Coffee intake is associated with a reduction in mortality from heart failure and stroke

posted on 22/01/2023 06:00

Drink coffee and live longer. According to a study published in the journal of the European Society of Cardiology. The cardiovascular health benefits found by the authors aren’t limited to caffeine: The decaffeinated version has also been associated with a reduced incidence and death from conditions such as congestive heart failure and stroke. According to the study, which includes data from 449,563 people followed up for 12.5 years, moderate consumption of the ground or instant drink can be an ally for a healthy lifestyle.

The study, from the Baker Institute for Research on Diabetes and Heart in Melbourne, Australia, is observational, meaning it does not indicate a cause and effect relationship. However, the authors emphasize that the association they found is strong and say that statistical adjustments ensured the beverage’s specific role in reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and early all-cause mortality. “The results suggest that light to moderate intake of ground, instant, and decaffeinated coffee should be considered part of a healthy lifestyle,” says Peter Kistler, lead author of the study.

According to Kistler, there is little information on the impact of different coffee preparations on overall health and, in particular, on the heart. In the paper, researchers investigated the association between drink variants and the incidence of cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality using data from UK Biokank, UK, for people aged 40-69.

At the start of the study, none of the participants had arrhythmias or other cardiovascular conditions. They filled out a questionnaire asking how many cups of coffee they drank per day and whether they drank instant, ground, or decaffeinated coffee. The scientists then grouped them into six categories of daily consumption: none, less than one, one, two to three, four to five, and more than five cups. In total, 100,510 (22.4%) of the sample declared themselves non-drinkers, serving as a comparison group. The soluble variety was the most cited (44.1%), followed by ground coffee (18.4%) and decaffeinated coffee (15.2%).

The scientists compared data from drinkers and non-drinkers for the incidence of arrhythmias, cardiovascular disease, and death, after adjusting for age, gender, ethnicity, obesity, hypertension, diabetes, obstructive sleep apnea, smoking, and tea and tea consumption. alcohol. Information about the participants’ health was obtained from medical records and death registers over 12.5 years.

During follow-up, 6.2% of participants died. Comparisons between consumer groups showed that all types of coffee were associated with a reduction in all-cause mortality. The greatest reduction in risk was seen among those who drank two to three cups a day, compared with those who didn’t include drinking in their routine. At this dosage, the probability of death was 14%, 27% and 11% lower for the decaffeinated, ground and instant preparations, respectively.

Cardiovascular disease was diagnosed in 9.6% of participants during follow-up. All coffee subtypes have been associated with a reduction in the incidence of these diseases. Again, the lowest risk was seen with two to three cups a day, which, compared to abstaining from drinking, reduced the chance of developing heart problems by 6%, 20%, and 9%.

Arrhythmias were diagnosed in 6.7% of participants, with ground and instant coffee, but not decaf, associated with a reduction in arrhythmias, including atrial fibrillation. Compared with non-drinkers, the lowest risks were seen with four to five cups a day of ground coffee and two to three cups of instant coffee, a 17 percent and 12 percent reduction in odds, respectively.

“Because coffee can speed up the heart rate, some people worry that drinking it triggers or worsens some heart problems. That’s where the medical advice to stop drinking coffee might come from,” Kistler believes. “But our data suggests that daily coffee intake shouldn’t be discouraged, but included as part of a healthy diet for people with and without heart disease,” he says.

The doctor says there are several mechanisms that may explain the associations found in the study. “There are a whole range of processes by which coffee may reduce mortality and have these beneficial effects on cardiovascular disease. Caffeine is the best-known constituent of coffee, but the beverage contains many more biologically active components. It is likely that the compounds no caffeine-containing products were responsible for the observed positive relationships between coffee consumption, cardiovascular disease, and survival,” he explains.

According to nutrologist Marcella Garcez, professor and director of the Associação Brasileira de Nutrologia, more than 20 coffee compounds with effects on health have already been scientifically described. She points out, however, that responses to the most famous of them, caffeine, can vary in each organism. “Some people are sensitive to caffeine, have digestive and gastric problems, heart rate and blood pressure alterations, emotional turmoil and sleep disturbances, situations in which traditional coffee should be left aside,” she says. “For these cases, the consumption of decaffeinated coffee is interesting. It is not harmful for those who do not want or cannot take caffeine, and its coffee production does not remove other essential compounds for the taste and aroma of normal coffee”, she explains .

Duane Mellor, nutritionist and professor at Aston University School of Medicine, England, points out that it is necessary to consider that the study data refer to pure coffee. “We must remember that a simple cup of coffee, perhaps with a little milk, is very different from a large latte flavored with added syrup and cream. So moderate coffee consumption may be associated with a lower risk of disease of cardiac output, but it’s how it’s consumed that matters.”

strengthened evidence

credit: Laura Bennetto/Disclosure

“Coffee is chemically complex, contains numerous bioactive components, and levels of these differ depending on how it is produced. The article adds to the body of evidence from observational studies associating moderate coffee consumption with cardioprotection, which looks promising No. However, with observational research like this, you can’t be sure which direction the relationship goes in. For example, does coffee make people healthier, or do people intrinsically healthier consume coffee? Randomized clinical trials are needed to fully understand the relationship between coffee and health before the recommendations can be done.”

Charlotte Mills, Professor of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Reading, UK

Less accumulation of fat in the liver

credit: University of Coimbra/Disclosure

Coffee consumption appears to have another health benefit in addition to cardiovascular protection. A University of Coimbra study recently published in the journal Nutrients shows that the caffeine, polyphenols and other natural substances found in coffee may help reduce the severity of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) among obese people with type 2 diabetes.

NAFLD is a term that aggregates liver disorders caused by the accumulation of fat in the liver. These can lead to fibrosis and progress to cirrhosis and organ cancer. The condition is not the result of excessive alcohol consumption, but is usually associated with an unhealthy lifestyle, with a sedentary lifestyle and high-calorie diet.

In the study, participants who consumed the most coffee had healthier livers, and those with higher caffeine levels were less likely to suffer from liver fibrosis. The researchers suggest that, for overweight type 2 diabetes patients, higher beverage intake is associated with lower severity of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

Oxidative stress

The researchers interviewed 156 borderline obese middle-aged participants about their coffee intake. Of these, 98 had type 2 diabetes and provided urine samples collected within 24 hours. The material was used to measure caffeine metabolites, the body’s natural products that break down the drink. The methodology is considered more accurate than asking people to self-report consumption levels.

According to the researchers, caffeine intake is associated with a decrease in liver fibrosis in NAFLD and other chronic liver conditions. Other components of coffee, including polyphenols, have been suggested to reduce oxidative stress in the organ, reducing the risk of fibrosis and improving glucose homeostasis in healthy overweight people. All of these factors can also ease the severity of type 2 diabetes.

“Due to changes in diet and modern lifestyles, there is an increase in rates of obesity and the incidence of type 2 diabetes and NAFLD, which can evolve into more serious and irreversible conditions, overburdening healthcare systems study correspondent John Griffith Jones, of the Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology at the University of Coimbra, said in a statement. “Our research is the first to observe that higher cumulative amounts of caffeine metabolites in urine are associated with reduced severity of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in overweight people with type 2 diabetes.”