Diabetes Health in the News Podcast: Coffee Could Raise Heart Risks
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A recent study has brought bad news to young coffee lovers: Drinking a lot of caffeine could raise heart attack risks if a person already has high blood pressure. Additionally, coffee consumption among these patients has also been linked to a greater risk of pre-diabetes.
Italian cardiologists tracked the data of 1,200 young adults with untreated high blood pressure at stage 1 over a 12-year period. During that time frame, it was found that there were 60 circulation or heart-related events, including incidents of strokes or heart attacks among the participants. When comparing results between coffee drinkers and non-drinkers, it was found that the risk of these events was four times greater among heavy caffeine drinkers and three times greater in moderate caffeine drinkers.
The takeaway from this study is that patients who are known to have heart disease or are at an elevated risk should be sure to limit their daily caffeine intake.
These findings were presented at the European Society of Cardiology annual meeting in 2015.
