Study Finds Drinking Coffee Reduces Stroke Risk in Women

A study from Sweden has found that drinking coffee actually has health benefits for women - a reduced risk of stroke. Drinking none increases stroke risk.One sentence and 19 words but it might be enough to get women to drink a coffee daily – or feel better about drinking coffee now. The sentence is the conclusion in the abstract for a study published March 10, 2011 in the journal Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.

Here's that sentence: "These findings suggest that low or no coffee consumption is associated with an increased risk of stroke in women." In other words – coffee consumption can help women increase their chances of not having a stroke.

Coffee Decreases Stroke Risk in Women

The study, called Coffee Consumption and Risk of Stroke in Women, looked at coffee consuming habits of 34,670 women for a little over 10 years, beginning from 1997. The amount of coffee consumed by the women was tabulated by self-administered tests. The study authors wrote that the "Incident stroke cases were ascertained from the Swedish Hospital Discharge Registry". The coffee and stroke cases data combined for revealing conclusions.

The researchers from Sweden found that the women who consumed more than a single cup of coffee each day actually had a 22 to 25 percent less chance of having a stroke in comparison to those women who drank less than a cup of coffee every day. The study also found that not drinking any coffee during the day was associated with a slightly increased number of a woman eventually having a stroke.

Images

"Some women have avoided consuming coffee because they have thought it is unhealthy," the study's lead author, Susanna Larsson of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, said in a statement. "In fact, increasing evidence indicates that moderate coffee consumption may decrease the risk of some diseases such as diabetes, liver cancer and possibly stroke."

Coffee Consumption and Women: More Study Needed

The results may come as a surprise to some as while no definitive data was available saying that moderate coffee consumption is bad, coffee has nonetheless had a reputation that is not altogether positive. This study does not make conclusions about drinking anything but moderate amounts of coffee in a day, however, so drinking excessive amounts make not get these results.

Study authors say that they are continuing the follow-up studies with the group of women and that more data must become available to make definitive conclusions about coffee consumption and women. It is thought coffee may work in this protective way due to the antioxidants protecting the lining of arteries from being damaged by reducing inflammation.

Read More