by Uma Shankari

Created on: October 10, 2009   Last Updated: October 12, 2009

Around the world, people who depend on this swig to revive the drooping early morning spirits were thrilled by what the researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts, reported in early 2005. Drinking the infusion of ground, roasted coffee beans cuts the risk of type 2 diabetes. The more the merrier, enthused coffee lovers: the study had found that the risk coverage from coffee is proportional to the person's coffee consumption. Men who drank more than six cups of coffee per day were 50% less likely to develop type 2 diabetes, though women were able to whittle their risks by 30% only.

The researchers attributed the beneficial properties of coffee to one of its components chlorogenic acid that exhibits antioxidant properties. Chlorogenic acids inhibit one of the enzymes involved in the formation of glucose in the small intestine and this helps in controlling high blood glucose levels or hyperglycaemia. Research has also shown that coffee drinkers had significantly lower levels of C-peptide hormone, a component of insulin in our body, when compared to non-coffee drinkers. Higher level of C-peptide indicates insulin resistance.

Before one could celebrate coffee as the new health food came the warning: the caffeine in coffee could be a trouble maker. Diabetes Care (March 2005) carried the finding by Canadian researchers that caffeine significantly reduced insulin sensitivity. This was also corroborated by scientists from Duke University Medical Center as reported in the July 2005 of the same journal. This study shows that caffeine causes the body to release large amounts of adrenalin, which raises blood sugar levels. Besides, caffeine stimulates pancreatic cells, so the body produces more insulin and the cells become less responsive to insulin. If the blood sugar rises too high, sugar sticks to cells and makes structural changes to the cell walls. High levels of insulin constrict arteries and increase the risk of heart attacks; they can increase your appetite and induce the liver to make more fat and the fat cells in the body to store it. But don't forget forget, caffeine consumption may raise the blood pressure of hypertensive people.

When caffeine was removed from coffee, the study found that the blood sugar levels did not rise higher than normal. This suggests that diabetics should drink decaffeinated coffee, rather than one with caffeine.

A great reference site for information on coffee (and its effect on diabetes) is Coffee Science Information Center

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