Posted on 10/10/2024 4:00:23 AM PDT by Red Badger
Caffeine might improve vascular health by assisting in the regeneration of blood vessels, according to recent research with lupus patients, suggesting a potential dietary approach for managing cardiovascular risks in inflammatory disease conditions. New research indicates that caffeine consumption may boost vascular health by supporting the regeneration of blood vessel linings.
This investigation, conducted by Italian scientists on lupus patients, highlights caffeine’s potential benefits for those at increased risk of vascular diseases due to inflammatory conditions.
Caffeine and Heart Health
A new study published on October 9 in Rheumatology by Oxford University Press suggests that increased caffeine intake could improve heart health.
Vascular disease, which involves the damage of blood vessels, leads to severe outcomes like heart attacks and strokes—some of the leading causes of death worldwide. For patients suffering from inflammatory rheumatic diseases, including lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, the risks are significantly higher. This heightened risk stems from both the diseases themselves and some treatments, especially those involving cortisone derivatives.
Enhancing Vascular Health Through Diet
Until now, doctors’ recommendations to reduce these vascular risks were essentially about avoiding risk factors. This included stopping inflammation, decreasing cortisone medications, as well as conventional recommendations like not smoking, reducing cholesterol, and controlling high blood pressure.
But researchers from Sapienza University of Rome, in Italy, involved in this study believe patients may be able to improve vascular health by doing something that’s actually enjoyable. The laboratory results of these investigators suggest that caffeine, present in coffee, tea, and cocoa, actively helps endothelial progenitor cells, the group of cells that helps regenerate the lining of blood vessels and are involved in vascular growth.
Caffeine’s Role in Cardiovascular Wellness
It’s well known that a diet rich in vitamin D (found in oily fish and eggs) and A (found in many fruits) and polyunsaturated fatty acid, and low in sodium, seems to play a role in decreasing the inflammatory burden. Scientists have wondered about caffeine as well. Besides the well-known stimulant effect on the body, caffeine also exerts an anti-inflammatory effect because it binds with the receptors expressed on the surface of immune cells. The effect of caffeine consumption on cardiovascular health has been widely investigated, with conflicting results.
Researchers here investigated 31 lupus patients without traditional cardiovascular risks factors using a seven-day food questionnaire. After a week the investigators took the patents’ blood to measure blood vessels health. They found that patients who consumed caffeine had better vascular health, as measured through endothelial cells, which form the important inner layer of blood vessels.
Study Findings and Future Research
“The present study is an attempt to provide patients with information on the possible role of diet in controlling the disease,” said the paper’s lead author, Fulvia Ceccarelli. “It will be necessary to confirm the results through a longitudinal study, aimed at assessing the real impact of coffee consumption on the disease course.”
Reference:
“Caffeine improves systemic lupus erythematosus endothelial dysfunction by promoting endothelial progenitor cells survival” by Valeria Orefice, Fulvia Ceccarelli, Cristiana Barbati, Giorgia Buoncuore, Carmelo Pirone, Cristiano Alessandri and Fabrizio Conti, 9 October 2024, Rheumatology.
DOI: 10.1093/rheumatology/keae453
Nope! Mostly Norwegian.
“And just seven days?”
i missed that ...
Coffee.
That necessary nectar required for proper cerebral functioning
I have to be careful with coffee. I used to drink 2-3 pots of it my self.
Now I’m down to 1/2 to 1 pot.
The pot is small only about 5 cups. But with the cup I like to use, only two.
Black is the way to go. You can taste the type of bean as long as they don’t burn them while roasting. (Like Starbucks does)
Coffee good.
Best news of the day!!!! I’ve been in the hospital having tests with difficulty with dizziness/high blood pressure. But PLEASE don’t take my coffee away!!....
NO sugar... no flavoring.........but YES on cream!!
I’m 83... and I can relate to the chrome electric coffee pot with the glass on top! LOL
I usually only drink two cups a day but what I DO drink is strong!!... Bodium French Press!
I bought a 100% cocoa bar yesterday. keeps me from eating a chocolate bar all at once and keeps other people from eating any of it:)
Yup, the Navy did me in as well. It shouldn’t work - the stuff comes pre-ground in giant tins and it should go stale after it’s exposed to air but apparently it stays fresh for the 10 minutes it takes to empty one. And yes, the stories are true: you can make a pot from the seawater tap. Once.
I haven’t seen one of those. Is it bitter?
I bet that tasted even BETTER, than USUAL!!
Sounds amazing.
💞
I know! From that era...:)
Very
When we were kids living on base (SJAFB) my dads boss had one of those huge coffee makers, (probably 40 plus cups). And it always had fresh coffee brewed. He drank coffee from sun up to sun down.
Don’t know how he slept.
My parents did too. They went to bed with coffee cups in their hands.................
I go to sleep with a coffee IV drip.
I did a stint in a Navy Squadron - land based. They said it was good luck to never wash a coffee cup. At the most, a quick water rinse. But I was Air Force, so I washed mine.
I figure that once you are saturated with caffeine, your body doesn’t react to it any more.................
I'm taking that approach with diabetes. I figure if my body gets used to very high blood-glucose levels, nothing bad can happen!
So far, so good!
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