Regular cups of tea can help speed recovery from stress, researchers from University College London (UCL) said yesterday. Men who drank black tea four times a day for six weeks were found to have lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol than a control group who drank a fake tea substitute, the researchers said in a study published in the journal Psychopharmacology. The tea drinkers also reported a greater feeling of relaxation after performing tasks designed to raise stress levels. Andrew Steptoe, of UCL's department of Epidemiology and Public Health, and one of the report's authors, said the findings could have important health implications. "Slow recovery following acute stress has been associated with a greater risk of chronic illness such as coronary heart disease. "Although it does not appear to reduce the actual levels of stress we experience, tea does seem to have a greater effect in bringing stress hormone levels back to normal."