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THURSDAY, April 5, 2018 (HealthDay News) — There is an inverse association between coffee consumption and coronary artery calcium (CAC), especially among never smokers, according to a study published online March 24 in the Journal of the American Heart Association<\/i>.<\/p>\n
Andreia M. Miranda, Ph.D., from the University of S\u00e3o Paulo in Brazil, and colleagues conducted a cross-sectional study involving 4,426 participants from the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health who underwent a CAC measurement. A food frequency questionnaire was used to assess coffee consumption. CAC was detected with computed tomography and expressed as Agatston units, and further classified as an Agatston score \u2265100 (CAC \u2265100).<\/p>\n
The researchers identified significant inverse associations between coffee consumption (more than three cups\/day) and CAC \u2265100 (odds ratio, 0.33 for more than three cups\/day). There was a statistically significant interaction effect for coffee consumption and smoking status; the odds ratio of coronary calcification was lower for never smokers drinking more three cups\/day (odds ratio, 0.37), while intake of coffee was not significantly associated with coronary calcification for current and former smokers.<\/p>\n
“Habitual consumption of more than three cups\/day of coffee decreased odds of subclinical atherosclerosis among never smokers,” the authors write. “The consumption of coffee could exert a potential beneficial effect against coronary calcification, particularly in nonsmokers.”<\/p>\n