Coffee, Tea May Reduce Diabetes Risk... According To a New Report From Australia

Coffee, Tea May Reduce Diabetes Risk...
According To a New Report From Australia

Drinking three to four cups of coffee or tea may reduce the risk of
developing diabetes, says a new review and meta-analysis of the data.

A review of prospective studies of regular or decaffeinated coffee and tea
revealed that for each additional daily cup of coffee was associated with a
7 per cent reduction in the excess risk of diabetes, according to findings
published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

"If such beneficial effects were observed in interventional trials to be real,
the implications for the millions of individuals who have diabetes mellitus,
or who are at future risk of developing it, would be substantial," wrote the
reviewers from the University of Sydney, Australia.

The beverage, and its constituent ingredients, has come under increasing
study with research linking it to reduced risk of diabetes, and improved
liver health.

Coffee, one of the world's largest traded commodities produced in more
than 60 countries and generating more than $70 billion in retail sales a year,
continues to generate new research and scientific interest, and has been
linked to reduced risks of certain diseases, especially of the liver and diabetes.

The new review reinforces the link between coffee consumption and a reduced
risk of developing diabetes, a condition that affects millions of people worldwide,
affecting a large percentage of the total population. This figure is projected to
increase significantly, unless effective nutritional - dietary measures are taken.

In the US, there are almost 24 million people with diabetes, equal to 8 per cent
of the population. The total costs are estimated to be as much as $174 billion,
with $116 billion being direct costs from medication, according to 2005-2007
American Diabetes Association figures.

Scientists reviewed data of over 500,000 individuals with over 21,000 cases
of type-2 diabetes from prospective studies. Eighteen studies looked at coffee,
six studies also included information about decaffeinated coffee, and seven
studies reported on tea consumption.

In addition to risk-lowering effects of additional regular coffee consumption,
three to four cups of decaffeinated coffee were associated with a 33 per cent
lower risk of diabetes, compared to drinking no decaf.

Tea drinkers also benefited, with three to four cups associated with a one-fifth
lower risk, added the researchers. "That the apparent protective effect of tea
and coffee consumption appears to be independent of a number of potential
confounding variables raises the possibility of direct biological effects," wrote
the reviewers.

Beneficial bio-active antioxidant constituents...
Commenting on the possible bioactives and mechanism of action, the
researchers noted that because of risk reductions associated with
decaffeinated coffee, the effects were unlikely to be due solely to caffeine.
Other compounds in coffee and tea, such as magnesium, antioxidant lignans
or chlorogenic acids, may also be involved.

"It could also be considered that we will advise our patients most at risk for
diabetes mellitus to increase their consumption of tea and coffee in addition
to increasing their levels of physical activity and weight loss," they concluded.

Commenting independently on the results, diabetes specialists and researchers
noted: The principle is that if you drink coffee whether it is decaffeinated or not,
you have less chance of developing diabetes. The data has been strengthened
by bringing several studies together.

Source: Archives of Internal Medicine
Volume 169, Issue 22
"Coffee, Decaffeinated Coffee, and Tea Consumption in
Relation to Incident Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus:
A Systematic Review With Meta-analysis"