Coffee consumption and the incidence of type 2 diabetes in men and women with normal glucose tolerance: The Strong Heart Study

Zhang, Y.; Lee, E.T.; Cowan, L.D.; Fabsitz, R.R.; Howard, B.V.

doi:10.1016/j.numecd.2009.10.020

« Previous Next »Nutrition, Metabolism & Cardiovascular Diseases
Volume 21, Issue 6 , Pages 418-423, June 2011

Coffee consumption and the incidence of type 2 diabetes in men and women with normal glucose tolerance: The Strong Heart Study☆

Y. Zhang
- Center for American Indian Health Research, College of Public Health, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, P.O. Box 26901, Oklahoma City, OK 73190, USA
- Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 (405) 271 3090x46720; fax: +1 (405) 271 4390.
E.T. Lee
- Center for American Indian Health Research, College of Public Health, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, P.O. Box 26901, Oklahoma City, OK 73190, USA
- Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, College of Public Health, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA
L.D. Cowan
- Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, College of Public Health, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA
R.R. Fabsitz
- Epidemiology and Biometry Program, National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
B.V. Howard
- MedStar Research Institute, Washington, DC, USA

Received 21 January 2009; received in revised form 15 October 2009; accepted 30 October 2009. published online 19 February 2010.

Abstract

Background and aims

It was reported that high coffee consumption was related to decreased diabetes risk. The aim of this study is to examine the association between coffee consumption and the incidence of type 2 diabetes in persons with normal glucose tolerance in a population with a high incidence and prevalence of diabetes.

Methods and results

In a prospective cohort study, information about daily coffee consumption was collected at the baseline examination (1989–1992) in a population-based sample of American Indian men and women 45–74 years of age. Participants with normal glucose tolerance (N = 1141) at the baseline examination were followed for an average of 7.6 years. The incidence of diabetes was compared across the categories of daily coffee consumption. The hazard ratios of diabetes related to coffee consumption were calculated using Cox proportional hazards models, adjusted for potential confounders.

Levels of coffee consumption were positively related to levels of current smoking and inversely related to body mass index, waist circumference, female gender, and hypertension. Compared to those who did not drink coffee, participants who drank 12 or more cups of coffee daily had 67% less risk of developing diabetes during the follow-up (hazard ratio: 0.33, 95% confidence interval: 0.13, 0.81).

Conclusion

In this population, a high level of coffee consumption was associated with a reduced risk of deterioration of glucose metabolism over an average 7.6 years of follow-up. More work is needed to understand whether there is a plausible biological mechanism for this observation.

Keywords: Coffee, Diabetes mellitus, type 2, Indians, North American