Coffee “Just Occasionally” May be Risky

The effects of coffee on the body have been studied for years. The view is gradually emerging that, overall, the positive effects outweigh the ill effects. But it must be admitted that just about all the studies done have looked at possible effects on people’s health long-term. Now a study from Costa Rica has examined a possible link between drinking coffee and a heart attack within an hour.

The researchers studied 500 patients of heart attack, asking them about their coffee drinking in the hours and days before their attack. They found that in heavy coffee drinkers, taking a cup of coffee failed to increase their likelihood of having a heart attack. In moderate coffee drinkers, however, a cup of coffee was linked to a 60% increase in the likelihood of a heart attack within the hour. And in light- or non-coffee drinkers, the likelihood was increased by more than four times. These results were independent of lifestyle or medical history.

The researchers suggest that the effect may be due to a short-term increase in blood pressure and epinephrine (adrenaline) activity – known effects of caffeine; in people with coronary atherosclerosis, this could trigger a heart attack. They also state that their findings are relevant for US people, although the study was done in Costa Rica . Of course, there aren’t so many people in the US who are light- or non-coffee drinkers. Nevertheless, it makes sense that if you aren’t used to coffee, and have risk factors for heart disease (overweight, smoking, no exercise, diabetes, etc) you should stick to decaff.