One Major Effect Coffee Has on Your Liver, New Study Says
According to the Cleveland Clinic, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease affects one in four Americans—and in a new study, researchers suggest it's the world's most common cause of chronic liver disease. The good news? The same study reveals that one secret to preventing non-alcoholic fatty liver disease may be right inside your coffee cup. Here's yet another reason to praise your beloved beverage.
Keep reading to learn why a team of liver experts are suggesting coffee may help prevent non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. For food and wellness news delivered daily, sign up for our newsletter.
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, explained.
Put simply, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease develops when excess fat builds up in liver cells because an individual regularly consumes too much fat for the body to metabolize.
As the Cleveland Clinic's blog has noted, this disease tends to affect people who are overweight or who have diabetes or high cholesterol.
A new study looked at the "anti-fibrotic" effects of coffee.
For this study, which was recently published in the journal Nutrients, a team of researchers in the Division of Gastroenterology & Liver Unit of Canada's University of Alberta hospital recognized the antioxidant properties in coffee and some of its other benefits.
With this in mind, they hypothesized that coffee may reduce the risk of molecular-level scarring in the liver, which, in severe cases, may lead to fatty liver disease, cirrhosis, or even eventual death.
The researchers performed a thorough review.
The team analyzed a collection of 20 studies dated between 2010 and January 2021.
In total, more than 105,000 individuals had participated in those studies that had looked at the effects of diet, and coffee in specific, on the liver.
Coffee consumption demonstrated an effect on liver health.
The research team concluded: "The meta-analysis showed coffee consumption to be significantly associated with a 35% decreased odds of significant liver fibrosis"—adding: "This meta-analysis supports the protective role of coffee consumption on significant liver fibrosis in patients with [non-alcoholic fatty liver disease]."
Go here to learn more about the effects of coffee on your liver.
Then, keep reading:
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