Coffee and Hypertension
by Michael Castleman
The Herb Quarterly Magazine, Summer 2006
Offhand, it makes sense that coffee (Coffea, various
species) should contribute to high blood pressure (hypertension). After all,
caffeine stimulates the central nervous system and causes a significant spike in
blood pressure. And if coffee raises blood pressure in the short-term, why
shouldn't regular coffee consumption raise it over the long haul? According to a
recent Harvard University study published in the Journal of the American
Medical Association, this assumption is incorrect. Coffee does not
contribute significantly to hypertension.
Using data from the ongoing Nurses' Health Study, researchers
tracked the coffee consumption and blood pressure of 155,600 female nurses in
the US for 12 years (1991-2003). While more than 10,000 nurses were diagnosed
with high blood pressure during that period, the study concluded that coffee was
not to blame.
Many things in life cause a sharp increase in blood pressure -
coffee, exercise, roller coaster rides, driving in rush hour traffic, orgasm -
but these spikes in blood pressure don't cause hypertension, which is defined as
persistently high pressure over a period of months. (Some activities, such as
exercise, actually help prevent the condition.) Hypertension develops when the
arteries malfunction. While healthy arteries take a short increase in blood
pressure is stride - muscle tissue constricts, raising pressure, then relaxes,
returning to normal - with hypertension, arteries remain constricted and blood
pressure stays persistently high.
Coffee causes a brief spike in blood pressure, nothing more.
However, researchers have discovered that another common beverage, cola, does
increase the risk of hypertension, though they're not clear why. If you have
risk factors that can lead to heart disease or stroke - family history, smoking,
high cholesterol, obesity, sedentary lifestyle - don't ditch the coffee, but
stay away from the cola.
Natural Health Hut
