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Unfiltered coffee increases plasma homocysteine concentrations in healthy volunteers: a randomized trial^1,2,3

¹ From the Departments of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, and Clinical Chemistry, University Hospital Nijmegen, Netherlands, and the Department of Human Nutrition and Epidemiology, Agricultural University Wageningen, Netherlands.

Background: An elevated plasma homocysteine concentration is a putative risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Observational studies have reported an association between coffee consumption and plasma homocysteine concentrations.

Objective: We studied the effect of coffee consumption on plasma homocysteine in a crossover trial. We used unfiltered coffee so as to include the possible effects of coffee diterpenes, which are removed by filtering.

Design: Sixty-four healthy volunteers (31 men and 33 women) with a mean (±SD) age of 43 ± 11 y were randomly assigned to 2 groups. One group (n = 30) drank 1 L unfiltered cafetière (French press) coffee daily for 2 wk. Such coffee is rich in the cholesterol-raising diterpenes kahweol and cafestol. The other group (n = 34) received water, milk, broth, tea, and chocolate drinks instead of coffee. After a washout period of 8 wk, both groups received the alternate intervention for another 2 wk.

Results: Consumption of 1 L unfiltered coffee/d for 2 wk significantly raised fasting plasma homocysteine concentrations by 10%, from 12.8 to 14.0 µmol/L.

Conclusions: Unfiltered coffee increases plasma homocysteine concentrations in volunteers with normal initial concentrations. It is unclear whether the effect is caused by the cholesterol-raising diterpenes present exclusively in unfiltered coffee or by factors that are also present in filtered coffee.

Key Words: Unfiltered coffee • homocysteine • diet • diterpenes • kahweol • cafestol • cardiovascular disease risk • humans • Netherlands

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