Decaf coffee and tea reduces diabetes risk

Drinking more coffee and tea, both regular and decaffeinated, appears to lower the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, a new study indicates.

In the study, which involved almost 460,000 people, researchers from the University of Sydney in Australia found that each additional cup of coffee consumed in a day was associated with a 7% reduction in the excess risk of diabetes.

Individuals who drank three to four cups per day had an approximately 25% lower risk than those who drank between zero and two cups per day.

In addition, those who drank more than three to four cups of decaffeinated coffee per day had about a one-third lower risk of diabetes than those who drank none. 

Those who drank more than three to four cups of decaffeinated tea had a one-fifth lower risk than those who drank no tea.

The researchers said that because of the association between decaffeinated coffee and diabetes risk, the association was unlikely to be solely related to caffeine.

Other compounds found in tea and coffee such as magnesium, antioxidants known as lignans and chlorogenic acids could be involved.

"The identification of the active components of these beverages would open up new therapeutic pathways for the primary prevention of diabetes mellitus,” the researchers said.

“If such beneficial effects were observed in interventional trials to be real, the implications for the millions of individuals who have diabetes mellitus, or who are at future risk of developing it, would be substantial.”

The study was published in the European Society of Cardiology’s journal Archives of Internal Medicine.

Speaking about the study, a spokesperson for the European Society of Cardiology, had the following advice: “Coffee helps, but other things are even more important. 

“Those who are overweight should reduce their bodyweight by 5-10% and include physical activity such as a brisk walk for 30 minutes a day. Then those people who are at risk of developing diabetes will reduce this risk by 40-50%.”

From: Irishhealth. com