Coffee and Arterial Hypertension

Abstract

Purpose of Review Coffee is a very popular drink and an estimated 2.25 billion cups worldwide are consumed daily. Such popularity of coffee makes it the most consumed drink next to water. Numerous studies have shown a beneficial effect of habitual and moderate coffee consumption on the functioning of the nervous, digestive, and cardiovascular systems, as well as on kidney function. Taking into account the very high prevalence of arterial hypertension in the world (31.1% of adults), much controversy has been raised about the influence of coffee consumption on blood pressure and the risk of arterial hypertension. Moreover, there have been extensive discussions about the safety of coffee consumption for hypertensive persons. Recent Findings There are over 1000 chemical compounds in coffee. The best characterized of these are caffeine, chlorogenic acid, trigonelline, kahweol, cafestol, ferulic acid, and melanoidins. These compounds have bidirectional influences on blood pressure regulation. The results of numerous studies and meta-analyses indicate that moderate and habitual coffee consumption does not increase and may even reduce the risk of developing arterial hypertension. Conversely, occasional coffee consumption has hypertensinogenic effects. Moderate habitual coffee consumption in hypertensive persons does not appear to increase the risk of uncontrolled blood pressure and may even reduce the risk of death from any cause. Summary Moderate and habitual consumption of coffee (1-–3 cups / day) does not adversely affect blood pressure in most people, including those with arterial hypertension.

What Is or What Is Not a Risk Factor for Arterial Hypertension? Not Hamlet, but Medical Students Answer That Question

“…Similar results were reported in the studies by Zawadzki et al and Shaikh et al In these studies, coffee consumption was recognized as a risk factor for hypertension by nearly 64% and 35.5% of respondents, respectively [56,57]. In fact, a recent comprehensive review of the literature concluded that regular daily consumption of 2-3 cups of black coffee may reduce the risk of hypertension [36].…”

“…Our study also assessed factors that are not regarded as increasing hypertension risk, e.g., having home pets, consuming 2-3 cups of black coffee daily, vitamin D deficiency and female gender [19,36,61,62]. Although a large percentage of respondents had no knowledge of these factors, almost 1/5 of respondents stated that having home pets increases the risk of hypertension, and nearly 60% expressed the incorrect belief that coffee increases BP.…”

“…There are also lifestyle and behavioral factors that are commonly perceived as risk factors for hypertension, but for which there is no clear evidence of an effect on BP (e.g., hiking in high mountains above 2500 m) [34,35]. In addition, there are factors that are generally regarded as increasing risk for hypertension, e.g., drinking 2-3 cups of coffee per day, for which we have evidence that they are not stimuli for hypertension [36]. For prevention of hypertension, it is important to know, especially for medical students-future physicians, about the lifestyle-dependent modifiable risk factors [37][38][39][40].…”

Coffee consumption during pregnancy — what the gynecologist should know? Review of the literature and clinical studies

“…In the world, from a commercial point of view, the most important are Arabica coffee (Coffea arabica), Robusta coffee (Coffea canephora) and Liberian coffee (Coffea liberica) [3]. The largest amounts of coffee are produced in Brazil [1].…”

“…Consuming coffee, especially brewed with a paper filter and without the addition of sugar or milk, in a regular and moderate manner (2-3 cups/day) has a beneficial effect on human health in the general population. It was shown that consumption of coffee according to such a pattern was characterized by antihypertensive properties and had a positive effect on the activity of the nervous, digestive, cardiovascular and kidney systems [3,[8][9][10][11]. In a recent study by Simon et al [12], including 468,629 subjects, drinking 0.5-3 cups of coffee/day was associated with a lower risk of death from any cause [HR (hazard ratio) = 0.88; 95% CI (confidence interval): 0,83-0.92; p < 0.001] and death from cardiovascular causes (HR = 0.83; 95% CI: 0.74-0.94; p = 0.006), and stroke (HR = 0.79; 95% CI: 0.63-0.99 p = 0.037) during 11 years of follow-up.…”