Eirini Trichia, Christina Maria Kastorini, Demosthenes B. Panagiotakos
Abstract
Aim: The association between coffee and tea consumption and cardiovascular disease development is still controversial. The aim of the present work was to review the existing studies which have examined the aforementioned associations. Materials-Methods: 16 studies regarding coffee and 9 regarding tea consumption, selected through a computer-assisted literature search, were identified and discussed. Results: With respect to coffee consumption, results of a meta-analysis of 10 prospective and 13 case-control studies indicated insignificant associations based on the findings of prospective studies, while case-control studies showed a J-shaped association, while a more recent meta-analysis showed that coffee consumption does not increase the risk of developing coronary heart disease. Furthermore, 2 prospective studies showed a U-shaped association, 1 an inverse and 6 no association with cardiovascular disease. Of the case-control studies, 1 showed a J-shaped association with acute coronary syndrome, 2 a positive and 3 no association with myocardial infarction. Regarding tea consumption, results of a meta-analysis of 10 prospective and 7 case-control studies showed an inverse association with respect to myocardial infarction. Furthermore, 3 of the prospective studies showed inverse and 4 no association with cardiovascular disease mortality, while a cross-sectional study indicated an inverse association. Conclusion: Coffee consumption does not seem to increase the possibility of developing coronary heart disease, while concerning the development of cardiovascular disease in general prospective studies show no association, while case-control studies show a positive association. As far as tea consumption is concerned, an inverse dose-dependent association with cardiovascular disease risk was observed.
Keywords: cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease, coffee, tea