Coffee Lovers, Beware: Consumption May Increase Prediabetes Risk

Previous studies have tackled the benefits and risks of coffee consumption. While some suggest that coffee can help increase energy levels and carries beneficial nutrients and antioxidants, others have found that it can increase anxiety levels and potentially create cardiovascular problems in some individuals. 

A recent study unfortunately brings more bad news for coffee lovers. Findings reveal that drinking an excessive amount of coffee, particularly for young adults, could increase the risk of diabetes.

"As type 2 diabetes often develops in hypertensive patients at a later stage, in the present study we examined the long term effect of coffee drinking on the risk of developing prediabetes in the participants of HARVEST, a prospective longitudinal study of young subjects screened for stage 1 hypertension," said Dr. Lucio Mos from Italy, in a news release. 

For the study, researchers examined 1,180 participants between the ages of 18 and 45 who had stage one hypertension but did not have diabetes.They screened for an enzyme known as CYP1A2 that's responsible for metabolizing caffeine.

Findings revealed that roughly 42 percent of people were fast metabolizers and 58 percent were slow ones. Overall, about 74 percent of the participants drank coffee, while 87 percent of them drank one to three cups of coffee per day, which was considered to be moderate. However, 13 percent fell in the heavy group and drank more than three cups per day.

Throughout a six-year follow-up period, researchers found that 24 of the patients developed prediabetic conditions. They also calculated that moderate drinkers had a 34 percent increased risk of prediabetes when compared to people who did not drink coffee. Heavy drinks were also twice as likely as nondrinkers to get prediabetes than those who did not drink coffee. However, only further research will confirm this drink's role in the illness. 

More information regarding the findings can be seen via the ESC Congress.