Worried about your liver? Drink
COFFEE: Two cups a day 'can halve the risk of damage caused by alcohol'
Two cups of coffee a day can help stave off liver disease
caused by drinking too much alcohol, scientists claimed today.
In fact, regular consumption of the drink slashed the risk
of the risk of liver cirrhosis by 44 per cent.
Researchers from the University of Southampton reviewed nine
long-term studies involving almost half a million men and women from six
countries.
They found that those who drank two cups of coffee every day
were less likely to suffer from liver cirrhosis or die from it.
Liver cirrhosis is a condition where the liver is scarred
due to long-term effects of toxins like alcohol or due to hepatitis C
infection.
It can be fatal as it can lead to liver failure and cancer -
causing over one million deaths worldwide per year.
Footballer George Best, musicians Jimi Hendrix and Gerry
Rafferty and actor Larry Hagman all died of cirrhosis.The authors concluded having two cups of coffee a day was
linked to a near halving of the risk of liver cirrhosis.
They said: 'This is a large effect compared to many medications used for
prevention of the disease.
'For example, statin therapy reduces the risk of heart
disease by just 25 per cent.
'Furthermore, unlike many medications, coffee is generally
well tolerated and has an excellent safety profile.
'The findings are important given the high incidence of
liver disease, the positive interaction between alcohol and obesity for liver
disease risk and the lack of specific treatments to prevent liver disease due
to these factors.'
The study was
published in the science journal Alimentary Pharmacology and TherapeuticsThe
report said: 'Coffee comprises over a thousand compounds, many of which are
biologically active and may affect human health.
'These include caffeine, chlorogenic acid, melanoids and the
pentacyclic diterpenes, kahweol and cafestol. 'The biological effects of coffee include stimulation of the
central nervous system, primarily by caffeine, the attenuation of oxidative
stress and inflammation, and anti-carcinogenesis.
'Due to its widespread consumption, coffee and its effects
on health have been studied extensively. In the context of liver disease,
coffee appears to confer a number of protective effects.
'Animal studies and human observational studies suggest that
coffee consumption reduces the frequency of abnormal liver function tests,
fibrosis, cirrhosis and HCC.
'In addition, a randomised-controlled trial showed that
patients with hepatitis C who drank more coffee had lower serum levels of liver
enzymes.
'The
aim of this meta-analysis was to summarise the evidence from studies on the
effect of coffee on cirrhosis
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