Studies find drinking coffee is harmless for most people

MEDICAL ADVISOR

United Feature Syndicate

Q: I absolutely love coffee, but since I turned 40, my husband thinks I should give it up for health reasons. He says coffee is bad for your heart, among other things. Does he have a point?

A: Coffee may pose problems for people who consume too much caffeine or who are extra-sensitive to caffeine.

But for most people, drinking coffee is a harmless habit. If coffee did have serious health consequences, we'd be in big trouble. Almost 110 million Americans drink coffee every day, about 9 billion gallons a year.

Early studies linked coffee drinking with pancreatic cancer, high blood pressure and heart disease. But this research often didn't account for the negative consequences of cigarette smoking, once a habit of many coffee drinkers. It wasn't the coffee but the accompanying smoking that was the real link to health problems. At the same time, caffeine is an addictive, mood-altering substance. Hundreds of compounds give brewed coffee its unique aroma and taste.

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