Source: Fox News
Summary
A new study published in the journal Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology found that drinking coffee may lower the risk of severe liver disease, liver cancer, and liver-related death. The research used data from 354,957 participants in the UK Biobank and tracked them for an average of 13 years. Participants who drank one to two cups of coffee daily showed a 20% lower risk of developing cirrhosis and a 31% lower risk of liver-related mortality compared to non-coffee drinkers. The protective effects increased with higher levels of consumption.
Our Reading
The advice sounds familiar. This guidance has been heard before, as previous studies have hinted at coffee’s positive relationship with liver health. The research provides biological evidence to support the statistical trends, but the findings could be susceptible to changes in participants’ coffee-drinking habits over the 13-year follow-up period. The study suggests that coffee consumption is an accessible dietary habit for supporting liver health, but it should serve as a complement rather than a replacement for standard preventative health practices. The liver-protective benefits were similar for both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee, suggesting that these benefits are driven by naturally occurring compounds not related to caffeine. The benefits persisted regardless of whether the coffee was consumed black or with sweeteners, but adding sugar or artificial sweeteners slightly weakened the beneficial effects.
It’s another example of how our understanding of the relationship between diet and health is constantly evolving.
Author: Evan Null
