Coffee Tied to Inflammation, Perhaps Heart Disease]

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> Health - Reuters

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> Coffee Tied to Inflammation, Perhaps Heart Disease

> Tue Oct 19, 1:19 PM ET Health - Reuters

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> NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Consuming moderate-to-high amounts of

> coffee is associated with increased levels of several inflammatory

> markers, a finding that could help explain previous reports linking

> the beverage to heart disease.

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> Ongoing, low-level inflammation is thought to be an underlying

> factor in the development of heart disease.

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> The latest findings, which appear in the American Journal of

> Clinical Nutrition (news - web sites), are based on a study of about

> 3000 subjects with no history of cardiovascular disease.

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> A food-frequency questionnaire was used to assess coffee intake, and

> blood samples were tested for levels of various compounds that are

> known to promote, or are a marker of, inflammation.

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> Compared with subjects who did not drink coffee, those who consumed

> more than about 1 cup of the beverage per day had significantly

> higher levels of all the inflammatory markers tested, Dr.

> Demosthenes B. Panagiotakos, from Harokopio University in Athens,

> and colleagues report.

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> The results held true even after factoring in age, gender, smoking,

> body weight, physical activity, and other potential confounders, the

> researchers point out.

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> SOURCE: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, October 2004.

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