SENDAI, Japan— Green tea consumption was inversely associated with psychological distress even after adjustment for possible confounding factors, according to a recent Japanese study (Am J Clin Nutr. 2009;90:1390-96).Researchers analyzed cross-sectional data for 42,093 Japanese individuals, 40 years of age, from the general population. Information on daily green tea consumption, psychological distress as assessed by the Kessler 6-item psychological distress scale and other lifestyle factors was collected by using a questionnaire.
Researchers classified 2,774 (6.6 percent) of the respondents as having psychological distress (Kessler 6-item psychological distress scale 13/24). There was an inverse association between green tea consumption and psychological distress in a model adjusted for age and sex. Although the relation was largely attenuated when possible confounding factors were adjusted for, a statistically significant inverse association remained. The odds ratio of developing psychological distress among respondents who consumed five cups of green tea/d was 0.80 (0.70, 0.91) compared with those who consumed less than one cup/d. These relations persisted when respondents were stratified by social support subgroups or by activities in communities.