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Caffeine consumption and cardiovascular health

Nature Reviews Cardiology volume 19, pages 429–430 (2022)Cite this article

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Moderate coffee consumption (2–5 cups per day) has been consistently associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease in epidemiological studies. For most individuals, a caffeine intake of up to 400 mg per day is safe and moderate coffee consumption can be included as part of a healthy lifestyle.

Coffee and tea are among the most popular beverages worldwide, making caffeine the most widely used psychoactive substance1. Caffeine is an adenosine-receptor antagonist, which explains its effect on alertness and wakefulness. Adenosine can also affect cardiovascular function through central effects on neurotransmitter and catecholamine release, and peripheral effects through receptors in blood vessels and the heart. Therefore, it is biologically plausible that caffeine intake influences cardiovascular function. Indeed, there have long been concerns about the possible adverse effects of caffeine on cardiovascular risk factors, such as serum cholesterol level, blood pressure and cardiac arrhythmias. However, results from prospective cohort studies with adjustment for confounding by lifestyle factors, such as smoking, suggest that coffee and green tea consumption are associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD)2,3. Considering different sources of evidence, is caffeine intake likely to be beneficial or detrimental to cardiovascular health?

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Fig. 1: Mendelian randomization using genetic variants that affect caffeine metabolism.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences and Epidemiology, Milken Institute School of Public Health, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA

    Rob M. van Dam

  2. Departments of Nutrition and Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

    Rob M. van Dam & Frank B. Hu

  3. Channing Division of Network Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA

    Frank B. Hu

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  1. Rob M. van Dam
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Correspondence to Rob M. van Dam or Frank B. Hu.

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van Dam, R.M., Hu, F.B. Caffeine consumption and cardiovascular health. Nat Rev Cardiol 19, 429–430 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41569-022-00719-4

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