A Friendlier Cup of Coffee

Freshly brewed research reports about coffee are changing the image of the popular drink from harmful to healthy in many ways.

Thanks to some of the latest knowledge about coffee reported in April at the Experimental Biology 2007 symposium in Washington, D.C., negative myths about coffee are evaporating.
"The good news is it seems an extremely popular beverage can be safely consumed by most people in moderation," said Joan Salge Blake, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association and nutrition professor at Boston University.

"It doesn't look like there is any downside to coffee in any disease process," said Dr. Craig McClain, professor of medicine, pharmacology and toxicology at the University of Louisville, who attended the spring meeting.

The story about coffee grew dark and negative a decade or more ago when a study linked pancreatic cancer to caffeine, a link that has since been debunked, McClain explained.

"That got everybody down on coffee, but more recently in diverse areas research is suggesting that coffee -- at least in moderate consumption -- can be beneficial," he said.

Studies of large populations of real coffee drinkers are pointing in a positive direction.

New research suggests coffee can reduce the risk of such major diseases as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and type 2 diabetes.

"Animal studies suggest it might even be good for weight control through thermogenesis (the process by which the body generates heat, or energy, by increasing the metabolic rate above normal)," McClain said. "Drink six cups of coffee a day and you may have an energy expenditure of 100 calories."

In studies of mortality, it appears that moderate coffee drinkers have a slightly reduced risk of death, McClain also reported.

Good for the liver

One promising thread of coffee research indicates coffee may lower bad liver enzymes called cytokines. "Coffee looks like it may be good in those with liver disease and certainly not harmful," he said. The mechanism for how this works isn't understood yet, he added.

Everybody thinks about caffeine, an alkaloid that acts as a mild stimulant, when they think of coffee, partly because old coffee research emphasized it. Much of the current research is saying the possible benefits of moderate coffee consumption have little or nothing to do with its caffeine content.

Coffee, after all, contains antioxidants and phytochemicals. It is made up of hundreds of components such as magnesium, potassium, vitamin B3, amino acids and lignans, a weak form of estrogen found in fruits, cereals, flaxseed and vegetables.

Experts caution that moderate coffee drinking is what people should keep in mind.

Moderate consumption means two to three eight-ounce cups a day to Marsha Hilgeford, a Louisville dietitian and diabetes counselor at Baptist Hospital. McClain would say two to four cups daily constitutes moderation.

Hilgeford recommends drinking filtered coffee because some research has shown that unfiltered coffee, such as that made in a French plunger-style coffee maker, can boost cholesterol levels. What gets through in unfiltered coffee are diterpenes, found in the oil droplets floating in the coffee as well as in the sediment.

Athletic endurance

Some endurance athletes have long ranked coffee important to their performance. Last April, the Journal of Sports Science published a study that found caffeine had a positive impact on the performance of male distance runners. In November, the same journal printed another study that examined whether cyclists could improve their sprinting with caffeine and found they did.

But a third study published last year in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology found that two cups of coffee reduced blood flow to the heart during exercise by 22 percent and by 39 percent if the exercise was done in a high altitude chamber used to simulate the way coronary artery disease would limit the amount of oxygen that gets to the heart.

Those with coronary heart disease or heart health risk should talk to their doctors about how much coffee to drink before exercise.

Experts certainly don't advocate taking up coffee drinking if you don't drink it now or loading up on more coffee based on the good-benefits research that is emerging.

Hilgeford, while not down on coffee as a beverage, doesn't think it should be viewed as some magic elixir either. She strongly believes everyone is an individual when it comes to coffee and that they should test their reaction to it.

If they experience anxiety, jitters or insomnia, they should reconsider coffee consumption. And if they have other concerns about their use of coffee, by all means, they should talk to their doctor, experts said.

Courtesy Linda Stahl, The Courier-Journal and GJ Coffee Companion