One cup of coffee per day is not likely to cause significant risks, but the more you drink over this one cup maximum, the more likely it will interfere with your health. Research has clearly shown that excessive consumption of caffeinated beverages is dangerous. Heavy caffeine users are at higher risk of cardiac arrhythmias, which can precipitate sudden death. (1) Coffee raises blood pressure (2) and it raises both cholesterol and homocystene, (3) two risk factors for heart disease.

Besides the slightly increased risk of heart disease, there are other problems. Caffeine is a stimulant. The consumption of caffeine enables you to more comfortably get by on less sleep. Inadequate sleep promotes disease and premature aging. (4) There is no substitute for adequate sleep. Drinking coffee also boosts estrogen levels. Higher levels of estrogen worsen problems like endometriosis, breast pain and menstrual disorders. Increased estrogen levels are also linked to higher risk of breast cancer. (5)

If you are overweight, there is another compelling reason to abstain from coffee. Eliminating your caffeine intake can help you lose weight. Coffee drinkers (tea and cola users too) are drawn to eat more frequently then necessary. They eat extra meals and snacks because they mistake unpleasant caffeine withdrawal symptoms with hunger. They can’t tell the difference between true hunger and the discomfort that accompanies caffeine withdrawal.

Decaffeinated coffee also has potentially harmful side effects. It has been found that drinking even moderate amounts of decaffeinated coffee can quadruple a person’s risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis. (6) Researchers speculate that organic solvents in the decaf coffee might be the culprit.

In summary, coffee is most like a drug, not a food. Like most drugs it may have some minor benefits, but its toxic effects and resultant risks overwhelm those minor advantages. Caffeine is a stimulant and a healthy later life and long life is most consistently achieved when stimulants and drugs are avoided, meeting our nutritional needs, with as little exposure to toxicity as possible.

1. Melita A, Jain AC, Mehta MC, Billie M. Caffeine and cardiac arrhythmias, An experimental study in dogs with review of literature. Acta Cardiol 1997;52(3);273-283.
2. Nurminen MI, Niittymen L, Retterstol I, et al. Coffee, caffeine, and blood pressure: a critical review. Eur J Clin Nutr 1999;53(11):831-839.
3. Christensen B, Mosdol A, Retterstol I, et al. Abstention from filtered coffee reduces the concentration of plasma homocysteine and serum cholesterol-a randomized controlled trial. Am J Clin Nutr 2001;74(3);302-307.
4. Spiegel, K, Leproult R, Van Cauter EV. Impact of sleep debt on metabolic and endocrine function. Lancet 1999;354(9188);1435-1439.
5. Lucero J, Harlow BI, Berbieri RI, et al. Early follicular phase hormone levels in relation to patterns of alcohol, tobacco and coffee use. Fertile Steril 2001;76(4):723-729.
6. Mikuls TR, Cerhan JR, Criswell LA et al. Coffee, tea and caffeine consumption and risk of rheumatoid arthritis: results from the Iowa Women’s Health Study. Arthritis & Rheumatism 2002;46(1):83-91.