Researchers found 3 cups of filter coffee may ward off type 2 diabetes
In good news for coffee lovers,
researchers have found that coffee can help reduce the risk of
developing type 2 diabetes – but only filtered coffee, rather than
boiled coffee. The study shows that the choice of preparation method
influences the health effects of coffee.
The study stresses that the health
impacts of coffee do not depend solely on if it is filtered or not. They
also vary with how the coffee beans, and the drink in general, are
managed.
The findings from Chalmers University of
Technology and Umea University in Sweden, offer new insight into this
connection, using a novel method to help differentiate between the
effects of filtered coffee and boiled coffee.
“We have identified specific molecules –
‘biomarkers’ – in the blood of those taking part in the study, which
indicate the intake of different sorts of coffee. These biomarkers are
then used for analysis when calculating type 2 diabetes risk,” said a
study researcher.
“Our results now clearly show that
filtered coffee has a positive effect in terms of reducing the risk of
developing type 2 diabetes. But boiled coffee does not have this
effect,” he added.
With the use of these biomarkers, the
researchers were able to show that people who drank two to three cups of
filtered coffee a day had a 60 per cent lower risk of developing type 2
diabetes than people who drank less than one cup of filtered coffee a
day.
Consumption of boiled coffee had no effect on the diabetes risk in the study.
To differentiate the diabetes risk for
boiled and filtered coffee, a new technique called metabolomics was
used, in combination with classic dietary questionnaires.
Metabolomics makes it possible to
identify the blood concentration of specific molecules from a given food
or drink and use that as an objective measurement of intake – instead
of simply relying on self-reported intakes from the questionnaires,
which are prone to large errors.
“Metabolomics is a fantastic tool, not
just for capturing the intake of specific foods and drinks, but also for
studying the effects that that intake has on people’s metabolism. We
can derive important information on the mechanisms behind how certain
foods influence disease risk,” said study lead author.
According to the researchers, many people wrongly believe that coffee has only negative effects on health.
This could be because previous studies
have shown that boiled coffee increases the risk of heart and vascular
diseases, due to the presence of diterpenes, a type of molecule found in
boiled coffee.
“But it has been shown that when you
filter coffee, the diterpenes are captured in the filter. As a result,
you get the health benefits of the many other molecules present, such as
different phenolic substances. In moderate amounts, caffeine also has
positive health effects,” he said.
Many other types of coffee preparation
were not specifically investigated in the study, such as instant,
espresso, cafetiere, and percolator coffee.