NODECAFFORMETHANKS!!!!!!!
Posted on 11/17/2005 10:50:32 AM PST by blam
Decaffeinated coffee may be harmful to heart
15:00 16 November 2005
NewScientist.com news service
Gaia Vince
Decaffeinated coffee may have a harmful effect on the heart by increasing the levels of a specific cholesterol in the blood, researchers say. Their explanation is that caffeine-free coffee is often made from a type of bean with a higher fat content.
Robert Superko, at the Piedmont-Mercer Center for Health and Learning in Atlanta, Georgia, US, and colleagues looked at the effects of coffee on 187 people. The group was split into three similar-sized groups for the three-month study: one group drank three to six cups of caffeinated coffee per day; one drank three to six cups of decaffeinated coffee per day; and a control group drank no coffee. US coffee drinkers drink an average 3.1 cups of coffee per day.
The researchers analysed blood samples from the groups before and after the study to determine the levels of cholesterol and non-esterified fatty acids (NEFAs) in the blood – key indicators of heart disease risk.
To their surprise, the researchers found the decaffeinated group had experienced an 18% rise in NEFAs in the blood and an 8% rise in apolipoprotein B – a protein associated with a cholesterol linked to cardiovascular disease. This was not seen in the other two groups.
“I believe it’s not caffeinated but decaffeinated coffee that might promote heart disease risk factors,” Superko says. “The heart risk is not great – the fatty acids can be burned off easily by exercising. But someone with high-cholesterol, who drinks four or five cups of decaffeinated coffee a day, might want to think about cutting down.”
Healthy option?
When the researchers analysed the coffees used in the study, they found that the caffeinated and decaffeinated coffees were made from a different bean. The decaffeination process extracts the compounds that give coffee flavour, so it is often made from a stronger flavoured bean, called Robusta. Caffeinated coffees are usually made from a bean called Arabica.
“The chemical composition of the two beans is very different. Robusta contains a much higher content of fats, called diptenes, which stimulate fatty acid production in the body,” Superko told New Scientist.
“The coffee industry is selling more and more decaffeinated coffee because people think it’s healthier, but if you have high cholesterol, it may not be.”
Not so simple
However, the team also found changes in another type of cholesterol called HDL2, high levels of which are associated with a reduced risk of heart disease. Although the average level of HDL2 did not differ between the three groups, it did change significantly within the decaffeinated group depending on the participants’ weight, as represented by their body mass index (BMI).
Overweight people – with a BMI of more than 25 – saw their HDL2 increase by 50%, whereas those with BMI less than 25 showed a drop in HDL2 of about 30%. “It is not a simple story of one type of coffee being good and the other bad,” Superko says. “Those who are overweight but have normal apolipoprotein B levels might consider the potential benefit of drinking decaffeinated coffee over caffeinated coffee.”
A spokesperson from the British Heart Foundation cautions that the study was quite small and short-term. “It is too soon to draw any firm conclusions about the use of coffee to reduce risk of heart disease,” she said. “And the study examined the effects of drinking three to six cups of coffee daily, so it is not relevant to those people who enjoy a coffee once or twice a day.”
The research was presented at the American Heart Association Sessions 2005, held in Dallas, Texas.
Caffee Kiills. ~;^D
More like the grease-filled donut you dunk in the coffee is the problem!
Will this never end!
Decaffeinated is not the same as caffeine-free.
It's also harmful to testosterone.
Health and Science ping.
Coffee ping
Will this never end!
No.
WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!!!!
:)
To their surprise, the researchers found the decaffeinated group had experienced an 18% rise in NEFAs in the blood and an 8% rise in apolipoprotein B – a protein associated with a cholesterol linked to cardiovascular disease. This was not seen in the other two groups.
Why are the scientists always so astonished to discover that when one slaps mother Nature, she usually slaps back!
You know what kills you?
Medical Studies. Make your head explode.
It reminds me of "1984"...
"We are at war with Eurasia; we have always been at war with Eurasia..."
And it tastes like crap. Useless brown water. It's like drinking that near-beer stuff.
Thanks for the ping!
Hey, Sam, we're gonna live forever!!!!
someday they will come up with the truth and no one will be listening
Hey, gubmint grant money has to go to something to make these buffoons look productive.
sw
I recall once long ago when a study came out that beef was bad for you. Some reporter (when they did their jobs) pursued the story and found that the study was funded by the Chicken industry. Since then I always want to know who peoposed the study, who funded it, and why.
Must have been either an oversight, or I am in the Flouride Industry's pocket.
Decaffeinated coffee... Just like drinking non-alcoholic beer...What is the point? What-is-the-freggin`-point? Is it people want to fool others into thinking they are drinking the real thing?
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