Like the New England weather at Harvard, if you don’t like current scientific findings on new health topics, wait five minutes, and it may change. Coffee lovers and cancer patients worldwide hope this recent one remains the same, especially concerning coffee’s impact on prostate cancer.
In part one of this three-part blog, we looked at current research concerning the effects of coffee on our health, including its impact on cancer and suicide.
According to the Prostate Cancer Foundation these studies tracked over 700,000 people across multiple ethnic groups in over 10 European countries and the U.S. It was discovered that even drinking decaffeinated coffee supplied benefits to individuals over those who did not drink the beverage. The studies have even dispelled the old myth that caffeine might increase the risk of atrial fibrillation, an irregular heart rhythm. Drinking low-dose caffeine, defined as fewer than six cups of coffee a day, may even have a protective effect on heart rhythm.
Research published in the April issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, Researchers from the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center examined 5,100 men and women diagnosed with colorectal cancer within the past six months, and an additional 4,000 men and women with no history of colorectal cancer to serve as a control group.
“We found that drinking coffee is associated with lower risk of colorectal cancer, and the more coffee consumed, the lower the risk,” said Stephen Gruber, director of the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and senior author of the study.
What about coffee and Parkinson ’s disease?
Coffee consumption seems to be associated with about one-third lower risk concerning Parkinson’s Disease. Caffeine appears to be the key ingredient because tea also seems protective and decaf coffee does not. Parkinson’s patients treated with the caffeine equivalent of two cups of coffee a day significantly improved movement symptoms within three weeks.
The studies concluded that consuming 1-2 cups of coffee per day resulted in a 12% lower risk of mortality and consuming 2-4 cups a day resulted in an 18% lower risk of mortality. These results in inverse rates of mortality to coffee consumption showed in diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease, stroke, and cancer.
How can coffee help prevent diseases from cancer and heart attack to suicide?
According to Nutritional Facts.org, and USC News coffee is a complex mixture of compounds that have various biological effects, such as anti-inflammatory properties. It is believed that in addition to these properties, coffee is a source of polyphenols which have potent antioxidant properties, which helps cells cope with free radicals in the blood.
Do you know why coffee has been named the number-two healthiest beverage?
The Beverage Guidance Panel assembled to provide recommendations on benefits and risks of various beverage categories, found tea and coffee—preferably without creamer or sweetener—tied as the number-two healthiest beverages, second only to water. The studies in this article are published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
The National Institutes of Health–AARP Diet and Health Study is the largest-ever prospective study conducted on diet and health. Its research concluded that people who drank six or more cups of coffee per day had a 10 to 15 percent lower mortality from heart disease, respiratory disease, stroke, injuries, accidents, diabetes, and infections. However, the opposite effect was found when a study looked at people 55 and younger. Drinking more than six cups of coffee daily increased their risk of death.
Don’t miss part 3 of this 3 part blog as we continue to discuss the current research on how coffee has been proved to reduce mortality rates and sum up the benefits and risks of drinking coffee. How much is too much coffee and is it worse than not enough?
About the Author: Kathleen (Kat) O’Keefe-Kanavos is a three-time Breast Cancer Survivor, as seen on Dr. Oz Show, DOCTORS, NBC, and CBS, whose dreams diagnose her illness, and was a Dream Research Participant for Dr. Larry Burk‘s Dream Research. They co-wrote, Dreams That Can Save Your Life. She is a TV Producer/Host and award-winning Author/Lecturer who promotes patient advocacy and connecting with Inner-guidance through Dreams for success in health, wealth, and relationships. Learn more @ www.KathleenOKeefeKanavos.com
photo credit:
httpspixabay.comencup-coffee-cup-cup-of-coffee-moon-1956716Pixel2013 Free for Commercial Use No attribution required
Blog Research:
New Study Shows Coffee Health Benefits https://www.pcf.org/new-study-shows-coffee-health-benefits/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIpv2c1KeD3QIV3I2zCh3eOQrTEAAYASAAEgKWMvD_BwE
April issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention http://cebp.aacrjournals.org/
Coffee Drinking Tied To Lower Risk Of Suicide – Harvard .., https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2013/07/drinking-coffee-may-reduce-risk-o
Dr. Mark Gunter https://www.imperial.ac.uk/people/m.gunter/publications.html
Dr. Mark Coffee Drinking and Mortality in 10 European Countries: A Multinational Cohort Study. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28693038
Dr. Veronica Setiawan https://keck.usc.edu/faculty-search/veronica-w-setiawan/
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Veronica_Setiawan