People who over-indulge in alcohol and food risk serious damage to their livers, but a new study suggests that they might benefit from an extra cup of joe, The Washington Post reports. New research has found that drinking more coffee could help safeguard the liver, which is crucial to many metabolic processes. Researchers analyzed data from nine previously published studies, encompassing more than 430,000 participants, and found that drinking two additional cups of coffee a day was associated with a 44 percent lower risk of developing cirrhosis. A potentially fatal condition with no cure, cirrhosis involves the hardening and destruction of liver tissue, and kills more than 1 million people a year worldwide. Apart from alcohol consumption, cirrhosis may be caused by hepatitis infections, immune disorders, and fatty liver disease, which is tied to obesity and diabetes. How java works its magic on the liver is unclear, but study author Oliver Kennedy says it’s nice to know that you can get such large benefits from “a cheap, ubiquitous, and well-tolerated beverage.”
Taken from the March 11th edition of The Week Magazine.
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