A Cup of Joe and You're Good to Go (Under 6 a Day and You're A-OK):
While the pros and cons of drinking coffee have been debated for decades, new research from the University of South Australia reveals that drinking six or more coffees a day can be detrimental to your health, increasing your risk of heart disease by up to 22 per cent.
In Australia, one in six people are affected by cardiovascular disease. It is a major cause of death with one person dying from the disease every 12 minutes. According to the World Health Organization, cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death, yet one of the most preventable.
Investigating the association of long-term coffee consumption and cardiovascular disease, UniSA researchers Dr Ang Zhou and Professor Elina Hyppönen of the Australian Centre for Precision Health say their research confirms the point at which excess caffeine can cause high blood pressure, a precursor to heart disease.
[...] "In order to maintain a healthy heart and a healthy blood pressure, people must limit their coffees to fewer than six cups a day – based on our data six was the tipping point where caffeine started to negatively affect cardiovascular risk."
Using UK Biobank data of 347,077 participants aged 37-73 years, the study explored the ability of the caffeine-metabolizing gene (CYP1A2) to better process caffeine, identifying increased risks of cardiovascular disease in line with coffee consumption and genetic variations.
Prof Hyppönen says that despite carriers of the fast-processing gene variation being four times quicker at metabolising caffeine, the research does not support the belief that these people could safely consume more caffeine, more frequently, without detrimental health effects.
Journal Reference:
Ang Zhou, Elina Hyppönen. Long-term coffee consumption, caffeine metabolism genetics, and risk of cardiovascular disease: a prospective analysis of up to 347,077 individuals and 8368 cases. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2019; 109 (3): 509 DOI: 10.1093/ajcn/nqy297
(Score: 2) by bobthecimmerian on Monday May 13 2019, @07:09PM (3 children)
This might explain my high blood pressure. Or at least be a contributing factor.
I only have two cups per day, most days. But they're huge. Dammit.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Monday May 13 2019, @09:28PM (1 child)
Two cups six cups. I thank Thor every day for my 32oz Yeti mug which is saving my life according to this study.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 2) by bobthecimmerian on Thursday May 16 2019, @12:19AM
An older friend of mine was told to cut his coffee consumption way down. So he switched to one 'cup' per day, a single 64 ounce thermos full of coffee. Died of a heart attack less than a year later, but he had other health problems so I'm not sure how much we can blame coffee.
(Score: 2) by corey on Tuesday May 14 2019, @10:56AM
Yeah. My espresso in the morning is definitely 3 or so cups worth. Pack as much powder into the bucket. Then extract the shit out of it. I use a ROK manual press espresso unit.
(Score: 5, Funny) by Thexalon on Monday May 13 2019, @07:14PM
1. Drinking too much coffee can be hazardous to your health.
2. Trying to stop someone who regularly drinks coffee from drinking their coffee is also hazardous to your health, for very different reasons.
I consider it a vile habit, especially when abused. Barkeep, another shot please!
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: 2) by Hartree on Monday May 13 2019, @07:17PM (1 child)
So I'm safe. (Uh... Those were 32 oz cups, right?)
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 13 2019, @09:13PM
If yes, are they American ounces or imperial ounces?
32 US fl oz ~= 946 mL
32 imp. fl oz ~= 909 mL
(Now there's a switch. US liquid measures like pints and gallons are smaller than imperial units of the same name. I thought the US shortchanged on all liquid measures.)
(Score: 4, Funny) by DeathMonkey on Monday May 13 2019, @08:03PM (5 children)
On cup seven, prepare for heaven.
(Score: 4, Funny) by DeathMonkey on Monday May 13 2019, @08:05PM (4 children)
Drink cup eight and it's time to meet your fate.
(Score: 4, Funny) by istartedi on Monday May 13 2019, @08:44PM (3 children)
Drink cup nine, and the Reaper says "you're mine".
Appended to the end of comments you post. Max: 120 chars.
(Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 13 2019, @09:21PM (2 children)
Drink cup 10, and you're a has-been.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 13 2019, @11:48PM (1 child)
Drink cup 11 and you're back to seven!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 14 2019, @09:00PM
Drink cup 12, sh!t all your way to hell.
(Score: 2) by HiThere on Monday May 13 2019, @08:07PM (1 child)
I really doubt that the same quantity that is safe for a 300 lb. man is safe for a 100 lb. woman. So right off I'm suspicious about the accuracy, either of the study or of the reporting. (Well, I only read the summary.)
If they addressed the point I'd want to know whether the scaling was linear (unlikely) or semi-log (more likely). I.e. if 6 cups is the point of inflection, is 12 cups twice as bad as 9, or possibly 8 times as bad. Does it matter whether it's instant or espresso? French press or drip? What filters are used?
From the summary this sounds like research too shoddy to take seriously, but that could easily be the reporting.
Javascript is what you use to allow unknown third parties to run software you have no idea about on your computer.
(Score: 4, Touché) by The Mighty Buzzard on Monday May 13 2019, @09:30PM
Three hundred pound men have entirely different things that will be causing their heart attacks.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 13 2019, @08:08PM (3 children)
Drinking coffee is not good for you at all. This type of stuff is no different then the past "health benefits" of smoking. Once enough people want to hear "coffee is bad", then the series of studies will come out saying "it is bad no matter what" and the "deniers" will deny and obstruct, etc.
Caffeine is a tool like any other, you can make use of it but once you are addicted you've taken it too far.
(Score: 3, Funny) by realDonaldTrump on Monday May 13 2019, @08:32PM (2 children)
Very sad thing and I've seen so many people lose control. My older brother dieing at an early age (RIP!!) -- addiction. He told me, "Donnie, never drink." And I never have. I've never tasted Coffee in my entire life. I'm working long hours, long hours, right up till 1 o'clock, 2 in the morning. And wake at five. I eat, I read the papers, I see what's going on on TV. How does somebody that’s sleeping 12 and 14 hours a day compete with someone that’s sleeping three or four?
And by the way, the blood pressure. I get my blood pressure check. And so many times they ask me, "sir, have you been drinking Coffee?" Because the caffeene really does a number on our blood pressure. An absolute number and the pressure can go sky high. Don't do it!!!
(Score: 2) by Snow on Monday May 13 2019, @10:16PM (1 child)
Oh, we all know.
You only fuel your body with the finest that McDonalds and KFC have to offer. Mix in the odd taco bowl and well done steak here and there and you have the food regimen of a champion.
(If I never met my wife, my diet would be exactly the same... except substitute Regular Coke for the Diet Coke).
(Score: 2) by realDonaldTrump on Monday May 13 2019, @11:08PM
I'm a Germophobe, very proudly. I eat Fast Food because it's clean. For Cinquo de Mayo I love to eat the Taco Bowl. Not so clean but that's a once a year thing. I'm a guy that loves Hispanic, as everyone knows. And the steaks, trust me on this one, you want them well done. Unless you want a Tapeworm. Very easy to get that. Go to the Bodega in New York City. In the bad( Island) part of the city. And ask for the very special Diet Pills!!!!
(Score: 2) by ilPapa on Monday May 13 2019, @08:53PM (6 children)
I would bet that if you're physically active and not a fat bastard, you can drink 7-8 cups a day or more without any negative effects.
I no longer drink or do drugs, but goddamn, I will not give up my coffee. I've even learned that I can drink coffee even late at night without bothering my sleep. When I go to Europe, I notice that people sit and drink coffee late into the evening and still manage to be fit and well. Fuck, the last time I was in the Balkans, they drink this intense syrupy "Turkish" coffee that's like rocket fuel. While I'm not quite to that level, I can handle the normal stuff no problem.
You are still welcome on my lawn.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 13 2019, @09:15PM (1 child)
Exact same thing was said about cigarettes...
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Monday May 13 2019, @09:34PM
Yes, and after raising the price to five or ten times what it should be, you managed to pry it out of the fingers of most of the people who didn't care about the health effects.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 13 2019, @09:36PM
I'm not sure I agree with your initial premise ("if you're not a fat bastard 7 cups won't be bad for you"), but I definitely agree with your observation ("Europeans drink a ton of coffee at all hours and are mostly healthier than "), and your conclusion ("I'll drink as much as I like and probably be fine.").
I don't think this has anything to do with too much caffein being bad for you, I think it's pretty clear it is (and I almost certainly fall into the category of people who drink way too much coffee, by their definition).
I think it has to do with the European lifestyle on so many levels I hardly know where to start.
1) The less-frantic, more stop-and-smell-the-flowers pace of life
2) Vastly lower stress levels, attributable to many things
3) National Health Services (of one sort or another: better access to medical services, far less stress when you're ill and don't have to worry about crippling medical bills, fighting with insurance companies, etc.)
4) Social safety net (lose your job and you don't become homeless, even if the downturn lasts longer than a couple of fiscal quarters)
5) More active lifestyle (trains, trams, buses, walking, biking vs. the ubiquitous automobile)
In some countries diet might be a benefit, in others a drawback, so I deliberately left that out, except to say that a society that enjoys its meals, enjoys it wines and beers, etc. is probably even more relaxed, and thereby even healthier.
It could well be Europeans who consume a ton of caffein live longer despite the habit, because of any of the factors above, or a ton of others I haven't thought of, none of which have anything to do with whether or not drinking a fuckton of caffein is a good idea or not.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Tuesday May 14 2019, @08:37AM (2 children)
WTH is that coffee that you drink in 7-8 cups/day but you can't handle Turkish coffee?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Muad'Dave on Tuesday May 14 2019, @11:51AM
It's all about the impact of all that caffeine at once. A nice steady infusion of 1 cup/2 hours (7-8 cups/day, 16 waking hours/day) is a whole lot different than a blast of 3 cups worth of caffeine over the course of 15 minutes. The dose makes the poison, after all.
(Score: 2) by ilPapa on Tuesday May 14 2019, @03:01PM
My main problem with Turkish coffee is the chewiness and the taste. If it's made properly with the spices and all, it's OK, but I prefer a nice smooth cup out of a large Bunn coffee maker.
However, if you do the thing Serbs do with the sugarcube between your teeth, a shot of slivovitz and a turkish coffee chaser, I can get behind that.
You are still welcome on my lawn.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 13 2019, @09:24PM (3 children)
I see a lot people in this thread who are going to be very upset when they come for their caffeine. You cant be mistreating your body if the rest of us need to pay for it.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday May 13 2019, @11:51PM (2 children)
Actually regardless of people making better health decisions Universal Healthcare is the better and cheaper option. You sound like a little fascist in training! Did they give you a free knife at the "club"?
(Score: 2) by Pslytely Psycho on Tuesday May 14 2019, @12:19AM
Naw, he got it from that nice church lady....the one who 'cuts people.'
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wjub1kKs9oM&ab_channel=WashingtonPost [youtube.com]
Alex Jones lawyer inspires new TV series: CSI Moron Division.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 14 2019, @12:28AM
There is no regardless. That is what is coming. Anyone with any familiarity with the US government knows that is what is coming.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by AthanasiusKircher on Tuesday May 14 2019, @03:18AM (4 children)
Let's be honest here: yes, I like coffee (or at least good coffee), but I've never been addicted to it, rarely have a cup more than a couple times per week, and almost never use it as a stimulant (except in emergencies).
Everyone can debate the value of good coffee and its health benefits or detriments, but let's be clear that it's a drug addiction if you're drinking it every day. And it has the same effects as most drug addictions -- your body experiences dependency with reduced benefits of the drug as time goes on.
I remember reading a couple studies from about a decade ago measuring cognitive performance tasks from people who were addicted to caffeine and those who weren't. (I don't recall how they did control groups, but at least one of the studies seemed good to me at the time... I could dig it up again, I suppose.)
Anyhow, the main finding is that those who are addicted to caffeine do poorly on cognitive tasks with no coffee. No surprise. But even when they had their coffee, they'd barely make it up to the performance level of those who don't consume caffeine regularly, even when the latter had no stimulants. So, coffee addicts need their "hit" just to get back to the baseline of normal folks. Meanwhile non-addicts can actually get a stimulant boost occasionally if they use it once in a while and avoid addiction.
None of this is meant to criticize anyone who loves coffee. But I chuckle a bit whenever I see folks in the morning complaining about how they don't have their coffee yet and thus can't function well. Meanwhile, I may have an occasional groggy morning if I don't sleep well, but I almost never experience that feeling of an addict that needs a hit just to wake up properly.
(And yes, I do know what it feels like somewhat -- I went through phases when I'd hang out with coffee drinkers and would go for a week or more having coffee every morning, and I'd start to feel awful, and then got withdrawal headaches when I stopped... So I generally avoid ever having more than a couple days in a row, even though I like the taste of coffee. Addiction just isn't worth it.)
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 14 2019, @04:02AM
Yes, this is exactly what coffee does. These people do not even remember what it is like to not be an addict anymore. Usually they are also addicted to sugar as well. The three addictions that funded the transatlantic slave trade were tobacco, sugar, and coffee. We have only attacked one of the triumvirate so far but the others are going down.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Tuesday May 14 2019, @08:53AM (1 child)
Not for me.
Nowadays, I'm drinking a double-shot espresso** every morning, just to have something while waiting for the train.
Some 10 years back, I used to drink 5 times more than today when pulling long hours. Never had any trouble going back to none at all once the load was over and I could relax.
On the flip side, I gave up trying to quit smoking.
**
That's about 4 teaspoons of coffee percolated into about 30 grams of water, no sugar - barely a mouthful. Lasts me for 10 minutes (=2 cigarettes) worth of sipping time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by ilPapa on Tuesday May 14 2019, @03:04PM
Don't give up, dude. It can be done.
You are still welcome on my lawn.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday May 14 2019, @04:01PM
Caffeine also seems to have significant impact on spiders. [wikipedia.org] Careful with that shit. This is what your brain on caffeine looks like!
(Score: 2) by srobert on Tuesday May 14 2019, @03:27AM
Six cups a day is all I should have? I've usually had 6 cups before 9AM!