Study Cites Beneficial Coffee Components
Coffee drinkers, rejoice. Moderate consumption—two or three cups of coffee a day—is associated with increased longevity and lower risk of cardiovascular disease when compared with abstinence from coffee drinking. These are some of the findings of a recently published study by Kistler et al. in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology.
The study’s findings apply to the most common types of coffee consumed today. “In this large, observational study, ground, instant and decaffeinated coffee were associated with equivalent reductions in the incidence of cardiovascular disease and death from cardiovascular disease or any cause," said study author Professor Peter Kistler of the Baker Heart and Diabetes Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia, according to a Science Daily news brief.
"The results suggest that mild to moderate intake of ground, instant and decaffeinated coffee should be considered part of a healthy lifestyle," Kistler added.
Using data from UK Biobank, the researchers examined links between types of coffee and arrhythmias, cardiovascular disease, and death for people between 40 and 69 years of age. The median age of participants was 58 years and 55.3% were women. Cardiovascular disease consisted of coronary heart disease, congestive heart failure, and ischemic stroke.
Coffee drinkers were compared to non-drinkers after adjusting for “age, sex, ethnicity, obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, obstructive sleep apnea, smoking status, and tea and alcohol consumption,” according to the Science Daily report.
Reduction in death from any cause was associated with all types of coffee consumed. Drinking between two and three cups per day showed the greatest reduction. Compared to non-drinking of coffee, it was linked to a “14%, 27% and 11% lower likelihood of death for decaffeinated, ground, and instant preparations, respectively,” said Science Daily.
When it comes to promoting health, coffee has a lot going for it, according to Prof. Kistler, as quoted in the Science Daily report. “Caffeine is the most well-known constituent in coffee, but the beverage contains more than 100 biologically active components. It is likely that the non-caffeinated compounds were responsible for the positive relationships observed between coffee drinking, cardiovascular disease and survival. Our findings indicate that drinking modest amounts of coffee of all types should not be discouraged but can be enjoyed as a heart healthy behavior.”
Sources: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/09/220926200838.htm https://academic.oup.com/eurjpc/advance-article/doi/10.1093/eurjpc/zwac189/6704995