Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Associations of Long-Term Tea Consumption with Depressive and Anxiety Symptoms in Community-Living Elderly: Findings from the Diet and Healthy Aging Study

  • Original Research
  • Published:
The Journal of Prevention of Alzheimer's Disease Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Objective

To examine the association between long-term tea consumption and depressive and anxiety symptoms in community-living elderly.

Design

Community based cross-sectional study.

Setting

The Diet and Healthy Aging Study (DaHA), a prospective cohort study in Singapore.

Participants

614 elderly aged 60 years and above, who were free of dementia and cognitive impairment.

Measurements

Information on tea consumption was obtained through interviewer-administered questionnaire. Long-term tea drinking was defined as regular consumption for at least 15 years. Depressive and anxiety symptoms were measured using the 15-item Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS-15) and the 20-item Geriatric Anxiety Inventory (GAI), respectively. A generalized structural equation model (gSEM) was applied to ascertain the association between long-term tea consumption and depressive and anxiety symptoms.

Results

About 59% of the subjects had consumed tea for over 15 years. Long term tea consumption was significantly associated with a reduced odds of having depressive and anxiety symptoms, after adjusting for demographics (i.e., age, gender, education and ethnicity), comorbid conditions (i.e., heart disease, diabetes, stroke, hypertension and hyperlipidaemia) and long-term coffee consumption.

Conclusion

There was evidence suggesting that longterm tea consumption was associated with reduced depressive and anxiety symptoms among community-living elderly. This suggests that it is worthwhile to further investigate the role of tea’s bioactive compounds in promoting mental health in aging.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Song J, Xu H, Liu F, Feng L. Tea and Cognitive Health in Late Life: Current Evidence and Future Directions. J Nutr Health Ageing 2012;16:31–34.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Peters U, Poole C, Arab L. Does Tea Affect Cardiovascular Disease? A Meta-Analysis. Am J Epidemiol 2001;154:495–503.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Liu G, Mi XN, Zheng XX, Xu YL, Lu J, Huang XH. Effects of tea intake on blood pressure: a meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. Brit J Nutr 2014;112:1043–1054.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Arab L, Liu W, Elashoff D. Green and Black Tea Consumption and Risk of Stroke: A Meta-Analysis. Stroke 2009;40:1786–1792.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Ruan R, Feng L, Li J, Ng TP, Zeng Y. Tea consumption and mortality in the oldest-old Chinese. J Am Geriatr Soc 2013;61:1937–1942.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Ng TP, Aung KC, Feng L, Feng L, Nyunt MS, Yap KB. Tea consumption and physical function in older adults: a cross-sectional study. J Nutr Health Ageing 2014;18:161–166.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Feng L, Gwee X, Kua EH, Ng TP. Cognitive function and tea consumption in community dwelling older Chinese in Singapore. J Nutr Health Ageing 2010;14:433–438.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Feng L, Chong MS, Lim WS, Gao Q, Nyunt MS, Lee TS, Collinson SL, Tsoi T, Kua EH, Ng TP. Tea Consumption Reduces the Incidence of Neurocognitive Disorders: Findings from the Singapore Longitudinal Aging Study. J Nutr Health Ageing 2016;20:1002–1009.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Feng L, Yan Z, Sun B, Cai C, Jiang H, Kua EH, Ng TP, Qiu C. Tea consumption and depressive symptoms in older people in rural China. J Am Geriatr Soc 2013;61:1943–1947.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Feng L, Li J, Kua EH, Lee TS, Yap KB, John Rush A, Ng TP. Association between tea consumption and depressive symptoms in older Chinese adults. J Am Geriatr Soc 2012;60:2358–2360.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Inoue M, Tajima K, Hirose K, Hamajima N, Takezaki T, Kuroishi T, Tominaga S. Tea and coffee consumption and the risk of digestive tract cancers: data from a comparative case-referent study in Japan. Cancer Cause Control 1998;9:209–216.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Leung LK, Su Y, Chen R, Zhang Z, Huang Y, Chen ZY. Theaflavins in black tea and catechins in green tea are equally effective antioxidants. J Nutr 2001;131:2248–2251.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Nobre AC, Rao A, Owen GN. L-theanine, a natural constituent in tea, and its effect on mental state. Asian Pac J Clin Nutr 2008;17 Suppl 1:167–168.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Smith A. Effects of caffeine on human behavior. Food Chem Toxicol 2002;40:1243–1255.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Wolitzky-Taylor KB, Castriotta N, Lenze EJ, Stanley MA, Craske MG. Anxiety disorders in older adults: a comprehensive review. Depress Anxiety 2010;27:190–211.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Sheikh JI, Yesavage JA. Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS): recent evidence and development of a shorter version. In clinical gerontology: a guide to assessment and intervention, 1986. The Haworth Press, New York, pp.165–173

    Google Scholar 

  17. Broekman BF, Nyunt SZ, Niti M, Jin AZ, Ko SM, Kumar R, Fones CS, Ng TP. Differential item functioning of the Geriatric Depression Scale in an Asian population. J Affect Disorders 2008;108:285–290.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Pachana NA, Byrne GJ, Siddle H, Koloski N, Harley E, Arnold E. Development and validation of the Geriatric Anxiety Inventory. Int Psychogeriatr 2007;19:103–111.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Skrondal A, Rabe-Hesketh S. Generalized latent variable modeling: multilevel, longitudinal, and structural equation models. 2001. Chapman & Hall/CRC, Boca Raton

    Google Scholar 

  20. Gupta AK, Nadarajah S. Handbook of beta distribution and its applications. 2004. Marcel Dekker, New York

    Book  Google Scholar 

  21. Smithson M, Verkuilen J. A better lemon squeezer? Maximum-likelihood regression with beta-distributed dependent variables. Psychol Methods 2006;11:54–71.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Fredholm BB, Bättig K, Holmén J, Nehlg A, Zvartau EE. Actions of caffeine in the brain with special reference to factors that contribute to its widespread use. Pharmacol Rev 1999;51:83–133.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Eskelinen MH, Ngandu T, Tuomilehto J, Soininen H, Kivipelto M. Midlife coffee and tea drinking and the risk of late-life dementia: a population-based CAIDE study. J Alzheimers Dis 2009;16:85–91.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Dall’Igna OP, Fett P, Gomes MW, Souza DO, Cunha RA, Lara DR. Caffeine and Adenosine A2β receptor antagonists prevent beta-amyloid (25-35)-induced cognitive deficits in mice. Exp Neurol 2007;203:241–245.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Niu K, Hozawa A, Kuriyama S, Ebihara S, Guo H, Nakaya N, Ohmori-Matsuda K, Takahashi H, Masamune Y, Asada M, Sasaki S, Arai H, Awata S, Nagatomi R, Tsuji I. Green tea consumption is associated with depressive symptoms in the elderly. Am J Clin Nutr 2009;90:1615–1622.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Zeng Y, Chan HS, Ni T, Ruan RP, Feng L, Nie C, Cheng LG, Li Y, Tao W, Gu J, Land KC, Yashin A, Tan QH, Yang Z, Bolund L, Yang HM, Hauser E, Willcox CD, Willcox BJ, Tian XL, Vaupel JW. GxE interactions between FOXO genotypes and tea drinking significantly affect cognitive disability at advanced ages in China. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2015;70(4):426–33.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

    S.-P. Chan

  2. Department of Decision Sciences, NUS School of Business, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

    S.-P. Chan

  3. Cardiovascular Research Institute, National University Heart Centre Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

    S.-P. Chan

  4. School of Engineering & Mathematical Sciences, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia

    S.-P. Chan

  5. Department of Psychological Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

    P. Z. Yong, Y. Sun, R. Mahendran, J. C. M. Wong, T.-P. Ng, E.-H. Kua & Lei Feng

  6. Department of Psychological Medicine, National University Hospital, Singapore, Singapore

    R. Mahendran, J. C. M. Wong & E.-H. Kua

  7. Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, Singapore

    R. Mahendran

  8. Aging Research Center, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet-Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden

    C. Qiu

  9. Department of Psychological Medicine, National University Health System, Tower Block Level 9, 1E Kent Ridge Road, Singapore, 119228, Republic of Singapore

    Lei Feng

Authors
  1. S.-P. Chan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. P. Z. Yong
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Y. Sun
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. R. Mahendran
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. J. C. M. Wong
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. C. Qiu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. T.-P. Ng
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. E.-H. Kua
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Lei Feng
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Lei Feng.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Chan, SP., Yong, P.Z., Sun, Y. et al. Associations of Long-Term Tea Consumption with Depressive and Anxiety Symptoms in Community-Living Elderly: Findings from the Diet and Healthy Aging Study. J Prev Alzheimers Dis 5, 21–25 (2018). https://doi.org/10.14283/jpad.2017.20

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.14283/jpad.2017.20

Key words

Search

Navigation