Introduction
This is a review of a study that was penned by the European Society of Cardiology in which they investigate the effect of coffee on heart disease, stroke and all-cause mortality.
Opening Statement
The study author Dr. Judit Simon, of the Heart and Vascular Centre, Semmelweis University in Hungary said, "To our knowledge, this is the largest study to systematically assess the cardiovascular effects of regular coffee consumption in a population without diagnosed heart disease."
The Results
Dr. Simon went on to say "Our results suggest that regular coffee consumption is safe, as even high daily intake was not associated with adverse cardiovascular outcomes and all-cause mortality after a follow-up of 10 to 15 years.
Moreover, 0.5 to 3 cups of coffee per day was independently associated with lower risks of stroke, death from cardiovascular disease, and death from any cause."
Although impressive, how did she arrive at this result?
Data is Sparse
Even though coffee is among the most consumed beverages in the world, little is known about the long-term impact of regular consumption on our cardiovascular health.
At present, up to three cups of coffee per day is associated with a lower risk of stroke and fatal heart disease, according to research presented at European Society of Cardiology in 2021.
The Study
This latest study investigated the association between usual coffee intake and incidents of heart attack, stroke, and death.
The study included 468,629 participants of the UK Biobank study with no signs of heart disease at the time of recruitment. The average age of the participants was 56.2 years and 55.8% of the cohort were women.
The Groups
The participants were divided into three groups according to their usual coffee intake:
- Group 1, None, this group did not consume coffee on a regular basis, they accounted for 22.1% of the study
- Group 2, light-to-moderate consumption at 0.5 to 3 cups/day, this group constituted 58.4% of the study
- Group 3, high consumption, this group consumed more than 3 cups/day and they made up 19.5% of the total
Estimation and Factors
The researchers estimated the association of daily coffee consumption with incident outcomes over a median follow-up of 11 years using multi-variable models.
The analyses were adjusted for confounding factors that could influence the results including age, sex, weight, height, smoking status, physical activity, high blood pressure, diabetes, cholesterol level, socio-economic status, and usual intake of alcohol, meat, tea, fruit and vegetables.
The Risks
Compared to non-coffee drinkers, light-to-moderate consumption (up to 3 cups a day) was associated with:
- A 12% lower risk of all-cause death
- And a 17% lower risk of death from cardiovascular disease
- And with a 21% lower risk of stroke
Further Analysis
To examine the potential underlying mechanisms, the researchers analyzed the association between daily coffee intake, heart structure and function over a median follow-up of 11 years.
For this, they used data from 30,650 participants who underwent cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which is considered the gold standard for the assessment of cardiac structure and function.
Dr. Simon noted that "The imaging analysis indicated that compared with participants who did not drink coffee regularly; daily consumers had healthier sized and better functioning hearts. This was consistent with reversing the detrimental effects of aging on the heart."
She concluded by saying "Our findings suggest that coffee consumption of up to three cups per day is associated with favorable cardiovascular outcomes.
While further studies are needed to explain the underlying mechanisms, the observed benefits might be partly explained by positive alterations in cardiac structure and function."
Scientific Studies:
https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/957464
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/08/210830075619.htm
YouTube Video: