated tea consumption during the year before infarction with a standardized questionnaire. We compared long-term mortality according to tea consumption using Cox proportional hazards regression. Of the 1900 patients, 1019 consumed no tea (nondrinkers), 615 consumed <14 cups per week (moderate tea drinkers), and 266 consumed 14 or more cups per week (heavy tea drinkers). Compared with nondrinkers, age- and sex-adjusted mortality was lower among moderate tea drinkers (hazard ratio, 0.69; 95% CI, 0.53 to 0.89) and heavy tea drinkers (hazard ratio, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.42 to 0.86). Additional adjustment for clinical and sociodemographic characteristics did not appreciably alter this association (hazard ratio, 0.72; 95% CI, 0.55 to 0.94 for moderate tea drinkers; hazard ratio, 0.56; 95% CI, 0.37 to 0.84 for heavy tea drinkers). The association of tea and mortality was similar for total and cardiovascular mortality. CONCLUSIONS Self-reported tea consumption in the year before acute myocardial infarction is associated with lower mortality after infarction.