Coffee and Cardiovascular Health: A Review of Literature

Abstract

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide and is on the rise. Diet is considered to be a key modifiable risk factor for reducing the incidence of cardiovascular disease. Dietary approaches have proved advantageous for preventing disease morbidity and mortality but tend to focus on fruit, vegetables, fiber, lean protein and healthy fats. Coffee is one of the most popular beverages worldwide but is often surrounded by controversy with regard to its impact on health. This review aims to explore the relationship between coffee consumption and cardiovascular disease. The evidence from observational trials as well as randomized controlled trials is discussed. By focusing on specific bioactive compounds in coffee, potential mechanisms are explored, and future directions of research in the field are considered.

Keywords: CVD; caffeine; cardiovascular disease; chlorogenic acid; coffee; diterpene; trigonelline.

Figure 2

Metabolic pathways of caffeine, chlorogenic acid, diterpenes and trigonelline [40,58,59,81,82,83,94,111,112,117]. CGA is chlorogenic acid; min is minutes; h is hour.

Figure 1

Examples of bioactive components in coffee.