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5 cups of coffee a day is fine for most adults, heart association says
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Up to five cups of coffee a day could keep the doctor away.
That’s according to a new scientific statement released Monday by the American Heart Association, addressing years of conflicting advice about caffeine and the heart.
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Drinking multiple cups of coffee likely won’t have a negative impact on your heart, the peer-reviewed scientific journal Circulation states, but how you drink it matters.
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For most adults, consuming up to 400 mg of caffeine each day – or up to five 8-ounce cups of caffeinated coffee per day – is safe and appears to be linked to a lower risk of cardiovascular disease for some individuals, the journal states.
Consuming caffeinated coffee without added sugars, flavors or cream was linked to a lower risk of Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, stroke, heart failure and some irregular heart rhythms, according to the new research.
And how you brew it matters too. The heart-healthy links tend to be tied to paper-filtered or instant coffee. Unfiltered options like French press, espresso and Turkish coffee contain a compound called cafestol, which is associated with higher levels of low-density lipoprotein – also known as ”bad cholesterol.”
And be wary of energy drinks and other forms of caffeine designed to be consumed quickly.
“High doses of caffeine, such as those found in energy drinks, including energy shots, may have harmful effects on the heart and should be avoided,” said Gregory Marcus, chair of the scientific statement volunteer writing group and a professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine.
Higher caffeine intake, such as the levels found in energy drinks, including energy shots, was associated with cardiovascular harm, such as an increased risk of high blood pressure and irregular heart rhythms.
Marcus and his fellow authors note that studying the effects of caffeine on the cardiovascular system is challenging, and that more studies are needed.
“Although research suggests that caffeine consumption may be associated with certain cardiovascular benefits for some people, it’s important to remember that there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ strategy for safe caffeine consumption,” Marcus said. “People can respond very differently to caffeine based on various factors, such as age, medications, underlying health conditions, genetics and how quickly their bodies metabolize it. What may be a reasonable amount for one person could cause unwanted effects, such as heart palpitations, anxiety or sleep disruption, in another. That’s why it’s important to pay attention to how your body responds to caffeine and talk with your healthcare team about what is right for you.”
