Good news, coffee lovers: your daily cup of Joe may be doing your heart good, mainly by helping to reduce your risk of heart failure, the findings of a new study suggest.
In an analysis of data from three large studies on the subject, the researchers found that, in general, those who reported drinking one or more cups of caffeinated coffee a day had “a decrease associated with the risk of long-term heart failure”, they said.
For the report, published in Circulation: Heart Failure, an American Heart Association journal on Tuesday, the researchers used machine learning to examine data from a large study in the Framingham Heart Study, comparing that data with two other studies, the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study and the Cardiovascular Health Study, according to a press release on the findings.
“Each study included at least 10 years of follow-up and, collectively, the studies provided information on more than 21,000 adult participants in the United States,” said the researchers.
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When analyzing the Framingham Heart and Cardiovascular Health studies, the researchers noted that when compared to those who did not drink coffee, the risk of heart failure decreased from 5% to 12% for each cup they drank every day. As for the Atherosclerosis Risk Study in Communities, the researchers noted that those who drank at least two cups of java a day had a 30% lower risk of heart failure, while the risk of heart failure remained the same for those who drank just one cup or drank no cup of coffee a day.
As for decaffeinated coffee, the researchers noted that it did not have the same benefits as coffee with caffeine, with a study suggesting that decaffeinated coffee has the opposite effect, possibly increasing the risk of heart failure.
Dr. David P. Kao, senior author of the study and an assistant professor of cardiology and medical director at the Colorado Center for Personalized Medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, said the results of the team’s meta-analysis were “surprising”.
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“The association between caffeine and reduced risk of heart failure was surprising. Coffee and caffeine are often considered by the general population to be ‘bad’ for the heart because people associate them with palpitations, high blood pressure etc. The consistent relationship between the increase of caffeine consumption and reduced risk of heart failure turn that assumption on its head, “said Kao in a statement.
“However, there is still no clear enough evidence to recommend increasing coffee consumption to decrease [the] risk of heart disease with the same strength and certainty to stop smoking, lose weight or exercise ”, he noted.
The researchers also warned that the findings focused only on black coffee.
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“Although it is not possible to prove causality, it is intriguing that these three studies suggest that drinking coffee is associated with a decreased risk of heart failure and that coffee can be part of a healthy eating pattern if consumed pure, with no added sugar and high-fat dairy products like cream, “said Penny M. Kris-Etherton, Ph.D., RDN, immediate chairman of the American Heart Association’s Cardiometabolic Health and Lifestyle Council Leadership Committee. Kris-Etherton is also a professor of nutritional sciences at Evan Pugh University and a distinguished professor of nutrition at Pennsylvania State University, Faculty of Health and Human Development at University Park.
“The end result: enjoy coffee in moderation as part of a heart-healthy eating pattern that meets the recommendations of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, low-fat / non-fat dairy products and which is also low in sodium and saturated fat and added sugars, “he added. “In addition, it is important to be aware that caffeine is a stimulant and consuming too much can be problematic – causing nervousness and sleep problems.”