The American journal of clinical nutrition
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The health consequences of coffee drinking remain controversial. We report on an association between coffee consumption and the concentration of total homocysteine (tHcy) in plasma, a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and for adverse pregnancy outcome. The study population consisted of 7589 men and 8585 women 40-67 y of age and with no history of hypertension, diabetes, ischemic heart disease, or cerebrovascular disease. ⋯ The combination of cigarette smoking and high coffee intake was associated with particularly high tHcy concentrations. A strong inverse relation between tea and tHcy concentration in univariate analysis was substantially attenuated after smoking and coffee drinking were adjusted for. The results of the present report should promote future studies on tHcy as a possible mediator of adverse clinical effects related to heavy coffee consumption.